- Our state is so deep in debt, they are eyeing the public employee pension funds. (yikes)
- Starbucks is cutting 6,700 jobs, Boeing is cutting 10,000 jobs. (double yikes)
- A family was in the news--their child has cystic fibrosis and with budget cuts, the state insurance plan that covers their child may be cut. The family earns too much for the plan that covers the poorest people in our state but not enough to afford to pay their own insurance. (sad, and there's plenty of other people in the same position)
- The post office may have to cut a day of mail delivery due to budget deficits (hmmm).
- Schools want to go to a four day schedule instead of five (kids aren't learning enough now, further reducing school hours is supposed to be a good idea??).
- It looks like one of our a major newspapers will be shutting down (sad but I too am guilty of catching the latest news online or on TV).
- Our state wants to tax cigarettes an additional dollar per pack (I don't smoke but targeting one group like that doesn't seem very fair).
- A man in LA killed his five kids, his wife, and himself, reportedly over financial problems. (stupid, so what if you go bankrupt? Having your family is way more important than money)
Well that's enough doom and gloom for one day...hopefully tomorrow will be less distressing.
The state where we live is considering changing the law that says you have to go so many days to school, to the equivalent number of hours. This would give school districts some options in regards to school days.
ReplyDeleteSome districts are planning to lenghten the day by 1 hour or so and then cut a day of school. That would save quite a bit of money in regards to electricity, the funds that run the buses, and lunches.
Districts that are rural wont be able to do this as it would mean some of their kids who are on a bus about 2 hours anyway because of the travel time would be gone literally all day.
The 4 day week would most likely be instituted here during the hot months of August and September when cooling the schools is so expensive.
I applaud the fact that the state is giving individual school districts options to do what is best for their individual schools. More control at the local level is what is needed.
However, that is moot for us as we are in private school and may even homeschool at some point.
At first glance, the tobacco tax (I do not know what they are going to do with the $) seems insane. However, after I thought about it, they can pay up. How many of us that don't smoke are paying for smoking related illnesses in our taxes & ins. premiums. The same is true for the motercycle accidents with riders who do not wear helmets & drivers who do not use seatbelts.
ReplyDeleteBe cool,
Astro
Good points!
ReplyDelete