Give me back my airport

I haven't written anything about the proposed "airport district" for Milwaukee's Mitchell Field yet, but Jim McGuigan explains quite eloquently why it is utterly stupid:

Gee, that idea has worked well. The public is so endeared to unelected boards like the Stadium district board, MMSD, the Bradley Center board … that clearly it must make sense because Milwaukee County has run the Airport poorly right? Uh, no--wrong.

The airport is run on an enterprise fund--a fund built exclusively from a small fee that is tacked onto every ticket. Taxpayers who don’t use the airport don’t chip in with their property taxes. It’s an idea that Milwaukee County, not State government, came up with. Mitchell International Airport has proven to be a good neighbor through the diligent hard work of generations of County Supervisors.

I also have not commented on the primary challenge to State Sen. Jeff Plale, but if I did, I would say it's a bad idea: 2006 is not the year for primary challenges to incumbent Democrats. (I can explain more why later.) However, Plale is walking into dangerous territory here.