One Part of the Budget

Ever since this budget "crisis" began I've been paying more attention to politics, and believe you me, not everyone is happy about this.

One of the things I noticed was Land and Water Conservation Fund, how Obama requested full funding, which is $900 Million. These funds are derived from monies made from the sales of US Land (aka, YOUR land), and the subsequent taxes on those lands. Most of the time they're sold to Oil and Gas companies, who make Buh Buh Buh BILLIONS of dollars, they pay taxes, hence the fund.

Only TWICE since the fund began has the funding been met in full. Most of the time it's around half. In the last 10 years on one occasion the allotted monies for the LWCF was $1.2 Billion, and that was in 2001. Don't get crazy and think to yourself, "When Bush was President?" Yes, he may have been, but it was Clinton money, voted when he was in office, and it was because of another program in addition to LWCF.

In case you're wondering how monies were doled out under Bush you can read about it here. But do you really even need to look? Lets just say there's the allotted monies, but there are little ways you can finagle how it is spent. In Bush's last years he made sure some private land owners worked WITH states to maintain properties, parks, etc, relying on the PEOPLE to handle things. In other words, he gave money to individuals, and they're likely large landowners who gave money to him.

BUT THAT'S JUST A GUESS!!!!

Point of all this is simple to me.

California is a huge recipient of these matching funds, and these days states won't be matching anything. Parks, land, recreation, other areas, etc. etc. NEED THE MONIES. Meanwhile, Republicans only want to "make cuts" and not "increase revenues." Basically, cut programs like these, which are built on the monies made by the very people Republicans won't tax, and short change every day people who have less of a country to speak of. Less parks, less wildlife, less nature, less clean water, less clean air. You get the picture. But the people who they WON'T TAX, they don't have these problems. No, no, no.

In fact, they don't worry about clean air, because they can buy it. They don't worry about clean water because they could afford to refill their pools every day with Evian. They don't worry about protected land because there are gates on the golfcourses. And when people are literally DYING IN CITIES FROM EXTREME HEAT, they have a park to go to, it's called their BACKYARD, and their BEACHFRONT PROPERTY.

I don't mind that these people have all these things. I want these things. But I sure as hell think it's pretty ridiculous to be discussing cutting money for public land use, and not asking the wealthy to pay more. Republicans want CUTS ONLY.

Seriously?

The Republican budget requests $63 Million dollars of the $900 Million allotted for the program. That's a 93% cut. That's just over a $1 Million per state. That's NOTHING.

There was a time in 1964 when the government made a deal, signed a law, and promised Americans that while we're giving away these lands, and allowing these enormous companies and individuals to profit, they will be giving back to you. President Eisenhower signed this law. He was a Republican. Nixon was his Vice President.

These men wouldn't even be allowed in the room to negotiate a budget ceiling with today's Republicans. And yet at the time, they weren't liberal enough! The nation then chose Kennedy.

This is who we are today.

Fun.

And that's just ONE PART of the budget. The part where you suffer, but the wealthiest will not.

Fear not, Romney will fix it........