A WINDOW BACK IN TIME, QUIET INTERESTING, AT BEST AND THESE GUY'S ARE IN CHARGE NOW, AND IT'S EVEN WORSEOpinion Friday, August 25, 2000
More risky government schemes
By Charles P. Reyes Jr.
The CNMI government is in great financial distress. (Still is.) It cannot afford to pay its CUC utility bills on time. (Doesn't pay them at all now. Weaseled out of that one.) It owes Straub Hawaii and other medical facilities as much as $4 million. (Still unpaid) It owes the CNMI Retirement Fund as much as $30 million. (Now its $130 million.) It is hopelessly incapable of promptly paying CNMI tax rebates. (7 years later and under the Fitial administration, pays zilch, ever.) It takes forever to pay off its private contractors. (Still waiting.) It is tens (Hundreds.) of millions of dollars in debt--deep in the red--and it runs a budget deficit each and every year. (Still the same. Years later.) Yet, despite the overwhelming evidence of government financial decay, (Worse now then ever.) Democratic Representative Brigida Ichihara, a self-styled education czar and ardent Jesse Borja-for-governor supporter, apparently wishes to plunge the CNMI government and its beleaguered taxpayers further into financial ruin. (Apparently you didn't even need her and all her foolery to crash the financial budget, you did a damn good job all by yourselves.) Merely observe her moves to drastically raise the Public School System's take of the CNMI budget from fifteen to twenty-five percent. (Wow, she really wants the whole enchilada, don't she?) In light of the CNMI government's serious and persistent financial problems, how much more unreasonable can an elected representative get? (Have you seen just what the hell we have today?)
Indeed, it is quite obvious that, unlike House Speaker Ben Fitial, who has very wisely expressed some grave concerns on the matter, (You would think we could use this very astute and wise man today,) Rep. Ichihara and her PSS ilk have no appreciation of fundamental financial solvency. Unlike Speaker Fitial, a well seasoned and highly successful businessman, (A what? Where the hell is this genius when we so desperately need someone smart today?) these hard-core education diehards apparently know next to nothing about basic economics. (We are still in the same boat only its now going under, faster.) They have obviously never run businesses or met private payrolls. Oddly, for all of their higher "education"--and keep in mind that Rep. Ichihara was a former school principal--they cannot even come to grips with basic, elementary mathematics. (CNMI educated, at it's best, Charlie, seems to be the way you want to keep it too.) After all, it does not take an economist the caliber of Mr. Ed Stephens Jr. (Pat your back, Ed. Maybe you should look at the books for the present administration today. Tell 'um whats wrong?) to figure out that the CNMI simply cannot afford an extravagant PSS budget hike at this time--nor at any point in the near future. (Or any future, as seen today.) Due to wholesale mismanagement, the local government is practically broke. (Those were the good 'ole days, only practically broke, but not down the toilet, like it is today.)
But our socialist public education zealots don't care for objective economic realities (or analysis). They want to tug our heartstrings with emotional education pleas. "It's for the children, for our children's future," etc. (Now, where did we last hear this crock, who was the last to spew this shit?) They want to advance feel-good politics at the expense of the cold, hard facts, (Do you mean something like, "I'll lower the power rates," bullshit from the last election, kind'a the same?) which they would much rather conveniently ignore at the CNMI's own peril. (Is it different today? If so what?)
Where are we going to get the money to pay for Rep. Ichihara's risky PSS scheme? Where are we going to get the money to satisfy the deeply entrenched, very special interest groups at the Public School System? (Guess time has proved there ain't any money, wasn't then, still isn't now.) Are we to raid the CNMI Retirement Fund (and its retirees) (Wow, a grand idea, who may have been the creator of this wonderful thought? They didn't raid it, they destroyed it.) to add to the insatiable PSS empire? Is the money going to come from the medical program? Are we going to let Tun Juan die, just so that the PSS establishment can "educate" little Johnny? Just say no to PSS. Strange how looking back on someones own bitter times can so directly come to the top and slap ones own face, quiet interesting, isn't it? An even stranger take on the PSS, indeed. Seems "Little Johnny" is still uneducated, Hummm. .........GED.........
