LEFTIST 'BLOCK PARTY' PROMISES VOTES, DELIVERS… MORE FUNDING ROUNDTABLES?

The 'Central Coast–Riviera (CA) Chapter of The Links, Incorporated,' along with Umoja, The Basic Needs Center, The Well, and the Multimodal Lab, recently hosted a 'LINK UP THE VOTE Block Party,' as dutifully reported by the Santa Barbara Independent. One can only imagine the sheer thrill of such an event: a veritable smorgasbord of progressive virtue signaling, likely featuring speeches on 'equity' and 'inclusion,' all designed to ensure the perpetuation of the very political machine that keeps these 'non-profits' perpetually funded.

While the Independent breathlessly reported on this 'celebration of civic engagement,' The Whipping Post can’t help but notice the striking absence of anything resembling actual, you know, *voting*. Instead, it appears to have been a meticulously curated opportunity for various taxpayer-subsidized organizations to pat each other on the back and remind everyone why their 'critical services' need yet another tranche of public funds. We suspect the 'Multimodal Lab' was primarily engaged in calculating how many grant applications they could churn out before the free organic kale ran out.

What the Independent conveniently omitted, of course, was any inquiry into who truly benefits from these elaborate displays of 'community partnership.' It's always the same cast of characters, the same interconnected web of progressive advocacy groups, all vying for a slice of the public purse – and all, coincidentally, encouraging voters to support the politicians who keep those purses open. The only 'linking up' truly happening here is the linking of taxpayer dollars to the next round of 'empowerment initiatives' for the already empowered. We look forward to the next installment of our local paper’s uncritical promotional material, maybe next time they’ll remember to ask about the actual cost to residents.