“We need to live within our means.” Thank you Lt. Governor. If only more leaders would embrace your call for fiscal constraint and put fiscally conservative measures in place, we could begin to salvage what is left of our economy.
But in the wake of your words of wisdom, some of our leaders seem to have either ignored your plea or are under the false assumption that money really does grow on trees.
The latest and greatest of a long line of insane, imbecilic, insulting actions taken by certain leaders is House Resolution 17-49, which aims to amend House rules to allow a $2,000 monthly subsistence allowance for all House members.
The mere fact that a leader would even think of such a reprehensible resolution that doles out $2,000 to every legislator at a time when the CNMI is FLAT BROKE leaves me to think that we have some leaders who are either unaware of basic economic principles, or they just don’t have any scruples.
But if it is because of a lack of common economic sense, then perhaps we should take a group of fifth graders up to the CNMI Legislature and have them bring with them a piece of pie to represent our economy. “Sir, you see, the more of this pie that you eat, the less pie there will be for the rest of us to eat…”
I am quite certain that while the fifth graders are just getting started with their economic lecture, this leader (if he actually managed to show up to a session at all) would suddenly call the sergeant-at-arms to confiscate the pie, declaring that the pie is government property, and that the students must leave it with him and his colleagues to, ahem, “examine.”After the students are booted out of the chambers, he will ask that the House go in to an emergency session. Once safely behind closed doors, he will ask all the leaders to sample the pie. After they have all gotten their piece of the pie, he will then tell his fellow lawmakers that the pie should be taxed. But right before the pie is completely consumed and taxed to death, he will ask the pie if it likes to gamble. He will then tell the pie not to worry, because he himself does not gamble (He has reassured his constituents that he only plays slot machines. Thank goodness he did, because now we can all sleep better at night!).
And what about those poor students? Not to worry dear friends. While there was no remaining pie left for any of them to enjoy, this leader was kind enough to return the pan to them. (He found out it was disposable and wasn’t worth a nickel).
The only thing more depressing than this leader’s complete disregard for the people of the CNMI is the very people who put him in to office — the VOTERS. Seriously. He didn’t appear out of thin air. He didn’t levitate in to the halls of the CNMI Legislature and declare himself a lawmaker. He was not knighted. He was not an heir to any throne. He had to be voted in. So I guess the real culprit is not bad leaders who try force casinos or tele-casinos or floating casinos or flying casinos down our throats — the real culprit is those who voted him in to office. In this case, I guess it is true what they say. We get the government we deserve.
But there are some great arguments coming from his corner. “Prim, chagi fan i casino! We might as well give it a try! We have nothing to lose!”
“Dispensa prim, but we have plenty to lose. We tried gambling in the form of poker. You know, the game that our leaders promised us that was only going to be played by tourists…that game that was only supposed to be in hotel lobbies. You know, the game that has destroyed hundreds of families by producing poker addicts who would sell their own kids to feed their addiction. Yeah, that one prim. We got enough gambling on Saipan as it already is. The 2010 census showed that there are more poker parlors on Saipan than there are boonie dogs. Atdit prim!”
Hey prim, how about we try something different? Instead of regurgitating and recycling old ideas, why don’t we concentrate on some new ones?
Here are three:
• Part-time legislature. Win-win situation here. Anyone will be able to run for office, without giving up their daytime job. Because it is part-time, no more huge budgets, no more big slush funds, and no more junkets.
• Three strikes rule. Mandatory long-term prison sentences for career criminals. If you are convicted of three felonies, then say “Hasta la vista, baby!” You can now enjoy a long stay at the very quaint Saipan prison! There you can enjoy three square meals a day in air-conditioned comfort, courtesy of us taxpayers. At least you won’t be burglarizing people’s homes anymore. Or selling crystal meth to kids. Or beating up on your wife and kids. Or raping and terrorizing your neighbors. If you commit to a life of crime, then commit to a lifetime behind bars. Do the crime, do the time.
• Garapan Fishermen and Farmer’s Market. Instead of using prime public property across Kristo Rai Church for kiddie bumper cars or waiting in vain to turn it in to a floating casino, why not use it for what it was once intended for? A beautiful market for our local fishermen and farmers, complete with an amphitheatre and restaurants. The blueprints are still available, and we have a ton of ARRA funds to make this happen! Forget casinos! Let’s support our local farmers and fishermen and boost tourism at the same time!
These are only three ideas, but they will have a greater positive impact on our economy than a dozen casinos and tele-casinos. A part-time legislature will open the floodgates to new leaders who can finally run for office without having to quit their current job, and because the part-time legislature will have only a meager stipend and budget to operate with, it will be unattractive to self-serving politicos.
As far as getting tough on crime goes, it will help clean up the image of our islands. I don’t know, but something tells me that tourists who have their purses or wallets snatched or their rent-a-cars broken in to are probably not going to come back to our islands. If they have a safe and pleasant experience while visiting our islands and go home happy, there is a greater chance for them to return. They are also likely to bring family and friends on their next trip. Repeat tourism is what we all need to strive for, and having tourists promote our islands by speaking about their wonderful experiences here with friends and family is our greatest marketing tool!
As far as a marketplace for fishermen and farmers is concerned, all you need to do is visit or look up Seattle’s famous Pike Place Market. It is an exciting place to visit and it brings tourists and residents of Seattle together. It is estimated that nearly 10 million people visit it annually. There is no reason why we cannot achieve similar success on a smaller scale with our very own public market.
MVA is right on the money in proclaiming “Tourism is everybody’s business.” How very true. But we as a community must realize that good governance is also everybody’s business. At the end of the day, we cannot expect to achieve greatness with less-than-mediocre leaders, and we cannot expect change without hard work, sacrifice, and new ideas that benefit everyone, not just the well-connected few.
Brothers and sisters, the salvation of our economy is dependent on our number one industry, and that is tourism. But tourism cannot flourish if we have leaders who fail to understand the basic fundamentals of attracting tourists. Before we even ever consider casinos, we MUST ensure that our beaches are beautiful and litter-free. We MUST ensure that our lagoons are safe and clean for our tourists to swim in. We MUST ensure that our tourists are safe to visit our popular tourist attractions without getting robbed, and that they are able to use the public toilets. And we must continue to smile fervently and greet all of our visitors as we do our family and friends…with a warm “Hafa Adai!” and “Olomwaay!”
Albert Einstein once said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”To our leaders who are relentlessly trying to pursue every form of gambling imaginable, please stop this insanity. Our people have had enough. Concentrate on good legislation. Concentrate on the basics. Concentrate on cleaning up the eyesores and illegal dumping grounds and dirty, polluted beaches.
Concentrate on preserving and protecting national historic landmarks, like sacred Marpi. In a nutshell, concentrate on putting your people first and politics last. If you can do all of this, then you can reinvent yourself as a statesman, instead of a self-serving politician. You may not be rewarded with big contracts or make big money, but you will forever have the gratitude and love from our people, and that is priceless. I sincerely hope you can do this. Our current and future generations are depending on you.
ED PROPST
Dandan, Saipan
