We have no doubt that it gives the overwhelmingly Republican Legislature a lot of satisfaction to include the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control in its budget-trimming. But even the most "moral" budget cut needs to make sense. No matter how many times you figure it out, it is not thrifty to save $2 million and lose potentially $18 million.
Standard-Examiner Editorial
OUR VIEW: Fix liquor stores fiasco
April 8, 2011
I've referred to the political principles of the Utah Republican Party before as "Big Brother Republicanism." In light of this session, a better term fits—feudalistic Republicanism. The term captures the Utah Republican Party's disdain for public oversight, input, checks and balances of and to its government. It captures the spirit of expanding the power of the government and rich lobbyists (the noble families) and shrinks the power of the public (the serfs). It also captures the feudalistic spirit of contempt and condescension that the Utah Republican Party has for the voting public.
Stewart Thorpe, The Daily Utah Chronicle
Voting on autopilot hurt citizens’ rights
April 5, 2011
And over at the Utah Daily Chronicle, columnist Stewart Thorpe has another great idea. After the legislature gets done fixing this year's bad legislation, maybe it's time for knee-jerk GOP voters to help fix up the Utah legislature itself:
Seems our Utah legislature gets loonier with each passing year. Perhaps the time has come, even for GOP loyalists, to turn off the autopilot and "cull the herd."
Just a thought.
