At the turn of the century, America began to lose its way.

Bush II and his Republican cronies embarked on two preemptive wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, while the cost in precious blood and treasure lingers-on, yet today.

Trillions of dollars in tax cuts for the rich, over 10 years, failed to provide jobs intended for America’s work force. In 2008, the greatest economic disaster since the Great Depression cost America’s treasury $1.5 trillion, to bail out corrupt Wall Street Banks, and no one went to jail.

In 2007, our city and county officials began refurbishing Old Pullman Park. Lavish spending beyond budget restraints triggered inter-borrowing among frivolous city/county authorities, turning a proposed “family recreation center project” into a financial nightmare. Then, the Blue Sox came to town. Today, the dream has vanished, the dire consequences real.

Our county sold “Sunnyview Nursing Home” at a $20 million profit. With vacancies available to house county employees, instead, our county commissioners squandered this grand windfall on building a new structure to serve that purpose. For much too long now, we have tolerated the hazards of driving over and around our city’s crumbling streets and side roads.

So, who is responsible for the dreadful conditions that exist, placing our vehicles in harm’s way over years of neglect?

Devils from the past, yet today.

Our town is held hostage by state politicians who fail miserable in providing the funding (gasoline tax) for proper street and road maintenance.

Pennsylvania earns the dubious distinction of having the highest gasoline tax in the nation. To make matters worse, our legislators recently plundered millions of dollars from our gasoline tax coffers, to bolster state police security.

This past July, Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao announced the 20 recipients of $856 million in “Infrastructure for Rebuilding America” grant funds. Butler County did not appear on the list, although it did apply for $68 million to complete the widening of Route 228.

Secretary Chao is the wife of Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, a Republican and the culprit, who in 2011, rejected President Obama’s massive jobs and infrastructure bill, to be paid by a .07 percent surcharge on millionaires.

Eight years later, who would have believed that in America today, we distribute precious tax dollars through an inadequately funded lottery scheme that rewards a select few.

All around our town, older homes reveal years of decay and neglect, due to crippling poverty.

Today, our city is a mere shadow of its former self.

From 2000 to 2006, the number of Americans living in poverty increased 15 percent. By 2006, 33 million workers earned less than $10 per hour. Most received no health insurance, sick days, or pension plans from their employers.

In 2009, half the people (46.3 percent) used the emergency room as their primary care, passed along to Medicaid.

Average wages remained flat, while corporate profits increased by 13 percent. Food prices are up 40 percent since 2009.

Rather than alleviate the grief, President Trump slashes precious life-saving entitlements, at the same time, providing lavish tax cuts for the wealthiest among us in corporate America.

Presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren understands the role played by the infrastructure, offering this. “Coming out of The Great Depression we built bridges and power grids to grow businesses in America. We plowed money into the future. America’s failure to attend to our basic infrastructure is one of the most serious policy issues we face, while our bridges and sewers crumble, our power grid degrades, other countries’ wireless service exceed ours in reliability and speed.”

The facts presented here are certain to be met with disdain and denial by misguided Trump loyalists.

Should one experience the ravages of poverty under a Trump administration, would he be heard shouting from the highest hill, “Lock him up.” I doubt it.

Gino Mariotti

Butler