Pork-Barrel Politics
We understand how the political system works. There's lobbying, and there's pork barrel. I'm sure there are people lobbying for pork, and for some projects, the public-relations benefits are huge, but it's sometimes really hard to see how some pork barrel projects come about.
Military bases are popular, symbolic of good things, high-profile, and economically important. It's not hard to see why a politician might agitate to bring them to his home district. But as any cranky website can tell you, some really stupid things get earmarked. This is nothing new, but seriously; how do these things happen? Ted Stevens was so committed to his "Bridge to Nowhere" that he threatened to quit the Senate if the funding were withdrawn. That was probably just an idle threat, but where did the Bridge to Nowhere project come from in the first place? Alaska isn't a populous place, but 750,000 people live there, and only a hundred would be helped by the construction of the bridge. A bunch more would benefit from the mere redistribution of money, but surely there are better projects; Alaska is a pretty run-down place.
It's not like this project is vital to Ted Stevens' career. He's probably going to retire soon anyway, and if he doesn't, he'll win re-election. And most importantly, who follows pork-barrel spending? As I said, there are cranks who keep track of the North Carolina porcelain doll museum, but are the actual residents of North Carolina taking notice? Of those who do notice, and who realize that the museum was a result of federal spending, how many are going to credit their representative? If Americans are as disgusted by pork as they claim to be, I hardly think these white elephants are going to sway many voters to your column, even leaving aside the federal-money-for-me-but-not-for-thee mentality.
But the real problem is that nobody cares. I've lived in this district for a while, Military bases aside, I couldn't tell you of one federal penny my representatives have brought home. And I'm one of those guys who pays attention to politics. I don't understand how our political system works after all.
Military bases are popular, symbolic of good things, high-profile, and economically important. It's not hard to see why a politician might agitate to bring them to his home district. But as any cranky website can tell you, some really stupid things get earmarked. This is nothing new, but seriously; how do these things happen? Ted Stevens was so committed to his "Bridge to Nowhere" that he threatened to quit the Senate if the funding were withdrawn. That was probably just an idle threat, but where did the Bridge to Nowhere project come from in the first place? Alaska isn't a populous place, but 750,000 people live there, and only a hundred would be helped by the construction of the bridge. A bunch more would benefit from the mere redistribution of money, but surely there are better projects; Alaska is a pretty run-down place.
It's not like this project is vital to Ted Stevens' career. He's probably going to retire soon anyway, and if he doesn't, he'll win re-election. And most importantly, who follows pork-barrel spending? As I said, there are cranks who keep track of the North Carolina porcelain doll museum, but are the actual residents of North Carolina taking notice? Of those who do notice, and who realize that the museum was a result of federal spending, how many are going to credit their representative? If Americans are as disgusted by pork as they claim to be, I hardly think these white elephants are going to sway many voters to your column, even leaving aside the federal-money-for-me-but-not-for-thee mentality.
But the real problem is that nobody cares. I've lived in this district for a while, Military bases aside, I couldn't tell you of one federal penny my representatives have brought home. And I'm one of those guys who pays attention to politics. I don't understand how our political system works after all.
posted by apk01004 at 5:00 PM
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