When people complain about local government wasting money on frills while letting basic services decay, one of the stock responses is the "pots of money" song. It goes something like this: "You see, the money we're wasting is in a special pot that can be spent only on frills. It can't be spent on essentials. So don't complain about the essentials being neglected -- this money can't be spent on them." It's especially galling when the people giving you this line are the same people who drew up the separate pots, or who have the power to pour their contents all into one big pot at any time, if they wanted to.
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Another great excuse line is "That's not in our jurisdiction -- that's somebody else's jurisdiction." Just complain to Portland City Hall about the schools, the bridges, the lack of a decent mental health system, aircraft noise, or thinning bus service, and it won't be long before you hear, "We're not in charge of that. That's done by [the county, the school board, Tri-Met, etc.]."
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