Today in Connecticut!

We all know what happened.....

Ezra Klein says it very well!

If roads were collapsing all across the United States, killing dozens of drivers, we would surely see that as a moment to talk about what we could do to keep roads from collapsing. If terrorists were detonating bombs in port after port, you can be sure Congress would be working to upgrade the nation’s security measures. If a plague was ripping through communities, public-health officials would be working feverishly to contain it.

Only with gun violence do we respond to repeated tragedies by saying that mourning is acceptable but discussing how to prevent more tragedies is not. But that’s unacceptable. As others have observed, talking about how to stop mass shootings in the aftermath of a string of mass shootings isn’t “too soon.” It’s much too late.

 In the rest of his column he has some very important facts about guns in the US!  I recommend it! 

Austerity Kills

Last Sunday, there was a tragic story of a 16 year old boy who lost his life when he drowned in Quarry Lake in Racine County.

From the article, the young man, Travon Gray, was playing and swimming with some friends at the lake, but were swimming beyond the buoys  and other reckless actions.

The kicker is when one sees why they were able to do this and why it took so long to get to him and retrieve his body (emphasis mine):

[South Shore Fire Chief Bill] Bouma says lifeguards were eliminated this year due to budget cuts.

"We've had a number of problems in the past with this lake," Bouma says. "This is a problem lake for us. It's a deep lake. Visibility is terrible and now with no lifeguards it's a real problem."

The article doesn't make it clear why the budget was cut.  It could have been due to Scott Walker's malicious slashing of shared revenue or some local politician's petty tyranny, but it doesn't really matter anymore.

The fact is that to appease some corporate overlord or a more local teahadist, just so they could have the illusion of saving a whopping 78 cents on their property tax, there is now a young man lying dead, his family and friends grieving their tremendous loss. There are also the passers by who made the call to 911 and the first responders who have to deal with their feelings on this senseless tragedy.

That makes the "tax break" nothing more than blood money.

>And no, not one RWNJ took a moment to mourn the loss of this young life.  Nothing better shows their true colors.