I am so happy to see such fine citizens espousing the benefits of higher taxes to be spent on the public good. Unfortunately there are people like the Contrarian who continue to organize and prevent me from raising taxes on all citizens. So if you wouldn’t mind participating in my government tithing program and just adding a little extra when you pay your property taxes next time, I promise it will go to reducing drop out rates, or whatever is the cause celeb at that moment.

See you at the voting booth!

“Seems to me like it is fine for a majority of people to come together and solicit local government as a partner in this goal.”

Well, Benjamin, while it is fine for a majority, or any other number, of people to come together to pursue any goal they find compelling, when they “solicit local government” to join their crusade they do so in order to impose that goal on others who do not share it, and in the process prevent them from pursuing their own goals. Nothing in my “agenda” precludes your pursuit of any goals you choose. It only precludes you from imposing them on others. It thus allows each person to pursue the goals important to him, to whatever extent his own energy and resources allow, rather than allow the faction which can assemble the most guns to impose their goals on everyone.

Seems to me like it is fine for a majority of people to come together and solicit local government as a partner in this goal. I want to be free to do this and I don’t want Contrarian’s limited agenda to be imposed upon my ability to collaborate with elected officials and what our tax dollars support. If you don’t agree with the agenda of your neighbors then you are perfectly free to get in there and participate to lobby against as is anyone else. I say stop whining about “freedom” and act on your values as you see fit.

“The ‘bare bones’ world the Contrarian advocates is very bleak indeed. I’m happy to pay my fair share to help make sure that the homeless don’t freeze to death in the winter time, to coordinate efforts to reduce our drop-out rate, and to be good stewards of our local natural resources, etc. ”

Nothing prevents you from doing any of those things, Tina. You’re certainly free to devote as much of your own time, efforts, and money to pursuing any Utopian goals which appeal to you. But when you seek to enlist city government in their pursuit you engage in hypocrisy — you are trying to use government force to foist the costs of your chosen goals onto others. You seek to impose your goals upon them, and deny them the use of their own resources for pursuing their own goals, which you no doubt dismiss as trivial.

The ideal of a free society — one in which each person is free to live the lifestyle she chooses and devote her justly acquired resources to pursuit of whatever goals she finds compelling — has always seemed “bleak” to Utopians, who have never hesitated to inflict their fantasies on others via State power.

The “bare bones” world the Contrarian advocates is very bleak indeed. I’m happy to pay my fair share to help make sure that the homeless don’t freeze to death in the winter time, to coordinate efforts to reduce our drop-out rate, and to be good stewards of our local natural resources, etc. It is doubtful that the private sector would step in if the City were to abandon the services it now provides. I don’t know what you are smoking if you think the private sector will somehow self-regulate to protect the interest of generations yet to come. No, they are beholden by the quarter to their shareholders, nothing less, nothing more.

You can take your anti-civil society curmudgeonliness and go home with it. In no way can you claim to represent the majority who don’t vote. What a philosophical ego maniac you are.

On a serious note… I will ask the question I have asked several times on this blog. Why the government on this one to? Wasn’t it a public/private partnership that led to the Riverpark Square debacle?