Instead of facing real political problems, Republicans distract with resistance
The South Carolina Legislature is hard at work to ensure that taxpayer dollars are not wasted. A bill is in motion right now that would prevent state funds from being used to provide inmates with hormone treatments as part of a sex change procedure.
Well, thank goodness. Of the roughly 22,000 inmates in South Carolina prisons, only one is currently on hormone treatments. Clearly, it’s a pressing matter that needs to be addressed, and addressed now.
However, a similar law from Wisconsin has already been struck down in federal court; should someone choose to challenge South Carolina’s in court, the legal fees could run into the millions for an extremely uncommon procedure that costs at most $1,000 per year.
It’s an example of governance by fear. In South Carolina, as well as across the country, Republican lawmakers are choosing to attack rare or completely nonexistent problems as a way to distract voters from the fact that they have no solutions to the pressing issues facing the country.
In Oklahoma — a state where Muslims make up less than 1 percent of the population — a bill was passed banning the application of Shariah law. The state is also considering a bill that would ban the use of human fetuses in food even though there are no reported cases of it happening. In Missouri, a legislator introduced a bill that ensures animals will never have as many rights as humans. Washington is currently debating a measure that declares the dollar bill to be unconstitutional.
South Carolina’s education system is a nationally criticized disaster. Public services are being cut left and right. Lack of access to health care affects millions. The state government is a shining example of inefficiency, graft and patronage. But instead of addressing any of these critical issues, our lawmakers are going to waste our time on a few thousand dollars a year just because conservatives don’t like transsexuals.
“This isn’t a problem with corrections now. I just think it’s maybe preventing a problem down the road,” Sen. Kevin Bryant, the bill’s sponsor, told the Associated Press. “I feel the cruelty is on the taxpayer who’s forced to pay for it.”
The only cruelty the taxpayers are suffering is being forced to continue suffering the crooks that occupy the capital complex.
We need statesmanship, and we get partisanship. For the politicians, it’s not about serving the public; it’s about staying in office and reaping the benefits. Right now, the easy way to stay in office is to make an uneducated voting base afraid of something — a popular tactic in the South. Progress will never be made as long as these are the tactics of our leaders.
The United States, both collectively and individually, is facing serious challenges right now. These problems will require both political courage and compromise to find solutions. Our politicians lack both. It’s time, as Lee Iacocca famously said, to “Throw the bums out!”