By Douglas V. Gibbs
The government spends money on things that will make your head spin. But they say they need to increase the debt ceiling and raise taxes. If they don't raise the debt ceiling, says the liberals, we will fail to pay our bills, and the full faith and credit of the United States will go in the tank.
They lie.
That would be like me telling my wife that if we don't get a raise in the limit of a credit card for an electronics store we won't be able to pay the light bill.
We have enough revenue to service the debt. It is a matter of prioritizing the spending. The liberals don't want to give in on the debt limit because not raising the debt limit would force them to cut spending somewhere, like on the following:
Federal employees use $146 million taxpayer dollars each year upgrading their flights to business class. The Government Accountability Office found that more than half of these upgrades were not properly authorized. The rest of us have to fly coach and live on a budget.
The United States government has spent $3 billion adding sand to America’s beaches.
Advocates claim this prevents erosion and keeps the beaches attractive to tourists. But the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the sand does nothing to prevent erosion — and this sand gets swept out to sea just as easily as existing sand! Regardless . . . taxpayers have shoveled out $3 billion for these projects.
The federal government also spends our money to personalize calendars, purchase Liz Claiborne cellphone pouches, and buy fleets of luxury Lexus hybrid sedans. Members of Congress have spent hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars supplying their offices and staff with these items, plus popcorn machines, plasma televisions, DVD equipment, ionic air fresheners, camcorders, and signature machines.
Congress recently gave Alaska Airlines half a million dollars to paint a picture of Chinook salmon on a Boeing 737. Does this seem fishy to you?
$3.4 million dollars of the stimulus went to turtle tunnels in Florida. Florida received $13 billions dollars overall, but a small portion of that went towards building a turtle tunnel on US highway 27 near Tallahassee. The government claimed this was beneficial because it created jobs and helped to save the lives of Florida turtles. However, the turtles don't use the tunnel. According to a report, the turtles are actually afraid of the tunnel because they are above ground creatures.
$3 million dollars for a shrimp treadmill study at Pacific University and College of Charleston. This was done to help determine the effects of bacteria on shrimps’ metabolic performance. I’m not sure why this is important.
$2.6 million to teach Chinese prostitutes to drink more responsibly. They believe the American government can potentially benefit from this, but please tell me how?
$5.2 million dollars to Las Vegas, Nevada for a museum of neon signs.
$9.3 million dollars to create a coordinated colony of robotic bees at Harvard.
“Free” Grateful Dead Archive – $615,000 - because the whole idea of it being public and free was important to them, yet taxpayers are paying $615,000 to make the band‘s archives ― free and ― public. . . in Santa Cruz, California, of course. I was a dead head, but please.
Poems in Zoos – $997,766 - Apparently the government believes we suffer from a shortage of poetry in our nation‘s zoos. A federal grant program has directed a million dollars from the public coffers to infuse zoos around the United States with snippets of poetry.
The Monkton, Vermont Conservation Commission received $150,000 in federal grant money to build a critter crossing, to save the lives of thousands of migrating salamanders and other amphibians that would otherwise be slaughtered by vehicle traffic on a major roadway.
$239,100 - The National Science Foundation directed nearly a quarter million dollars to a Stanford University professor‘s study of how Americans use the Internet to find love.
The U.S. Census Bureau lost a $2.5 million bet when its ― Snapshot of America ad tanked when it ran during a commercial break in the third quarter of the Super Bowl. Media critics agreed the multi-million dollar advertisement ranked as one of the worst during the Super Bowl.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) spent nearly $442,340 million to study the number of male 124 prostitutes in Vietnam and their social setting.
The Minnesota Zoo Received $609,160 in Federal Funding to Develop an Online Video Game, “Wolfquest.‟
Teaching South African Men How to Wash Their Genitalia – $823,200 - The National Institutes of Health (NIH) secured a grant for $800,000 in stimulus funds to study the effects of a genital-washing program in Orange Farm, South Africa. Investigators will attempt to teach uncircumcised African men how to wash their genitals after having sex and hope doing so will prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS.
Gold-Plated Potties in the Woods – $1.49 Million - The Denali National Park in Alaska recently built new restrooms at the Teklanika campground to replace chemical toilets with a sweet smelling toilet facility at a cost of nearly $1.5 million to taxpayers. The park will be spending more than $41,000 to replace each of the 36 toilets.
A Recession-Inspired Video Game – $137,530 - If you have ever wondered what it would be like to fire someone, a new video game is available to help you get in on the fun! One Dartmouth professor received a federal grant to create a recession-inspired video game called Layoff, a puzzle-style game in which players fire as many people as they can as quickly as possible.
