What A Mess

Atrios has already alerted us to the latest findings on joblessness: US employers cut payrolls by 63,000 in February, the second straight month of job losses. And Ruth has already pointed out the burgeoning cost of food staples all around the world, including the US.

It's my turn.

State governments are also feeling the pinch as expected tax revenues just aren't flowing into the coffers. As a result, the states are looking for ways to staunch the flow of red ink, and California is among them. Our Brave Sir Arnold, however, is holding fast to the Republican theory that raising taxes is evil, so he's decided to cut funding instead. One of the hardest hit areas is education, but at least some of the people in California are hitting back, according to this article in the Sacramento Bee.

Lt. Gov. John Garamendi and state education leaders issued an open letter Thursday calling on Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and lawmakers to protect school funding.

The coalition – which includes the California Teachers Association, University of California, California State University, Community College League of California, and California School Employees Association – stressed the impact of a $4.8 billion cut to K-12 and community colleges, along with $644.8 million from UC and CSU campuses. ...

CTA President David Sanchez said the cuts would be equal to the loss of 107,000 teachers, or increasing the number of students in every K-12 classroom by up to 35 percent. Schwarzenegger spokeswoman Sabrina Lockhart said the governor understands the difficulty of his proposed budget. "The governor is putting closing tax loopholes on the table and remains adamant we need immediate action. But we have yet to see a proposal from the Legislature," Lockhart said. [Emphasis added]

OK, fair is fair: Governor Schwarzenegger has proposed cutting out the tax break for the purchase of luxury yachts. It was a tough call, but he made it. And, yes, immediate action is important (as it is in Washington, DC; are you listening, Senators Clinton, McCain, and Obama?), because the problems are probably not going to get better by inaction.

But cutting education funds by $5.5 billion?

Our schools are struggling mightily as it is. Teachers are leaving in droves for jobs with less stress and more money. School buildings are in such sorry shape that many would be condemned as unfit structures if local municipalities didn't look the other way. And in the 21st Century, many classes are being taught with textbooks designed for the 20th, and there aren't even enough of those to go around.

We've seen the devastation that tax cuts have brought to the nation as a whole. The primary beneficiaries of those cuts haven't exactly taken their windfall and invested in this country or we wouldn't be losing so many jobs. California is showing the same sad metric, but Governor Schwarzenegger just doesn't see it that way. I guess he has his GOP blinders on.

In other words, I am not optimistic.