There are so many indications that the government, in its infinite wisdom, is dumber than a box of rocks, that it boggles the mind. Now and then someone posts a list of things on which the government wastes money, and we’re not talking a couple of bucks here, that it makes a person wonder if there is any rhyme or reason to what they do! To be sure, the current administration is many times better than the previous one, or most of the previous ones but it’s still not as good as it could be. Before you read about the wasted money, keep in mind that the wall on the southern border is only requiring just under 6 billion dollars.
Our government spends 930 million dollars on unnecessary printing, and as a former member of the armed forces, I can vouch that the biggest majority of the “paperwork” is thrown away. In almost every instance, the printed work is in triplicate and requires any answer(if required) also be in triplicate. One guess where that third paper goes.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs shells out 175 million dollars a year on buildings that are vacant. They maintain these vacant buildings, and apparently make no effort to fill them with revenue-producing enterprises or people. It seems to me that some of those buildings might be renovated or remodeled into apartments or condominiums for people, especially veterans.
Do you know what a “ghost clinic” is? It’s a fake clinic, which does nothing and, in most cases, doesn’t even have any sort of physical location, but, once again, the government paid these ghost clinics about 35 million dollars, and you can bet there was a criminal element involved! Who said crime doesn’t pay?
According to Sen. Tom Coburn’s report: Wastebook 2010, there are gamers playing World Of Warcraft, whatever that is, that got the government to pay them, to the tune of 3 million dollars! The reasoning behind this farce is that playing video games helps “organizations collaborate and compete more effectively in the global marketplace”. That, dear readers, is a perfect example of blowing smoke into one’s nether regions.
We spent 2.6 million dollars on “parliamentary strengthening” in Eastern Europe. That basically means we taught them how to balance and follow a budget…now if we could just take a few notes for our own budget. I had high hopes that, somewhere along the line, the countries in the old world would wake up and smell the coffee…but apparently they’re still asleep.
The Super Bowl seems to be one of the most popular sports events in America, if not the world. Why would the federal government be interested in that, one might ask? The U.S. Census Bureau bought a 30 second spot to air a commercial that was terribly produced. In fact, it was so terribly produced that the commercial was banned after it aired, leaving most of its viewers completely uncertain of its meaning. Was the counting of people so difficult to do, that 2.5 million dollars was spent to instruct the public? Sorry, folks, but so far I’ve not seen anything on which “good” money was spent.
Have you ever been to Las Vegas…especially along “the strip”? It’s brightly-lit by neon in some of the most garish, yet pretty, signs ever. So, why would we be surprised to learn that the government spent 1.8 million dollars to create a museum of neon lights in Las Vegas? Is there ANY reason for the government to make a museum about neon? Really?
Give me one good reason why the government would spend 1 million dollars for poetry in zoos? It’s true. This money was spent to create poetry in four different large zoos (Little Rock, New Orleans, Milwaukee and Chicago). This is supposed to be “increase environmental awareness” poetry…for the animals or for the people? I don’t know.
Unused Furniture $862 thousand dollars…This is spent every year to store over 20,000 pieces of furniture that aren’t being used. You know how some people sell the stuff they don’t use anymore to pay off their debt? Hmm…I may be on to something here.
We spent 800 thousand dollars on genital washing. Not ours…it was for a program on South African men! Now, if you’re going to study genital washing, I think you should stick to your own genitals or at least your own country’s genitals.
These funds, almost 800 thousand dollars, went to subsidize an IHOP in an apparently “under-served” area of Washington DC.
You, the taxpayer, spent 700 thousand dollars to study cow burps and farts, in order to cut down on methane gas in the atmosphere.
The National Institutes of Health spent the money, almost 500 thousand dollars, to study the behavior of male prostitutes in Vietnam.
Green energy is growing at a rapid rate and I think it’s great, but these funds, almost 500 thousand dollars, were spent to incorporate green energy upgrades into a building in California that hasn’t been in use for over 10 years.
Parting shot: Folks, this is really only the tip of the iceberg, so to speak. There are probably hundreds of “causes” and “programs” on which your taxes are spent for some of the most ridiculous things you NEVER heard of! There are very few of us that are rich enough to throw money away, so watch where it goes.
