California Dysfunction

I'm not naive enough to believe that this occurs only in California, or even only in liberal states, but combine this story with California's "Marianas Trench" budget issues and ask yourself how this could happen:

The state Department of Parks and Recreation routinely searched for ways to spend extra money each June despite facing the threat of park closures and forgoing upkeep at its 278 properties, based on newly released transcripts from an internal investigation.

Testimony from 30 interviews with state employees portrays parks administrators who appeared to have the opposite problem from one long described by Gov. Jerry Brown – excess cash left over and not enough ways to spend it...

Brown's administration revealed last month that the parks department had long hidden $54 million without reporting it to the Department of Finance and state lawmakers, who have constitutional authority over spending in California. In the past year, private donors and other government agencies have contributed under the impression the parks department did not have a dime to spare. Longtime state parks director Ruth Coleman and other top officials resigned last month.

There's much more at the link.  Make sure you have Kleenex on hand, because it's just sad.

So yes, I think we do need less government, and especially less bureaucracy.  You want to eliminate "waste, fraud, and abuse" in government?  I got your "waste, fraud, and abuse" right here.  What are you going to do about it?

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2012/08/19/4738279/california-parks-officials-were.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2012/08/19/4738279/california-parks-officials-were.html#storylink=cpy