More risky government schemes
By Charles P. Reyes Jr.
The CNMI government is in great financial distress. (Still is.) It cannot afford to pay its CUC utility bills on time. (Doesn't pay them at all now. Weaseled out of that one.) It owes Straub Hawaii and other medical facilities as much as $4 million. (Still unpaid) It owes the CNMI Retirement Fund as much as $30 million. (Now its $130 million.) It is hopelessly incapable of promptly paying CNMI tax rebates. (7 years later and under the Fitial administration, pays zilch, ever.) It takes forever to pay off its private contractors. (Still waiting.) It is tens (Hundreds.) of millions of dollars in debt--deep in the red--and it runs a budget deficit each and every year. (Still the same. Years later.) Yet, despite the overwhelming evidence of government financial decay, (Worse now then ever.) Democratic Representative Brigida Ichihara, a self-styled education czar and ardent Jesse Borja-for-governor supporter, apparently wishes to plunge the CNMI government and its beleaguered taxpayers further into financial ruin. (Apparently you didn't even need her and all her foolery to crash the financial budget, you did a damn good job all by yourselves.) Merely observe her moves to drastically raise the Public School System's take of the CNMI budget from fifteen to twenty-five percent. (Wow, she really wants the whole enchilada, don't she?) In light of the CNMI government's serious and persistent financial problems, how much more unreasonable can an elected representative get? (Have you seen just what the hell we have today?)
Indeed, it is quite obvious that, unlike House Speaker Ben Fitial, who has very wisely expressed some grave concerns on the matter, (You would think we could use this very astute and wise man today,) Rep. Ichihara and her PSS ilk have no appreciation of fundamental financial solvency. Unlike Speaker Fitial, a well seasoned and highly successful businessman, (A what? Where the hell is this genius when we so desperately need someone smart today?) these hard-core education diehards apparently know next to nothing about basic economics. (We are still in the same boat only its now going under, faster.) They have obviously never run businesses or met private payrolls. Oddly, for all of their higher "education"--and keep in mind that Rep. Ichihara was a former school principal--they cannot even come to grips with basic, elementary mathematics. (CNMI educated, at it's best, Charlie, seems to be the way you want to keep it too.) After all, it does not take an economist the caliber of Mr. Ed Stephens Jr. (Pat your back, Ed. Maybe you should look at the books for the present administration today. Tell 'um whats wrong?) to figure out that the CNMI simply cannot afford an extravagant PSS budget hike at this time--nor at any point in the near future. (Or any future, as seen today.) Due to wholesale mismanagement, the local government is practically broke. (Those were the good 'ole days, only practically broke, but not down the toilet, like it is today.)
But our socialist public education zealots don't care for objective economic realities (or analysis). They want to tug our heartstrings with emotional education pleas. "It's for the children, for our children's future," etc. (Now, where did we last hear this crock, who was the last to spew this shit?) They want to advance feel-good politics at the expense of the cold, hard facts, (Do you mean something like, "I'll lower the power rates," bullshit from the last election, kind'a the same?) which they would much rather conveniently ignore at the CNMI's own peril. (Is it different today? If so what?)
Where are we going to get the money to pay for Rep. Ichihara's risky PSS scheme? Where are we going to get the money to satisfy the deeply entrenched, very special interest groups at the Public School System? (Guess time has proved there ain't any money, wasn't then, still isn't now.) Are we to raid the CNMI Retirement Fund (and its retirees) (Wow, a grand idea, who may have been the creator of this wonderful thought? They didn't raid it, they destroyed it.) to add to the insatiable PSS empire? Is the money going to come from the medical program? Are we going to let Tun Juan die, just so that the PSS establishment can "educate" little Johnny? Just say no to PSS. Strange how looking back on someones own bitter times can so directly come to the top and slap ones own face, quiet interesting, isn't it? An even stranger take on the PSS, indeed. Seems "Little Johnny" is still uneducated, Hummm. .........GED.........
1 comment:
He was a teacher at one point, too.
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