Our Tax Dollars at Work

Today is tax day, and instead of complaining (like I did all day Sunday when I was finishing mine), I'm going to be thankful.

I'm thankful for public libraries.


I'm thankful for interstate highways.



I'm thankful for the inspectors who make sure my food is safe to eat.



I'm thankful for the National Weather Service.



I'm thankful for Mammoth Cave National Park, The Wright Brothers National Memorial, Gettysburg National Military Park, and The Great Smokey Mountains National Park.





I'm thankful for the Library of Congress, the National Archives, the Smithsonian, and Independence Hall.





I'm thankful for the Center for Disease Control.



I'm thankful for the NASA scientists who developed the technology that made medical imaging, fire resistant fabrics, and shock absorbing helmets possible.



I'm thankful for air traffic controllers.



I'm thankful for the men and women who serve in our armed forces.



I'm thankful for the University of Kentucky and California University of PA where I acquired part of my education.



I'm thankful for the public school system.



I'm thankful for my fire fighter friends.



I'm thankful for the police officer that lives two doors down the street.



Tax dollars make our lives better a thousand times every day. I've heard a lot of angry rhetoric in the last couple of years about the hundred ways that government has failed us. Governments are made of people and people are fallible. Could we do better? Sure. We can always do better. But when I look at the short list above that doesn't begin to cover the services our government provides, I realize I've gotten a lot of bang for my buck.