Baddourah Wins Columbia City Council Seat

Moe.

I'm actually a bit surprised that Moe Baddourah overcame all of the late endorsements for Coble. I think this is a sign that people are looking for some very pro-business ideas to come out of city council. Also, it's hard to overcome being a law student running for City Council. No tears for Coble though. He's got a great legal career in front of him, and I'd bet you a nickel this won't be the last time you see him run for elected office.

Now, if I can only convince him that Columbia isn't built for a gold-plated bus system.

Public Transportation is not a "Right"

In the ongoing saga of the CMRTA, Richland County Council agreed to toss more taxpayer money into the abyss. It's just $775,000 of your money, so no worries, right? The funny sad part is that this amount still won't cover the bus system's operating deficit for very long.

Apparently, a group of constitutional law scholars showed up to be heard at the council's meting.

A contingent of 10 passengers and advocates attended the meeting, encouraging County Council to reach an agreement with the city to cover the funding gap. They said public transportation is a basic service, like police protection, water and sewer.

“We demand our share,” rider Mamie Jackson said. “We should not have to come and beg for a basic right.”

Wait, what? When did having a bus system become a "basic right"?

Ok boys and girls, just to recap: "rights" are given to you from your creator. A government neither gives rights, nor can it take them away. The government provides services, benefits, and privileges. That's it. It's really not that complicated.

Public transportation is a simple service that has costs and benefits. It costs money to operate public transportation. The problem we have is that the bus system isn't self sufficient. The money earned from those paying the bus fare isn't covering the cost of operating the system. That's the basic problem. The question that our County Council needs to answer is how much annual support does the bus system need, and is it worth it to pay that much money?

It's cost/benefit analysis.It's not a right, it's simply a service that we need to decide whether to provide or not.

It's really depressing that we have citizens who believe that public transportation is a "basic right", but that's where our culture has gone. There are simply people out there who believe that they are entitled to things like this, and to have others pay for it.

Read dmore dhere: http://www.thestate.com/2012/02/08/2144657/richland-pays-the-fare-for-bus.html#storylink=cpy

Columbia City Council Decides to Ignore the First Rule of Holes

Rule #1: If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.

Columbia City Council decided Tuesday to turn over $618,000 more to stop an impending 65 percent cut in bus service, a move that council members say will keep buses running into mid-summer as normally.

Yay! For a mere $618k more, we can allow the bus system to continue losing money for a few more months! The Columbia City Council are geniuses. It's a good thing they have a money-tree ignorant taxpayers who continually provide the funding for CMRTA.

City Councilwoman Tameika Isaac Devine said that County Council members “still don’t see their responsibility” to a robust bus system.

 Actual bus riders were unavailable for comment on whether they should pay more.

Columbia City Council voted unanimously to approve the new money with the condition that it can be spent only on maintaining service. “It should not go for lawyers or marketing,” Councilman Daniel Rickenmann said.

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2012/01/18/2118074/city-bus-riders-spared-deep-service.html#storylink=cpy

 Yeah. Heaven forbid we have any lawyers look at the contracts related to the bus system. Just give us more money, and don't pay any lawyers to deal with a $3.8 million bus system. Oh, and we don't want to market the bus system either. That might result in more people riding the bus.

At County Council, seven people implored the body to come up with money to stave off service cuts.
“I’m counting on y’all,” said Jose Carter, who’s been riding the bus the past four months while his car is in the shop.

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2012/01/18/2118074/city-bus-riders-spared-deep-service.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2012/01/18/2118074/city-bus-riders-spared-deep-service.html#storylink=cpy

There, there...you poor baby. The local government is here to take care of you. No personal responsibility required. Just come in and promise to vote for us so we can continue to take care of you. In all seriousness, who has a car "in the shop" for four straight months? I call bullshit on Jose Carter.

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2012/01/18/2118074/city-bus-riders-spared-deep-service.html#storylink=cpy