‘Am I my brother’s keeper??
In the biblical story of Cain and Abel, that was the question the former asked in response to God’s inquiry as to the latter’s whereabouts.
Cain asked the question as part of an attempt to cover his tracks after murdering his brother.
Thousands of years later, we’re still asking this question, but in the much larger context of are we responsible for the welfare of other people, be they our neighbors or complete strangers? Are we accountable for how we treat our fellow man?
To me, it’s a question the residents of Addison Township and the Village of Leonard must ask themselves when they go to the polls on May 5.
To me, this question is at the very heart of the North Oakland Transportation Authority (NOTA) millage proposal.
It’s been three-and-a-half months since NOTA stopped serving Addison and Leonard because this same millage proposal was narrowly defeated not once, but twice last year.
As a result, the people who need NOTA ? the old, the disabled, the poor ? are suffering. You can read about some of them in the Page 1 story I penned this week.
When I interviewed these people, I could hear the pain in their voices. They haven’t just lost a bus ride, they’ve lost access to basic necessities, they’ve lost a means to connect with others, they’ve lost their independence.
They feel alone.
They feel forgotten.
They feel afraid.
Addison and Leonard residents must ask themselves, ‘Is this how I want the most vulnerable people in my community to feel? Is this truly the way I want the people around me to live??
Addison and Leonard residents must ask themselves, ‘Am I my brother’s keeper??
I fully understand and appreciate the desire to vote down new or increased taxes.
Every day, it seems like government officials at every level are asking for more and more of our hard-earned money to pay for their schemes, their waste, their extravagance, their kingdom-building, their never-ending quest to justify their existence.
A lot of taxpayers are angry. They’re fed up. They’re frustrated. I know I am.
But contrary to what some people think, I’m not a vote-no-on-everything guy.
Yes, I vote ‘no? a lot. But I’ve also supported a good number of millages that I believe were justified, necessary and fair.
I don’t believe in just mindlessly voting ‘yes? on every millage proposal that’s placed before me like a good little serf.
But I also don’t believe in reflexively voting ‘no? on every tax increase that’s asked of me like FOX News planted a chip in my head.
Like everything else in life, I take things on a case-by-case basis.
In the case of NOTA, I see absolutely no valid reason for Addison and Leonard residents to vote against it.
As an Oxford taxpayer, I voted in favor of the millage increase last August and I have no regrets. I paid my first installment on the December township tax bill.
Normally, I’m not a big fan of public transportation because it tends to be a black hole that sucks up tax dollars faster than it can mismanage them.
Yeah, I’m looking at you Detroit Department of Transportation. You suck.
But NOTA is not some urban nightmare dominated by politics, bureaucrats and a transit union. NOTA is a very efficiently-run agency staffed by friendly people who genuinely care about the riders they serve.
It’s not looking to hoard our money to keep building some excessive fund balance.
It’s not looking to spend our money constructing some lavish palace.
NOTA’s proposed millage increase is simply designed to make up for lost federal and state funding, and have adequate reserves set aside to replace vehicles as necessary. Oxford and Orion already agreed to pay it. Addison needs to do so as well if the township is to rejoin NOTA.
NOTA is a fine little local bus service that does its job and does it quite well. It doesn’t ask for much and for what it gets, it does so much good for so many people.
It’s nice to know that if I ever need NOTA, it will be there to take me places. I voted for the millage to help my neighbors now and myself in the distant future.
It’s easy to not see the value of NOTA if you don’t use it or need it.
When you have the means to go wherever you want, whenever you want, you don’t give a local bus service like NOTA a second thought.
That’s when you have to place yourself in someone else’s shoes. That’s when you have to imagine what it would be like to be old, disabled, poor ? or all three ? and trapped inside your home because there’s no driver’s license in your wallet or vehicle in your driveway.
It’s not too hard to imagine because we’re all getting older with every tick of the clock and we never know when age, health issues, fate and the economy will conspire to end our days behind the wheel.
If that thought depresses you, good.
Maybe you’ll have an inkling of just how awful Addison’s former NOTA riders are feeling these days.
Maybe you’ll find it in your heart to give NOTA a ‘yes? vote on the May 5 ballot.
Maybe you’ll decide that being your brother’s keeper isn’t a chore or a burden, but a joy because there’s no better feeling in life than lending a helping hand to someone who truly needs it.