We continue to be amazed by the resiliency of the economy both locally and nationally. All of our enterprises, both public and private, are undergoing churning reorganizations.
While many are grumbling about cuts in state government spending, Minnesota remains far better off than many states, nine of which are verging on shut down as their fiscal years expire next Tuesday.
In Minnesota, the Legislature decided not to increase its burdens with more taxes. Not all states are so fortunate.
Meanwhile, the federal government has enacted President Bush's tax cut to increase spendable income.
Schools, cities and counties are caught in between, trying to determine how much to raise taxes in order to retain services. If they raise taxes too much they will negate the beneficial effects of state and federal actions. Raise them too little and some vital programs will have to be cut.
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For too many years it seemed as if no matter what our government did, the economy continued to grow. Often, incivility grew because we took this growth for granted, demanding that spending grow or taxes be cut because almost everyone had enough.
It's not so easy to be a public official these days, so our advice to all is to be a bit more charitable toward those with whom you disagree.
