I take it as further evidence that the level of government spending is excessive.....don't know how you could come to any other conclusion.
Well, just for fun, how about "You need an education to work in government jobs, and educated people don't piss away their money as quickly"? Or "Maryland is where all the wealthy lobbyists live"? Or "Government jobs are less susceptible to boom-bust cycles, so Maryland savings have weathered the downturn better"? Or "Baltimore, City of Opportunity"?
I'm not sure how likely any of those are (although I lean toward the first one), but the idea that we couldn't come to *any* other conclusion is a bit strong...
Leaving aside the waste -- which EVERY large business/corporation/government has -- it just costs an assload of money for crucial government functions. That is the nature of the beast -- defense, homeland security, intelligence, diease control, disaster management, etc, etc, etc. Many of the people who work in these sectors could just as easily work in the private sector -- and indeed, many do the revolving door thing back and forth as opportunities present themselves. That the government of a nation of 325 milllion people that is the wealthiest on the planet spends a lot of money should come as no surprise. it is what it is. Now, as for the waste, that is another matter, but also one that I believe is way overblown. Not non-existent or insignificant, to be clear, just way overblown by the media and various political organizations looking to inflame public opinion in their efforts to benefit themselves.