Woo hoo! We are Number 45!

[PA Democrat]

If Governor Gashole has his way, we would be #49 by my calculations.




http://old.post-gazette.com/pg/12078/1217294-109.stm

Corbett's Proposed Cuts to Higher Education FY 2012-2013:
State system -- $82.5 million cut
Community colleges -- $8.8 million cut
Penn State University -- $64 million cut
Temple University -- $42 million cut
University of Pittsburgh -- $40.2 million cut
Lincoln University -- same funding as 2011-2012

Total Cuts $237.5 million which reduces spending on higher ed to less than $125 per capita

Read more: http://livewire.wtae.com/Event/Gov_Tom_Corbett_Unveils_2012-2013_Budget#ixzz1pfiCYYYZ

[eppur_se_muova]

1. Pennsylvania used to be such a sane and sober state ... what happened ?

Yeah, I know, the Repugs happened. But why the Hell did people vote for them ?

[JPZenger]

2. You are correct

Pennsylvania always perfectly fit the definition of a moderate state. No matter what was being measured, PA. always showed up as number 25 out of the 50 states (except in numbers of old people).

We had many responsible moderate Republican leaders like Scranton, Thornburg, Heinz, Schweiker, Schweiker, Ridge. These were politicians who answered questions from the public and were willing to actually compromise and work with Democrats. Ed Rendell as Governor placed a strong emphasis on increasing the fairness of the state system of funding public schools, but all those initiatives have been squashed and stomped upon. The current public school budget is literally recycled from 2007, before those initiatives were carried out, except with much more diversion of funds to charters and for-profit cyberschools.

Our legislature was usually evenly balanced between Republicans and Democrats, with one party often holding the Senate and the other holding the House.

Then, in the 2010 elections, the teabaggers showed up at the polls in force, and the average folk stayed home. The teabaggers gained large majorities in both houses, so they did not need to negotiate or compromise. Fortunately, they disagree enough amongst themselves so that they can only cause limited ruin until the 2012 election.

[eppur_se_muova]

3. Thanks so much -- I haven't kept up with politics in PA (moved out in 1999).

Should have remembered the Teabaggers. They've fallen so far in stature it's easy to overlook them now -- almost.