Gov. Tim Pawlenty's claim that eventually all Minnesotans must bear the brunt of the state's financial problems would be laughable if it wasn't obscene.
The young are the clear losers under his plan to deal with the fiscal crisis.
The students in my classes at Minnesota State University Moorhead have been asked by the state to pay for even more of their education: with the new cuts, we can assume some talented young people will have to drop out. Others will pay higher tuition for fewer services.
The federal and state governments have been slowly withdrawing from their share of education for twenty-two years. This new crisis simply allows for an acceleration of that process. This is politics as much as it is economics.
But why should every citizen pay for the education of their neighbor's children, whether in 1st grade or college? Because since this nation began, Americans have recognized than an educated populace made all lives better. Better schools mean less crime, better jobs, less suffering -- for everyone, rich and poor.
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But to our current governor, for a reason that escapes logic, it is less unpleasant to cut education than to raise any tax, whether on income, luxuries, or "sinful" items such as cigarettes.
So we will have larger class sizes, poorer facilities, and educators fearing for their jobs. Is this better than raising taxes?
It appears the governor would rather punish young people, who are poorer than average, than bolster a just and civil society by guaranteeing an affordable and high-quality education. This is a rigid and short-sighted response in a time that begs for innovation.
So what should we do? First of all, the next time we get ahead as a state, let's set a little aside. Wouldn't you rather have computers in the schools than "Jessie checks?"
Second, let us think about returning to the rates of taxation of a generation ago, before government began its systematic "relief" to those not in need. Good schools cost money.
If we truly love Minnesota, shouldn't we be willing to pay for the education of its young people? Sadly, it appears our governor is not.
Dr. Patrick J. Walsh
Assistant Professor New Center for
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Multidisciplinary Studies
Minnesota State University Moorhead
