Taxes! Taxes! Taxes!

We need more taxes!

But Ald. Manny Flores (1st) said he's open to the property tax hike because he's been trying to get a new library on Chicago Avenue in his ward.

"Unlike a typical property tax increase, what we're looking at here is a budget line item for libraries," Flores said.

Is the tax going away after the two libraries are built? I didn't think so.

...levies on merchandise, gas, cigarettes and parking are down.

Maybe, that's because you've already pushed the pirce so high with taxes that people won't buy them. And the smoking ban (Which I'm all for!) is limiting the number of smokes these people huff down to begin with.

The mayor said wages, pensions and health care costs make up 80 percent of the city's budget and continue to grow. Daley recently signed off on 10-year contracts with 33 unions that provide raises for as many as 8,000 city workers.

Including yearly 4% raises as reported by the Trib earlier today. Anyone else getting a 4% raise this year. Of course, we're not employed by our uncle/brother/neighbor/partonage chief either.

In return for reaching into their wallets, city taxpayers would get 50 new police officers, more security cameras

Great! Maybe we can get rid of 50 of the existing club and gun wielding thugs and hire some good police officers with the money saved. And do we need more invasion of privacy? I don't think so.

And this doesn't even include the tax and fee increases that Cook County and the State of Illinois want to introduce. And people still can't fricken get to work on the CTA!