The opinion expressed by Thomas Jensen in his letter Jan. 2 is directly on point. "The Sussex of today won't be the same tomorrow" is as accurate as the Sussex of 25 years ago was not the same as the Sussex of today. Sussex County is suffering the same fate as Tidewater, Va., albeit on a smaller scale. Just as Virginia Beach has blended into Norfolk, Milton will soon be indistinguishable from Lewes. Malfunction Junction worked fine when there were little more than 100,000 people in the county, but it is totally inappropriate when the population is approaching a quarter-million.
The main culprit is lower taxes. Had Sussex Countians been given a choice, say 25 years ago, to have a property tax reassessment performed, which was last done when President Nixon was in office, or face the prospect of predatory real estate development that would forever transform their community and their lives, the majority’s likely response would have been that there was no place in Sussex County for such tax-and-spend liberal policies. While it is true that unscrupulous or incompetent public officials often raise taxes with little regard for the public's long-term financial benefit, the fact remains that reasonable and progressive taxation is the cost of civilization. Most Americans would not want to reside in those countries that have ineffective and corrupt tax collection.
It is convenient for most voters to blame politicians for the current state of overdevelopment, but in reality politicians are just a reflection of the desires of the general public that elects them, repeatedly. The popular adage among economists that there is no such thing as a free lunch is indeed true. If the public wants infrastructure and other social benefits, then the public must be prepared to pay the costs. Unfortunately for Sussex Countians, the cost for such infrastructure is now prohibitive, so get used to more traffic circles.
The next time one is frustrated by traffic congestion in January, which looks a lot like the traffic congestion on Memorial Day, or one cannot find a parking space at the grocery store or the self-checkout lines are backed up, or one cannot find a high school graduate to hire who knows basic math or civics, then the blame can be found by looking in the mirror, or just accept the situation and say, "Ain't lower taxes great?"
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