Jane’s post regarding the creation of a high-paying position for the wife of the governor reminds me (as do many other things these days) of one of the lines in the Declaration of Independence:

He has erected a Multitude of new Offices, and sent hither Swarms of Officers to harass our People, and eat out their substance.

Higher education is loaded with new offices, and while they don’t usually involve harassment of the people, the taxes that have to be collected to pay the hefty salaries certainly do eat out our substance.

In the 18th century, it was clear to most Americans that they were being forced to give up some of their hard-earned income so that royal officials could live high on the hog. The same thing is going on now, but on a far greater scale. Time to rekindle the Spirit of ‘76.