NSF Studies Political Talk Shows on Fox News and MSNBC – $66,638 - Bill O‘Reilly and Rachel Maddow are not to blame for polarizing American politics, at least according to one researcher. The National Science Foundation (NSF) provided a $66,638 grant to Temple University political scientist Kevin Arceneaux to study the influence of political programming in mass media. He set out to test the claim that cable television shows allow the public to insulate themselves from opposing viewpoints —polarizing the electorate.
$41,380: College students studying abroad tend to drink more alcoholic beverages. Thanks to research funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, taxpayers now know study abroad students double the amount they drink while away.
Pedestrian Bridge Built Steps from Another Pedestrian Bridge – $260,000 - The Puget Sound Regional Council (Washington state) spent $260,000 building a pedestrian bridge across the North Creek, just 20 paces from an existing sidewalk crossing the river. Part of a larger $1.1297 million stimulus grant to improve Bothell Trail, this project has been described by locals as embarrassing, not needed, and not the best place.
Banjo Player Honored in Museum – $1.5 Million - Taxpayers may not quite get the twang for their buck from this project. The North Carolina county hopes a $1.5 million federal grant for a museum honoring a local bluegrass singer will provide an economic boost.
Studying Wild Blue Monkey‟s Business – $168,766 - The National Science Foundation awarded a $168,766 federal grant to Columbia University researchers to study the sexual behavior of wild blue monkeys by analyzing monkey feces in Africa.
NIH Promotes Awareness for Non-Existent Vaccine – $55,000 - The National Institutes of Health (NIH) spent $55,000 to promote HIV Vaccine Awareness Day, even though no vaccine exists.
Renovating Pizzeria with New Vertical Garden Entry Way – $60,000 - Taxpayers who visit Tony‘s Trattoria in Waterloo, Iowa may literally get to taste the results of a federal grant. The pizzeria received $60,000 in federal funding to improve the property‘s façade and give it a more inviting feel. Specifically, customers using the back entrance will now be greeted by a vertical garden, which will provide the restaurant herbs such as basil, cilantro and rosemary.
Storm Surge Signs Frighten Local Residents – $42,544 - Some Texas residents are unhappy and with over $42,544 in federal funds being allocated towards posting 400 frightening signs showing how high the storm surge would be in a major hurricane. The signs are intended to show how deep the water would be if there were a 25-foot storm surge.
City Gets Funding for “Slightly Different” Bike Signage – $900,000 - Why have one bike sign when you can have two? Portland, Oregon spent $900,000 in federal stimulus funds on a new bike signage project even though the city already has similar bike signs, which it plans to leave up. The new signs, which include arrows, distance, and travel times to key destinations, have a slightly different design than existing ones.
The Obama administration is also spending $6 million to restore mosques and other Islamic sites worldwide. The plan is designed to restore 63 historic and cultural sites, including mosques and minarets, in 55 nations, according to State Department documents.
Through the United Nations, a U.S. contribution of more than $50 million toward providing clean cooking stoves in developing countries to reduce deaths from smoke inhalation and fight climate change is in the works. The U.S. funding, which will be spread over five years, is part of a Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves being started to combat a problem officials equate with malaria and unclean water in terms of their health impact worldwide. Never mind that the malaria has killed millions because liberals during the last century banned DDT.
Congress must reduce wasteful spending. Our budget problems are a spending problem, not a revenue problem.
The Washington liberals are determined to keep spending more, raising the federal debt and the Debt Ceiling, already more than $14 trillion and nearly 100% of our Gross Domestic Product. And they are also interested in increasing taxes.
I am an optimist. The madness can be stopped. Last November, in the 2010 election, there was a Tea Party inspired landslide showing that Americans are aware of the challenges we face. Polls show that voters are disgusted by all the spending. We have a real opportunity to make dramatic cuts in spending over the next few years and save the American Dream from national bankruptcy.
And when a liberal tells you that by supporting spending cuts you want to cut police services, or medicare, or make grandma eat cat food, you tell them there is plenty of places to cut spending, and then name a few of the above examples.
-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary
Weird Government Spending - V Andy Right
The 20 Most Ridiculous Examples of Federal Spending in 2010 - Economic Collapse
Dirty Spending Secrets
Obama spending $6 million to restore mosques and other Islamic sites worldwide - Jihad Watch
US taxpayers to give UN $50 million for stoves - Red White Blue News
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