When Local Elections Count Most
While local elections are often relegated to a sideshow when it comes to importance in the national economy, the recent fires in L.A. have destroyed this paradigm. The incompetence of the leadership of L.A.s mayor shows how local elections can have devastating local and national impacts.
Some estimates have put the damage of the fires at over a quarter trillion dollars, with countless more losses yet to come. The national discourse concerning monetary or trade policy is constant and vigorous yet it takes something special for news outlets to mention protection against natural disasters. L.A.s mayor made the intentional choice to underfund the fire department, betting that money could be spent elsewhere and make her more well-liked. The L.A. fire chief said that the fire department has been underfunded for “at least a decade.” L.A. mayor Karen Bass’s prioritization of short term spending over long term safety will come back to haunt her for years.
This sort of lackadaisical playing with fire should be seen with no surprise to any who follow the state of the national debt. While the system that perpetuates the national debt is so far removed from the voters that it is difficult to see how they could have any effect, an individual voter can have much more direct impact in a local election. People become extremely wrapped up in national politics yet neglect the politics that they can most directly control. While the probability of any one vote swaying the election is still infinitesimally small, the ability of a group of voters to make their voices heard and gain traction is much higher. While it is easy to become hopeless about the state of the nation, local politics give a much more realistic avenue to create meaningful change.
It is much more difficult to directly see the damaging effects of monetary policy than it is to see the effects of poor wildfire management. The problem with both of these poor policies is the same, and far left politicians are particularly problematic in both situations. While the issues themselves are in very different parts of human endeavor, they showcase the fact that a lack of responsibility is at the heart of most modern political woes. The socialist ideal of government damages the ability of government to fulfill its most basic functions. The desire to always promise more means that funds are often scraped from the original tasks of good governance. Protection of property will often take a back seat if the public clamors for free food and healthcare. There is little incentive for politicians to hold fast to the principles of our founding if millions of voters are begging them for free items. Los Angeles has been a bastion of liberal policy in recent years, and that has typically meant lax law enforcement coupled with a higher than average number of handouts.
One example of how Karen Bass prioritized the present over the potential of a future catastrophe was how she took no initiative to make the repair of Santa Ynez reservoir a priority. This reservoir could have been extremely helpful in fighting the fire, but it had been drained for over a year. While assessing damage, bidding on a project, and repairing a dam are all time-consuming processes, showing little urgency for over a year is not excusable. The dam situation symbolizes the prioritization of what is flashy and fun over what is necessary. A fully communist system is not enjoyable for many because they prioritize the bare necessities of life, but our current soft spot towards socialism cannot even do that. Liberal cities must lean more towards communism or capitalism. The middle ground of socialist-inspired pandering cannot sustain itself for long. While communism is wildly inefficient, the absolutism of government power means that a national crisis can be dealt with more effectively than a mixed socialist city.
Next time you see a frightening national news headline, before you let it invade your brain and eat away your time, think for a moment about some improvement you’d like to see in your town. Maybe that park you think needs some water will one day serve as a fire barrier, simply because it was a little greener and did not provide as dry of kindling as it would have. Perhaps some dangerous intersection you dislike can be changed and save a life. Whether through voting or local advocacy, attempt to make local wrongs right, because you just might be saving you & your family member’s lives.
