Public transit

This past week Eric (my partner) wrote a letter to Governor Pawlenty about the bus strike, and it so eloquently expresses my own feelings I’m simply going to put it here.

Dear Gov. Pawlenty,I expect more from my governor than a wait and see attitude toward somethingas important as a transit worker strike in our major metropolitan area. Iride the bus every day as a way to avoid owning and driving a second car. Ibelieve this is environmentally responsible and helps me keep life a littlesimpler. But every day on the bus I see people who DEPEND on public transitas their link to work and services. You don't seem to care that these goodcitizens are cut off by this dispute.Public transit is a vital part of any effective metropolis. The Twin Citieshave meager enough service, with much too much dependence on buses andalmost no light rail. We don't effectively reach out to our suburbs withpublic transit, making a car an essential component of living here. If wewant breathable air, drivable roads, empowered workers, mobile youth, weshould be supporting public transit. Unfortunately your tax cuts have notleft us much of a means of such support.As a minimum, I would expect a leader in this community to point out theconnection between this strike and health care coverage. Health care costswere at the heart of the University strike earlier this year and now thetransit strike, yet all you can do is encourage us to take advantage of goodCanadian law to buy cheaper drugs. Why no initiative to change Minnesota orUS law so that we could buy our own drugs at reasonable prices? Why nostanding on the bully pulpit to share with the citizens of this state theimperative that we work together to improve health coverage for all?I expect you to support public transit. I expect you to fight the toughbattle of health care coverage for all. It seems my expectations are toohigh. Prove me wrong, please take a courageous stand. Please make an effortto resolve this strike and reform health care coverage in this state.Sincerely,
...Eric