Thank Goodness!

As everyone knows, Governor Walker and the republican legislature has cut $1.6 billion from public education. This will dramatically affect 410 out of 426 school districts in Wisconsin. If you want to know exactly how much funding was pulled from YOUR district, you can find that here.

just a couple examples,

* Baraboo will lose $1,659,824 or 10.13 %
* Portage will lose $1,369,507 or 10.13 %
* Wisconsin Dells will lose $65,997 or 10.13%

Well you get the picture and know that your children’s schools will suffer. On top of that the cuts this year will be minimal compared to what is in store for next year. recall Senator Luther Olsen feels your pain. or not so much:

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28 thoughts on “Thank Goodness!

  1. The main point here is almost every district who did not sign a contract before the new collective bargaining went into affect are finding ways to make up the lost revenue and still save taxpayer money

    1. “Sure, we punched your kids in the face, but we gave you permission to punch other families in the face”.

      In some circles, this is apparently awesome.

      1. JCG, again, Gov. Doyle and Democrats made the same kind of cuts, only they offered no way out for districts. So is your problem with “punching kids in the face” or just when Republicans supposedly do it?

        I also find fault with your premise of punches in the face. I hardly see asking employees to pay a portion of their own pension and benefits as a punch in face. Especially when they supposedly were willing to make those concessions in the first place (or did you forget that talking point?)

        1. yes i am against ANY cuts in education. I find it funny that the repubs cut 1.6 billion and now are campaigning that the dems cut 400 million…..

        2. First, you’re projecting a lot of assumptions onto me. If you look at my record here, and especially if you knew me in person, you’d I’ve rarely if ever gone on record defending Democrats or what they do. Especially ‘ol milquetoast Doyle who can go to hell for all I care. In fact, it’s possible that is the first time I’ve typed the word “Democrat” here. Parties and partisanship have almost zilch to do with what I’m about. So yes, I was highly critical of the last Gov when he had the majorities in both chambers (or, in fmsn-speak: Ahhhh, so you acknowledge Doyle and Dems made budget cuts!)

          Second, if taking food off middle class tables (not to mention loads of cash out of the economy) isn’t analogous to a punch in the face for you, you’re a bit out of touch. But we already kinda knew that much.

          Third, if taking 10% or more out of the paychecks of middle class workers isn’t a problem for you, what’s wrong with a 4% tax increase on the wealthiest 1%? It’d be the fiscally conservative (not to mention fair) thing to do, after all.

    2. Now who’s spouting half truths…the blog is about cuts to public education while your link talks about the City of Milwaukee…MPS not = to City of Milwaukee…

        1. You must have missed the KEY FACT that pointed out my linkage error below, 10 minutes before your snarky post.

    1. Jeff, you are only telling half the story. You are showing the reduction in aid from the state to school districts. You fail to show the savings from the new pension and health contributions, along with other flexibilities school districts now have in saving money. Surely you know what you are doing here.

      Also, you single out Sen. Olsen, but fail to recognize that your guy Rep. Fred Clark also cut state aid to districts. So do you have a problem with cuts or how much the cuts are? If it’s the latter, at what point are the cuts ok and not ok?

        1. No, just iphones, flat screens, cable and internet and then can’t seem to afford real necessities and then look to the government for assistance. I do have a problem with people who can’t tell the difference between needs and wants. The ones who can tell the difference deserve our help.

            1. Just speaking from people I know. I don’t think any of them own a Cadillac. The one couple I do know that drives a Cadillac pays all their bills and do not have any of the other non-necessities that I mentioned.

              1. I’d venture a guess that I know a good number more poor folks than you, and not many I know own iPhones, have flat screen TVs and have cable and internet. I’ve seen folks living in some of the most abject poverty imaginable.

      1. forgot…what the schools have in “saving money” is strictly pay cuts to the teachers. They drove many good teachers into early retirement this year. Then many schools had to hire brand new teachers at a much lighter salary. Everyone loses here and everyone has lost.

        Also as I pointed out, while many schools are “getting by” this year next year they have devastating losses of income, will we make the teachers take another 12% pay cut?

        Finally I singled out Olsen because I came across the video of Olsen saying “thank goodness” we cut public education. Had i seen that from someone else they would have been singled out.

        1. Jeff, the contributions are going to occur EVERY year, not just this year, so why do you think teachers would need to take “another 12% pay cut” next year?

          I also disagree with your premise that it is a pay cut. A contribution to THEIR OWN PENSION is still their money they are going to get back in retirement. A contribution to THEIR OWN HEALTH CARE is a benefit that they have.

          1. it is a pay cut because they had COLLECTIVELY BARGAINED for the contributions in Lieu of less pay. Now they lose what they bargained for and have to pay more. That is a PAY CUT no matter how you word it. (when you take home 300-600 a month LESS that is a pay cut).

            Also many schools this year, including my school district, were able to draw on Stimulus funds(yes President Obama’s stimulus) and were able to lessen much of the devastation THIS year.

            1. When you say “this year” are you referring to 2010-11 or the upcoming 2011-12? Because as I saw it stimulus helped out 2010-11 and now the new contributions will help in 2011-12 and going forward.

    1. Apparently no one here is allowed to disagree or challenge faulty logic. Another classy retort from Jan.

      Hey Jan, Zach usually encourages (or at least he did) open dialogue and discussion, even if everyone doesn’t mark in lockstep. Doesn’t mean I am a troll. I think Zach and others here would say I have been respectful in my disagreement, which is more than I can say for your comment.

      1. Now that Nota is no longer around i enjoy our right wing visitors.

        And forgot in all of my posts, your welcome to disagree—you of course will be wrong, but welcome to disagree 🙂

    2. To me, there’s a diff. between drive by name callers and the ones like fmsn who at least stick around to defend their arguments. I don’t get any satisfaction from one-sided conversations where we just all nod our heads in agreement at how awful the Others are.

      Not criticizing you, Jan. You do you. Just saying different strokes and all that.

    3. Jan, he’s not a troll. We may not agree with his opinion but that doesn’t make him a troll.

      The whole point of this blog isn’t to serve as just another echo chamber; I actually do want to see some dialogue and debate. If we can’t engaged the “other side” in dialogue and debate, then we’re doing something wrong.

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