Come Visit Iowa And Enjoy Our Wonderful...Um...Um...Field of Corn?

I like to think I am what you would call a realist. I tend to look those life with an optimistic, but cautious view of world to come. I can dream, but I don't dream about things that are impossible. The dreams need to be attainable.

Enter the Des Moines Register opinion board, where lavish dreaming is second only to their socialistic ideals. Every month or so, hell almost weekly, the Register starts in with their wish list of wants and desires on how to transform Iowa into a recreational wonderland. Queue a government funded study:

Among the findings: Iowa needs $150 million per year for 10 years to fund everything from better beaches and campgrounds to protections for soil, water and wildlife. Ways to secure those dollars include using a portion of sales tax or gambling revenues or state lottery proceeds. Bonding could be used to stretch dollars.

$1 billion dollars over ten years?!? Holy crap. Better beaches? Did I miss California and the western 1/3 of the nation falling into the Pacific ocean? But don't worry, we can have our magical outdoor oasis by merely increasing even more taxes. Forget the fact that Iowa already has one of worst environments for attracting new businesses what harm would an additional billion dollars do?

We farm. And where we don't use our land for agriculture, we live. Aside from a few lakes, river beds and the occasional state park Iowa's land is meant for practical purposes. We are what we are. Don't for one second think that spending a billion dollars is all of a sudden going to bring tourists to Iowa by the droves. There just aren't enough activities to engage a visiting family for a week, especially when areas like Missouri, Minnesota, and Illinois are just across our borders. And a billion dollars isn't going to change that.

Dream if you must, but don't propose spending tax money on false conclusions:

Iowans who live in counties with more outdoor opportunities enjoy faster-rising incomes than those who don't, a study has shown. The Mississippi River Trail, still under construction, is estimated to add $20 million per year to the state's economy.

Those are the facts.

Those are facts, huh? Maybe the Register doesn't understand the word "estimated." Considering the Mississippi River Trail is "still under construction" there is no way to report it's economic impact on Iowa as "fact." Nice try though...

I am open to picking a new state slogan though, because after one short session of Democratic control in all three branches of state government and the incessant droning by the Register our old slogan just doesn't fit anymore.

How about..."Iowa, where the tall taxes grow?"