You need to know this. Government officials in New York and New Jersey are facing a lot of criticism for their responses to the “thunder snow” that occurred in the northeast on Sunday. A “thunder snow” is a bizarre weather phenomenon when thunder and lighting are present during a snowstorm. Freak weather like this could also be a symptom of global warming. Regardless – New York City is practically shut down – and Mayor Michael Bloomberg is in the hot seat as many are claiming he was unprepared to respond to the storm ahead of time. In New Jersey – Republican Governor Chris Christie was out of the state altogether – on vacation at Disney World – which doesn’t sit too well with many citizens of that state who are trying to dig out of the massive snowfall. Ironically – it’s conservatives who are taking the lead in blaming the government for a failed response strategy. The same people who argue everyday that we need “less government” – suddenly want more government when their own lives are inconvenienced. This highlights the importance of an effective – and limber government that has enough resources to respond to disasters. It also illustrates why its so important that we stop neglecting infrastructure - the systems we routinely use for both normal transportation and emergencies like thundersnow. But since Reagan came into office pledging to “starve the beast” by cutting government revenue - giving millionaires and billionaires massive tax breaks – our government has become largely ineffective – and our country is now deteriorating. Maybe this “thunder snow” in the northeast will wake us all up and we can depart from this insane “starve the beast” mentality and start modernizing our country again like we did for over 190 years before Reagan.