Ah, Texas Politics

There's nothing else like it. OK, there are some things like it, but it's true: "everything is bigger and better in Texas."

One of the fantastic things about Texas politics (or more accurately, governance) is the fact that our state legislature meets only once every two years. Oh . . . did you hear that? That was the audible gasp of a northeastern liberal who thinks that life as we know it would come to a grinding halt if government wasn't involved in every facet of his daily life. Well, we Texans hold the diametrically opposed opinion (or very close to it) that daily life is a thing 'o beauty, until government gets inappropriately involved. That's why we limit our legislators to one session every other year—they have less time to screw things up for us. (I think I heard another sudden intake of air coming from the northeast. Did you?) But wait, there's more. We also pay them very little for being a state legislator; in fact, they earn $7,200 per year. That way, if they want to eat more than once or twice a week, they have to do something the rest of us have to do: find a real job. (*Thud* The liberal just passed out.) Yes, indeed, they have to earn money in the private sector. And in doing so, they'll experience first-hand what it's like to live under all the laws they create.

Anyway, I digress. Recently, our Governor called back our legislature into what's called a "Special Session" for the purpose of fixing our school finance system. (I just can't get into that topic right now, so I won't. But I certainly will have to come back to this topic in the future.) But instead of fixing our school finance system, do you know what these legislative bozos are doing? They are considering passage of a new tax increase plan. In fact, the plan was passed out of committee this past Thursday. Oh my. I seem to have left out a small detail in all this. Ready? Here it is: as of this past week the State of Texas has a budget surplus estimated to be north of $8,000,000,000. (Everybody put your little finger up to your mouth and laugh maniacally.) Yes, everything is bigger and better in Texas.

Each legislator, their family, their staff, their poodles, their hamsters, and their hamsters' fleas could take a bath in all this money and still have a whole dang bunch left over to return to the taxpayers. It is, after all, eight billion dollars of overtaxation.

Before I started this blog today, I was concerned that I might not have content to post or anything worthwhile to say. Guess I was wrong on the content part. Our legislators (and others, I'm certain) will see to that. You let me know about the worthwhile part. It's bed time for me.

UPDATE - By the way, here's an article covering the announcement by our state's comptroller of the greater-than-eight-billion-dollar tax revenue surplus - Comptroller: Texas Surplus Funds Almost Double.