Everyone wants a raise, including me

I have lived in East Windsor my entire life. I grew up here, attended school here, bought a house here, and will have my family here.  

I know this town inside and out. I could drive you from one end of North Water Street to the far end of Plantation Road with my eyes closed. That being said, I have never seen my hometown in such a catastrophic dissaray, and its deeply concerning.

Budget season comes and goes every year.  Nothing is easy in a small town, even in the best of times.  Every line item gets scrutinized, every pencil or paperclip gets itemized.  

We get that. We expect that. What we do not expect to hear, is a demand for shared sacrifices, and "do more with less", and then see the exact opposite done once the budget is over with.

I have zero problem paying people their due value, but in the same breath, we can't give someone a 11 percent raise, while forcing critical services to cut corners, or miss critical equipment purchases to repair their driveways in the name of safety.

Now, the ice has been broken, everyone wants a raise. Great. Just add a mill to my taxes. I haven't had a raise as a state employee in over two years, and I am going another two years before I get one.

But, just keep throwing a tax bill at me, that gets higher and higher. While you do that, I will keep volunteering my time to the fire department, hoping we have the equipment needed to do the job.

I will watch the ambulance drive by wondering if they have adequate staffing should I need to call them before they return from their current emergency. I will hear the police sirens sound as the officers do their job and wonder if they will be available should I need them.  

I will watch cars drive down my street that is starting to look more like a dirt road every day. I will watch our children have to pay to play high school sports, or at least be threatened with it.  

I will watch students have to pay to park at the high school. I will watch as we continually throw money into sewer plans with zero certainty of a return on investment.

Everyone wants a raise, including me. Congratulations to those getting them. Just send us normal minions the bill.