Another year has passed us by, and around the country new laws are, or will be, in effect soon.
We are fortunate to have benevolent leaders here in our Washington with apparently nothing more to do than add to the stacks of laws we already have.
But as much of a nuisance as these new laws are, it’s the new taxes and uncontrolled spending that is proposed already that worries me. In just a few days, the newly minted legislators will descend on Olympia salivating at the possibilities to spend more of other people’s money.
If they were honest with us, they’d wear T-shirts that say, “We’ll spend more so you don’t have to.”
This is especially true since this Democrats have complete control of all branches of our state government — the legislative, executive and judicial. Well, they’re not really supposed to have the judicial, but based on their continuous rulings for big government spending and environmentalists, they really do.
And so, shortly, our governor and his Democrat allies in Olympia will painfully wince and tell us for our own good that as much as they detest new taxes (they don’t), and despite the new increased revenue forecast (which is substantial but will be ignored), they need even more money — so pay up.
Just for grins, you should corner any candidate for state office and ask them just how much is enough? You can’t believe them, of course, but it’s a fun exercise. Candidate Inslee said we had enough taxes and that no new taxes were needed — until he was elected. In fact, he changed course almost the day he was elected.
Try it yourself and here’s what you’re likely to hear: “it depends.” On what? That should be your follow-up question. That depends too. Well, they will say, we have to invest in our future and to do that we need more. Well, how much more?
It still depends.
Really it only depends on how much you have. Once they figure out that, then they know what they need, and that’s all of it.
But to be fair, they are only reacting to a constituency that keeps asking for more “free stuff,” and lately a judiciary that in my opinion has forgotten its place.
So as we wait for this next session to start, we only know our legislators will spend more money than they have, and then still need to take more money from us.
Nothing new here.
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Like us here in Washington, I assumed Oregonians might have many of the same concerns: Iran, ISIS, North Korea, spotted owls, marbled murrelets getting splattered by a wind turbine or natural disasters.
But I was wrong.
Those poor folks in Oregon have something way more frightening in their future to worry about, like where the heck does the fuel go in my car?
A new law now allows them to pump their own gas on occasion — in some areas — and apparently this has left them completely unhinged.
Oh, I get it. They may have to look in the owner’s manual to find their fuel fill. They may have to read the instructions on the pump to figure out how to turn the pump on. They may have to exit their car and pump gas in bad weather … like the rest of the country.
It’s going to be rough.
Social media comments were eating these cupcakes alive.
One whiner said “I don’t want to smell like gas!” Someone should tell them about gloves and the fact that the gas goes in the tank, not on them.
Another whined, “what if my kids are in the car?” Oh my gosh! You mean while you are standing outside pumping the gas? Like an attendant might?
I saw a photo of some goofball pumping diesel in their gas-powered car, apparently believing green handles on pumps mean environmentally friendly gasoline.
I guess the big “diesel” sign on the pump wasn’t clear enough. So the world has ended in Oregon because they will join 48 other states and may pump their own gas — even with kids in the car.
Yeah ... That’s horrible.
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John McCroskey was Lewis County sheriff from 1995 to 2005. He lives outside Chehalis, and can be contacted at musingsonthemiddlefork@yahoo.com.
