A rare remnant of the brick sidewalks that were once everywhere in downtown Springfield.
The brick sidewalks were charming and would've given Springfield a special uniqueness today if we had saved them. But as with so many government "improvements" to downtown Springfield over the years, the replacement of the brick walkways with ones of dull poured concrete was yet another expensive blunder.
The more details we get about the "grand bargain" that will supposedly save us from a "fiscal cliff" the more appealing it appears to just go over the cliff! At least there will be some real spending cuts and the tax hikes will give people a wake up call about what government really costs when you don't just borrow the money and bill it to the grandkids. Among those cheering for greater gridlock and a jump over the cliff is TV journalist John Stossel:
My hope for now: gridlock. People say they like bipartisanship, but bipartisanship usually means politicians conspire to take more of our money and freedom. Bipartisanship gave us the Department of Homeland Security, TSA, PATRIOT Act, Import-Export Bank, war on drug users, ethanol subsides, TARP, No Child Left Behind, foreign wars and an ever-rising debt. When Democrats and Republicans come together, they put us deeper in debt.
Let's have some gridlock!
Read more here.
The death of bicyclist Harry Delmolino in downtown Northampton last spring was a sad and senseless tragedy. I must say however that I won't miss the ghost bike that was placed on the corner where the accident occurred. Seeing it everyday is a bummer. Here's a good article about Harry and his bike here. (photo by Kim)
2 comments:
I'm for gridlock. Government should plod, not dash. Gridlock, unfortunately, has a bad rap. When government is sprinting in one direction, just as fast as it can, someone should have the decency and moral courage to stand up and say "STOP!" We always regret it when we don't.
Joey
Hey Tom! I can see you are blogging away right now. Hope that means you're in a good place right now. Certainly are giving off that vibe. I love John Stossel and tend to agree with him alot. Also, I'm the same age as you, so yeah, I remember those old sidewalks, I remember the OLD Boys Club and walking up the hill to Hungry Hill before urban renewal, and smelling the bread in the Bond Bakery. So many memories of the OLD Springfield. Unfortunately, I guess I was already a cynic at 12 or so because I could literally smell the dying town, and sense it. It was still good for a while. Lots of Dead, and Tull shows at the old Civic Center etc.
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