"It's like Florida taxing oranges"

Now that Deval Patrick's casino scheme has fallen through, Massachusetts lawmakers - unable to cut spending - are searching for a whole new scheme to fund the state government.

"Let's see," thought the geniuses on Beacon Hill, "it should be an institution with deep pockets that's also unable to move out of the state. It would be a bonus if we could portray them as elitist and unwilling to share their wealth." Voila! From the Boston Globe: "Lawmakers target $1b college endowments"

Massachusetts lawmakers desperate for additional revenue are eyeing the endowments of deep-pocketed private colleges to bolster the state's coffers by more than $1 billion a year, asserting that the schools' rising fortunes undercut their nonprofit status.

Legislators have asked state finance officials to study a plan that would impose a 2.5 percent annual assessment on colleges with endowments over $1 billion, an amount now exceeded by nine Massachusetts institutions. The proposal, which higher education specialists believe is the first of its kind across the country, drew surprising support at a debate on the State House budget last week and is attracting attention in higher education circles nationally.

I hardly know where to begin with this state-sponsored kleptocracy. After expanding Keno to rake in cash from the senior citizens and problem gamblers, it's still not enough for Massachusetts. So it's time to punish the success of the state's institutions of higher education, some of which predate Massachusetts itself.