There's one other example I forgot to mention in my post below about Republicans' reflexive opposition to everything liberals like: high-speed rail. Why, exactly, do Republicans dislike high-speed rail? It's not enough to say that it's too expensive at a time of budget constraint, because the opposition seems to exist regardless of whether we invest in it now or later. There could be a simple mistaken belief that taking an airplane to get from one city to another is "private" while rail travel is "public" -- the truth, of course, is that the aviation infrastructure, from airports to air traffic controllers to a whole bunch of related things, is heavily funded and managed by government. But the best explanation at the moment is that liberals think high-speed rail is cool, so therefore conservatives feel obligated to oppose it.
Just yesterday, Florida's new governor Rick Scott (a walking parody of a fictional corrupt businessman who buys his way into office then proceeds to lay waste to the state) announced he was killing a proposed high-speed rail line between Orlando and Tampa that was financed through the stimulus. The federal government was saying to Scott, "Here's $2.4 billion. Go ahead with the project and it will create thousands of jobs and improve life in your state," to which Scott said, "Screw you, hippie!"
But you know what the rest of us should say? Good riddance. Of all the high-speed rail projects in the offing, the Orlando-Tampa line may have had the least potential for long-term impact. The money doesn't disappear -- the Department of Transportation will take it and put it toward another high-speed rail project. Like maybe the one in California, or the one that is both the most challenging and has the greatest potential -- the one on the eastern seaboard.
It's often tempting to look at the abysmal state of places like, say, Mississippi, and say, Well, if you keep electing Republicans, this is what you're going to get: a crappy education system, little investment in infrastructure, awful health care, and a tax system built to ease the burden on the wealthiest. If you want to live someplace more humane, you're free to move. But that means turning your back on the people who suffer under those governments. There are people who actually need abortions in South Dakota, where the laws are made by those who think it ought to be legal to kill doctors who provide abortions. There are people in Texas who need health insurance.
But sometimes, you can just say, fine -- do what you want, Florida. If you wanted to move into the 21st century, you shouldn't have elected Rick Scott. Lots of other states will be happy to have your high-speed rail money.
