If I weren't a teetotaller, I'd think I was drinking. Kristi Noem sounds just like Al Franken.
Yesterday in Tea (irony abounds!), the junior senator from Minnesota said that it's just wrong, wrong, wrong that the federal government hasn't lived up to its commitment to pour federal dollars into the Lewis and Clark Regional Water System. That's exactly the way the junior Ice Queen from Codington County has defended her support for spending money we don't have on sticking a big straw into the Missouri River and sucking.
The nice thing about Senator Franken's visit is that it shows that our discussion about public works projects like the Lewis and Clark water system should not be about politics. If we adopt the yahoo rhetoric of some of my conservative neighbors, we would assume that the big water pipeline is bad because big bad Al Franken says it's good. We would assume it is bad because it involves spending federal money. We would miss the point that Senator Franken has been working with colleagues on both sides of the aisle to press that this project may produce an excellent return on investment in the form of economic development.
Sometimes we all have to acknowledge that we can do good and useful things through government. We all may also have to acknowledge that Al Franken is a decent senator. Thanks for dropping by, Al!
Fourty one percent of water used in Sioux Falls go to water lawns. Do we need water for developement or for luxury. Or do we need priorities when it comes to spending federal money.
Perhaps we(water users) need to be more responsible for own water usage, availbility, and cost. Lewis and Clark needs to go to the rate payers and start fronting the rest of the costs to complete the project. Until and unless water users pay the full freight, will we ever see prudent and conservative use of water. The double(perhaps triple) standard that all politicians use to promise us more projects, less taxes, and less spending has to end. They cater to our selfish side and ignore to challenge our best and giving side.
You and Al been drinking the tea. This water boondoggle is not a federal issue. Sioux Falls wants more water then it can begin by conserving. Our rates for public utilities like water and electricity are perverted for corporate subsidies (welfare) and not for conservation. There ought to be one rate. Period. In that manner the folks who can do the most conservation are incentivized to so do. That simple approach is a game-changer.
Drinking water projects for South Dakota are probably piddling insignificant compared to the federal money and resources that allows residents of Phoenix, AZ to have green lawns, fountains, and swimming pools.
John, I'm all about conservation. Even Al hasn't convinced me that the Lewis and Clark water system is such a great deal. Among my worries are that when LCRWS boosters talk economic development, they aren't talking about drinking water for new residents; they're talking about huge industrial complexes that will drain that pipeline faster than any of us can hold out our water jugs.
But at least Senator Franken can consistently explain his position. Kristi Noem can't reconcile her Tea rhetoric with her support for Tea's thirst.