[Z] Zebra Mussels

Dear Friends,

With all the talk about cuts to government spending, it seems important to look at all the things that government can and should do.  Unfortunately because of a lack of funds many things that should be done by government are not being done.  In some cases citizens are taking up the slack, although the financial burden is unfair and the process is inefficient.

In the Minneapolis Star Tribune this morning there was an article (here) about the infestation of zebra mussels into Minnesota lakes and the efforts by some citizens to fill the gap left because the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources lacks the resources to do what it should be doing.

"We are private citizens paying for the inspectors and we citizens view this as somewhat of a tax that is placed on us unfairly," but a zebra mussel infestation is so feared that people are willing to pay, said Steve Gunther, preservation association president.

Eventually we will return to talking about the need for good government and the need to fund it properly.  I hope that we, as a society figure that out before there are zebra mussels infestations and other problems that will require years and much more money to fix.

Thanks for reading and please comment,
The Unabashed Liberal