I never cease to be amazed at how that competitive spirit shows itself -- and at the absolute wisdom of the collective in most cases.

In fairness to the Robert C. Byrd State of West by God Virginia, it's the system and they just take advantage of it because if one does not, another will. The tragedy is that the Feds take in over 60% of all revenue and expend less than 40%. The difference is made up with grants and transfers to the States, Counties and Cities who are really responsible for most government functions.

Aside from the sheer waste and inefficiency and the bureaucracy supported at all levels to request, process and massage the grants and transfers; it wrongly puts local government which is most responsive to the populace in the supplicant mode and, even worse, the surplus allowed the Feds in the system encourages profligate spending by Congress and, far more importantly, encourages a lot of sloppiness in the federal government. The Federal government used to do most of its jobs fairly well, today it does not do most of its jobs at all well because it is too busy sticking it's nose into too many voter buying things that are not its business.

I've long believed that a part of the failure of the Armed Forces to lose their WW II mentality is an excess of money that allows too much to be spent on the wrong things and the political meddling that keeps it that way. The system is at fault.