You’ve seen a lot of bad ideas come from blue states. Washington is officially labeling math as racist. California just destroyed the largest source of new jobs in the state, and Oregon is openly endorsing a radical, socialist terrorist group. There’s a lot of stupid going around.
In fact, it’s so bad that you really can’t say who or what the worst case looks like. With that said, a new provision in New York is trying to separate itself from the pack.
In a state where freedom died long ago, the government is trying to tax stargazing. Yes, this is serious, and when you’re done learning about it, you won’t know if you should smack your face, laugh or scream in frustration.
Recreation and Historic Preservation
You just read the title of the office in charge of parks in the state of New York. They now offer stargazing permits at a number of their parks. You might think it’s reasonable for a park to charge an access fee. The state cleans and maintains the park, so you have to pay to go there. It’s pretty normal, if not annoying.
That’s not what this is. Instead, these permits allow people in New York to stay in a park parking lot. From there, they are allowed to stargaze when they pay a $35 fee. If you’re not a New York resident, it costs $60. It’s all as dumb as it sounds. You could just look up at the sky, or you can go to a state-run parking lot and pay a fee to do the same.
There are two big problems here (among many others). The first is that you weren’t surprised by any of this. New York has overstepped the boundaries of government so often and in so many ways that this seems routine. Even though they’re charging people for the right to look up, literally.
The second problem is that New Yorkers are dumb enough to participate in this. You might think that committed stargazers will have to pony up because the best spots are owned by the state. That might be true, but how many of the best stargazing spots are paved parking lots? Since those are the only areas where stargazing is now permitted, New Yorkers are paying money for a natural right that has been stripped by the state. It’s incredibly dumb, and New Yorkers are now the embodiment of everything we’ve been warned about for centuries.
This goes beyond the nanny state. It goes beyond abusive tax structure. There is absolutely no harm that comes to people or the environment from looking at the sky. Similarly, it drains no resources. There’s literally nothing to tax here, and still, New York found a way.
Most disgusting of all is that this ridiculous political behavior exists at the pleasure of the people of New York. In fact, they welcome it. Can you believe that these morons are allowed to vote? It sure is a good thing we have an electoral college.
