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"You know why they have that 10 million dollar football stadium (the one near where I live cost more and has a Jumbotron)? They have it because the next town over has it, and because the parents let them get away with it."

You make it sound like most people/voters/parents want this.
Simple question: HOW MANY VOTERS said yes to it?
What was the turnout.

A lot of the blame goes to the boards and the educrats for pushing this junk.
Let me tell you how HARD it is to defeat these bond elections. First they set it up so the bond committee works with building contractors. Everyone in the room has a vested interest in raping the taxpayer to build the educrat empire.

Then they have the elections (here in Texas) at odd dates with low community participation. They also have 'early voting' at select locations. What locations? why schools of course! The 'pro-bond' money comes from the contractors, who will make money on the buildings, so its an 'investment' and the school administrators are adept at treating taxpayer money like free money.

They grease the wheels to make these things happen, and there is rarely organized opposition because its 'only' the taxpayer getting stuck with the bill, and it is never phrased as the tax increase it really is. ... last year though residents stopped a big bond package here in ROund Rock school district. they wanted a $100 million high school and other absurdities.

It took a lot of concerted effort but it was voted down 2-to-1. OTOH, what will the board do? Just come back again with another proposal!!!

Yes, parents with wrong priorities are to blame and voters who vote for this stuff are to blame too... but when you have bond elections that have 5% voter turnout, and the 'special interests' ie building contractors are paying off the boards to put out glossy material on how great an idea this is, to uninformed unorganized voters, some of whom are football parents with stars in their eyes ... well, I'd call it the Educrat 'culture of corruption and waste'.

You make it sound like most people/voters/parents want this.

I'm saying the parents let them get away with this - too many parents don't follow money trails, they don't hold people accountable, they don't question such large expenditures.

Simple question: HOW MANY VOTERS said yes to it?

You bring up a very good point - the problem is you only end up with those voting who really want or don't want the stadium. I think a lot of those elections are timed specifically to get low voter turnout. It's hard enough to get people interested in Presidential or Congressional elections, getting them to turn out for local elections is really hard - I say this as somebody who has volunteered at the local level many times over the years.

You will get an election that affects 10s of thousands of people, and you'll see a thousand or two turn out.

A lot of the blame goes to the boards and the educrats for pushing this junk.

Sure, but at some point you have to hold the people who allow this to happen, responsible, and that's the voters. That money doesn't come out of thin air (although the government certainly acts like it does). Those bonds don't magically vote for themselves.

Then they have the elections (here in Texas) at odd dates with low community participation.

Well hell, you and I are on the same page - I mentioned above before I got to this part, that the dates for voting are deliberately picked for low turnout.

They grease the wheels to make these things happen, and there is rarely organized opposition because its 'only' the taxpayer getting stuck with the bill, and it is never phrased as the tax increase it really is. ... last year though residents stopped a big bond package here in ROund Rock school district. they wanted a $100 million high school and other absurdities.

I live in Austin, I know exactly what you are talking about, and Round Rock/Williamson County is really bad about this stuff.

Then again, that's Williamson county, and they have always been fairly corrupt for as far back as I can remember, from funny contracts, to school/county officials to law enforcement (especially with law enforcement, Williamson County is a running joke in the area, whether it's Round Rock cops or the Williamson County deputies - they could set their own AA group up, as well as be the model for law enforcement in the 'Dukes of Hazzard' tv show, or 'Porkys', or the cops in 'Smokey and the Bandit').

I just think that we can't let the taxpayers/voters off the hook. Too many people buy into what the government wants them to - the whole "we need this bond because it will help our schools (athletes, contractors, lobbyists, etc.)" culture.

I will admit the government does a damn fine job of making you see a tax increase as something else.