Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Cincinnayton: Regionalism in My Backyard

I'm not sure what to make of this WDTN report about "merging" Cincinnati with Dayton.  I guess I'd have to actually hear more about what is actually being proposed; but generally speaking, I'm opposed to mergers of cities of this size.

Government, at all levels, is about the consolidation of power.  When concentrated, power of this magnitude can be corrupted much more easily.  Accountability becomes a quick victim of bureaucracy.  Incompetence and graft becomes commonplace.  And the ordinary citizen just becomes a number, a statistic in a game of politics.

In smaller municipalities, mergers like this can be of benefit.  If services are improved while cost is maintained or lowered, then a move like this makes sense.

None of that is likely in this scenario.

I'm not sure what Dayton is trying to do.  They have also been pushing county-wide regionalism efforts.  The message I take from this is that Dayton government is desperate to find a way to divert attention from something.  Whatever it is, it's bad.

Put me down in the "Against It" column until we learn more...