"Shared Sacrifice"

OK, I'm willing to accept "shared sacrifice" in the government financial mess. If that means I pay a tax on things that were not taxed before, all right. But, two things....

One, I'm willing to accept this only if there is meaningful change, structural change. No more of this "business as usual," the same crap of the past 30 or 40 years. For instance, I don't care if you buy and drive an electric car, a hybrid, etc. I just don't want to have to pay for it. You pay for it.

Two, how interesting how I'm now (after years in the public schools) am being castigated, now I have to "sacrifice," too. After all, the private sector is hurting, has lost things, etc. Yeah, Yeah, Yeah sang the Beatles. If we must "share" the sacrifice now, why didn't we share the prosperity of the '90s and early '00s? In the '90s, oh, times were good--all that prosperity thanks, we were told, to Bill Clinton. Yeah, the '90s. I went four years with 0% raises, another with a 1% raise, and a sixth with a 2% raise (which really wasn't a raise since our work time was increased by 2 1/2%). Then, in the early 00's, with similar financial "rewards," I mentioned that to a parent of a student of mine. She said, "Well, this isn't the '90s you know." It wasn't hard to quickly retort, "I never had a '90s." So, I guess the picture is I have to sacrifice all of the time--good times and bad.

I must be clear, though, that I am comfortable, that I never dreamed I'd make the money I made in teaching. Now, in neighboring districts, teachers made $10 and $15 and even $20 thousand a year more than I did. But, well, that's our fault--the teachers of my district--for believing the lies (and that's what they were) of the financial cries of poverty of the adminstration. We were doing it "for the kids." Baloney! We were wimps. But, still, I can't complain about the actual amount I made, as disproportionate as it was. Yet, I wonder what other occupation pays an employee with a BA and three graduate degrees what I was paid! Nah, I don't wonder--none of them do.

Interesting how a recent study has been largely ignored. Public sector employees with college degrees (bachelor's) in Michigan earn 21% less than private sector workers with the same education. And, even if the widely publicized perks, such as health care and retirement, are included, it's still more than 10% less. (Now, one might argue that degrees in education aren't real degrees--and I might be one to do so--but that's not the point.) But, that report, after one day of coverage, has been buried. How typical!

Let's dump on teachers--all of the time. Oh, we will claim we aren't, but who (among the most competent of our students) in his/her right mind would go into teaching? Teachers are greedy, low-lives, unwilling to sacrifice, lazy (esp with all that time off!), etc. I'd guess three types of people....