The "Wild Spaces - Public Places" initiative, which will be on the ballot in November, is one of those things that seem clearly the right thing to do. But there is always that block of voters who believe any tax is a bad tax (the Gainesville Sun had a depressing number of folks who wrote in lately against taxes for public education, for Pete's sake), so it may face some opposition in November - especially this November.
But it's exactly at times like this that it's most important to be forward-thinking in where our money goes. In hard times, folks need public spaces more than ever - free places for their children to play, place where elders can find community and resources for this part of their life, and land that will be preserved for all of us now and for future generations. This is real frugality - getting the best bang for our buck by putting it in places that will benefit us all, especially the most vulnerable. (Oh, how tempting it is to point out the huge amount we have been recently taxed to bail out big business, and the big question looming regarding whom these dollars will actually benefit).
As stocks plunge, and irresponsibility skyrockets in the national picture, It's up to us to take care of what's important in our own place. Who can argue that our elders, our children and our land aren't excellent investments?
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