A State Senate Committee Tuesday endorsed raising a portion of mildly-toughened OWI enforcement costs through a 50-cent-per-liter tax increase on hard liquor.
Never the less, Charlie Sykes is in high rant this morning, warning that the tax money will somehow fall under the control of WEAC, the road-builders or the trial lawyers, and more tax increases will follow- - on fast food, sugar, and so on.
Can you imagine living with such a fear-driven and irrational state of mind?
The politics of the issue continues to be predictably disappointing.
Legislators trumpeting their bold move shied away from any tax increase that would fall on Wisconsin-produced wine, and especially beer - - the beverage that really defines the state's drinking culture.
Legislators in Wisconsin are too controlled by alcohol lobbyists to spread the enforcement, treatment and education costs among all alcohol products.
As with the legislators' unwillingness to criminalize all first OWI offenses, and to brag about a 'reform' that makes some repeat offender's fourth convictions a felony, the small tax increase on hard liquor is more Legislation Lite - - and unlike what you hear on talk radio - - this failure of will is where criticism of the Legislature should be directed.
"..Sykes is in high rant..."
ReplyDeleteGoodness, where would Sykes ever get the notion that money would be diverted from one purpose to another?
We all know that this has never happened in the history of Wisconsin politics.
"Legislators in Wisconsin are too controlled..."
Wow, even a liberal controlled government fails.
I wonder how many times 'legislators' would be replaced with "conservatives" or "Republicans", if Madison politics were not under liberal control. Here, you do a nice job of hiding the fact that the Democrat controlled government is failing by merely calling them out as legislators.
It is understandable James that you would find anyone who against yet another increase in taxes/fees by Democrats as being "irrational".
ReplyDeleteSome of us taxpayers take issue with taxation by a thousand cuts and are not crack-addicted to taking away peoples hard earned money like you are.
To Anon Tom: I think "legislators" covers the spectrum correcly.
ReplyDeleteTo Anon Jim: So you don't like paying taxes for things like streets, police, fire, clean water, public health - - as I guess they have nothing to do with you?
Nice retort James - with your predictable sophomoric response I see you took the Progressive 101 course.
ReplyDeleteNo I don't mind paying taxes at all for essential government services.
What I do mind is paying 2 to 3 to 4 or more times what it should cost for all these services government provides (including the ones the government has no role being involved in) to cover the pervasive corruption, fraud, incompetence, and low expectations that exists throughout the public sector.
Especially when you see it finally reported by our lame media and even then time after time no one ever loses their job or is prosecuted.
I notice you never have a peep to say anything about it other than when it impacts one of your precious government programs.
Bad news for wine lover, they don't like paying taxes on liquors. Imagine if govt. taxfree the liquors
ReplyDelete