Cause to be Alarmed

Just finished listening to the "Legislative listening tour" and is alarmed. No, downright scared for Idaho's future. Is not sure people have yet gathered the implications of the Idaho budget.

On education, parents of students in rural areas should be scared that the new budget cuts will significantly harm their children. The predominantly Republican legislature has treated education as their pocket book. But it going to have far-reaching consequences.

1. With the cuts, and the way school districts have just been handed less money means that transportation will be a big part of how they can cut down on costs. This likely means some school districts, especially those in rural areas, will chose to go to a 4 day school week. This will help school districts. But on that 5th day, parents will have to find day-care for children while they are at work. They can't work less, but their children will demand care.

2. Small schools, especially like those in Soda Springs and Grace, Idaho, will likely shut down. The children will have to attrition into other schools, some even further from home, hence increasing the transportation costs, and forcing the 4 day school week.

3. The way that the budget was decreased will put the burden of how to distribute the cuts onto local school districts. The state didn't chose where the cuts were made, but there will be a loss of programs and school districts will be forced into making the hard decisions.
This effectively is trying to insulate the governor from the hard decisions and he will try and get by without taking some responsibility. If the economy improves in Idaho, and budget projections are wrong, the state will run some surplus, but there is no promise that money will actually be spend back on education. they can take some money from the Education stabilization fund (also known as the "rainy day fund") but as the money goes back into the fund with the surplus, they can't use it for over a year. It won't help this year. It will harm a whole generation of children.
For higher education, they will have the same problem, even with the higher education stabilization fund, the help will come too late. A whole generation of students will be put one more year in debt to the banks and federal government. It is one more year we won't be able to attract the types of businesses Idaho needs to build a strong stable economy. The jobs Idaho needs to attract demand an educated population. These budget decisions will keep Idaho from rebounding as fast as the rest of the country and be creating a reputation for the state as a third-world country with little to offer in the way of people to do the services our own country needs.

The state has opted out of several programs that also protect our world from being hurt. The matching federal dollars to the Environmental Protection Agency has in the past encouraged jobs. We were being matched dollar for dollar for money to do water quality management. Not only are we losing air and water quality, we are also losing millions of dollars that went into the Idaho economy that we won't be able to profit from, especially the small businesses that depend on the spent dollars by Idaho workers.

For the Idahoans who are suspicious of federal government intrusions, the Republican legislature has made decisions that have made the situation worse. Now to obey the laws, the federal government will have to assume many of what the state government in the form of the Department of Environmental Quality, once did. They will be the ones doing the work and the federal government will be even closer to people's lives with no state buffer to protect them from mis-understandings.

For people on Medicare it is even worse. The federal government was matching 3 to 1 dollars spent on medicare for people in Idaho. Not only have we hurt the most needy of Idahoans, we have compounded the state's problems 3 fold as to how to care for the sick and needy. Some of them could have come back to school to get off of aide programs, but as tuition gets raised at public universities, it is pricing them out of their the best solution to their woes.

A whole generation of Idahoans and Idaho businesses are being punished by the Republican legislature's decisions. A whole generation of Idahoan's health and environment is being screwed by these Republicans and their ideas on government's place.

A leader is someone who has a vision for not just now, but for the future. Idahoan's Republicans have put ideology about government, the environment, and responsibility before vision.

If you aren't completely outraged that they can't lead, you haven't been paying attention.

Lip Dub Rough run-through

here is the rough run-through of the upcoming lip dub at ISU. I hope you can make it!

Comics and Anthro part 2

part two for my friends who may have missed it. Fun time, only wished we had gotten more into the E.C. and comic ideology stuff. It was touched on, but not delved into much. But very cool.

Comics and Anthropology part 1

Idaho Values. Idaho Budget

The Idaho Budget as a Moral Document.

Despite its complexity, the Idaho budget is essentially a moral document--the specific expression of the values of the state.

This week the Idaho State Legislature begins deciding on the budget. Where we place education is of extreme importance.

"A popular government without popular information or the means of acquiring it is but a prologue to Farce or Tragedy or perhaps both. Knowledge will forever govern ignorance, and a people who mean to be their own Governors must arm themselves with the power knowledge gives."-James Madison

If we are trying to keep our republic, we must weigh heavily our commitment to it through arming our children with a quality education. And when those children are prepared for a higher education, we must make sure it is accessible, even to the least of these, by keeping the cost as low as possible.

To those legislatures who are planning the demise of our republic, we must not allow them to gut education in Idaho. They say “if the money comes in, then we can spend it,” but they have not promised us in any way that the money will go to education.
And even more scary is that once we have fallen behind in education, that can never be made up. Now is the only time we have.

Please call your representative immediately and let them know that public education in Idaho is of high value and important to the very subsidence of our republic. Watch how they vote. And then hold them accountable. If they don’t share your values, find someone who does and elect them.

And plan on attending the Rally for Public Education on the Idaho capital steps Thursday, March 11th. Make sure you work out a make-up assignment with teachers, many who are sympathetic to the cause. Lunch is provided and ASISU is finding a way to pay for the buses.

Now is the only chance we have this year to make a difference that will affect your pocket book next semester.