A Tale Told By An Idiot, Or Possibly An Insane Person

By now you’ve probably heard about the New Jersey budget showdown, which pits democrat-against-democrat, brother-against-sister, governor-against-the-legislature. Since the senate did not pass a budget by the July 1 deadline, Gov. Jon Corzine has ordered a government shutdown, which closes — take a deep breath — casinos, beaches, parks, racetracks, the DMV, state courts, vehicle inspection sites and the lottery.

The shutdown of the lottery is costing the state $2.2 million dollars a day — because if there’s one way to help the state escape its huge deficit, it’s to shut down money-making government services!

In a speech this morning, Corzine said he had no choice to shut down the government, as the state constitution requires such action if no budget is passed by the start of the fiscal year. It’s the old “Don’t blame me, blame the framers of the 1947 state constitution” defense.

This is a state constitution that also includes the line “No idiot or insane person shall enjoy the right of suffrage.”

As such, New Jersey is shuttered for the next few days, or months, or forever, at least until a budget is passed. All together now: If New Jersey closes and nobody except gamblers notice, did it really close?

Today, N.J. shutdown deepens [Inquirer]
New Jersey State Constitution [Wikipedia]