Monday, September 06, 2010


‘Recovery’ unaffordable
...Sure, if you’re a blue-collar worker competing with illegal-immigrant labor, times are pretty tough. But if you’re in the $200 million high school business, you’re booming!

Struggling taxpayers looking for prosperity just have to drive through Newton and check out the new 400,000 square-foot high school with its two theaters, two gymnasiums, its fully-functional television studio and an SOA or “simulated outdoor area.” Happy days are obviously here again when students are provided Kindle book readers and teachers use “interactive white boards” in wireless-tech classrooms.

Some people would feel a bit uncomfortable with such an ostentatious display of taxpayer-funded wealth during this economic downturn, but not in Newton. They are more than happy to show off their computer labs and “Starbucks-style cafe.” So what if the final construction cost was around $480 per square foot - three times the average for commercial construction in New York City? Who cares if it cost more than $100,000 per pupil? We’re with the government and we’re livin’ large!

And not just in Newton. Life is good in all five of Sen. John Kerry’s houses, plus wherever he’s parking his yacht for tax purposes these days. The Hill magazine reports that not only is our senior senator the richest member of Congress for the second year in a row, but his net worth went up by $20 million in 2009.

In fact, “the 50 wealthiest members of Congress saw their collective fortunes rise to $1.4 billion in 2009 - an $85.1 million jump from 2008,” says The Hill.

Not many people can say that. Well, not in the real world, anyway.

And that’s the key. When you’re looking for recovery in an Obama economy, all the good news is in the government sector....