minx Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 But my real question is this: Gov. Locke wants to ignore the initiative that requires pay raises for teachers in order to balance his budget. Why can't he choose to disregard Eyman's initiative instead? Dumb question i'm sure but i'm really curious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allthumbs Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 Eyman is more powerful than Comrade Locke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdietsch Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 although I did not vote for Locke and I dislike most of his politics .. I can't say that I am totally against the wage freeze given the current economic outlook ... a wage freeze would be better than taking a wage cut or getting laid off like a lot of others have had to deal with ........ and as for the whole "class size" thing .... when I was in attending WA state grade schools most classes were anywhere from 28 to 34 kids ... for the most part we all turned out ok .... I may not be a brain surgeon but I'm not standing in the welfare line  .. now I am not saying that teachers are underpaid ... that is a different subject, my dad is a retired WA state school teacher ... I grew up with 4 siblings .. I know how tight things can be  ... as for overturning Eyman's initiative, I am assuming that you are refering to the one regarding vehicle licensing fees .... screw that, times are tuff and moneys tight, besides down here in Clark County voters within the Vancouver School District have approved levys' every years since 1964  Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allthumbs Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 As far as teacher's salaries go, students contemplating the profession know full well what the job pays. If a bright young person is driven solely by the almighty buck, might I suggest taking up law, medicine, or some field that traditionally pays more. I'm sick of having my property taxes raised to pay for school referendums and teacher's salaries. Teachers need to quit their bitching and get on with teaching. While they were out protesting yesterday, thousands of parents had to scramble to find daycare and such. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobinc Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 I'm sure you also support higher wages for daycare workers, eh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minx Posted January 15, 2003 Author Share Posted January 15, 2003 Hey I was one of the parents scrambling  I'm not even going to touch the subject of teacher salaries. It's a sore subject for me.  I'm not a huge locke fan...please don't read that into my question.  What i'm wondering is why can he disregard one initiative and be forced to accept another. We have no state income tax and thus I'm not opposed to licensing fees or property taxes. Our state budget is hosed. Wouldn't it be helpful to find a way to increase revenue? Why not ignore the initiative that desimated the budget and thus increase the state revenue? Ignore both of them fine. I guess what I'm really asking is how the gov. can ignore any initiative passed by the voters? What's the point of the initiative process then? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob_Clarke Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 I'd like to punch that b*tch in the face. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 One of the provisions of the voter initiative was to provide funding to reduce classroom sizes. My wife is a geologist with a masters degree and 15 years experience who went back for her teaching certificate and now teaches middle school science and health. It’s one heck of a lot of work if you really care about the kids. She averages about 60 hours a week. I chip in and help set up hands on science activities for the kids and help grade. In the summer she plugs along, adding to her curriculum and taking a class or two. With mandatory days in the summer she maybe gets 6 weeks to work at her own pace. She and her fellow teachers are always working holidays and weekends. She loves it, though it is exhausting. I couldn’t do it, and living in Seattle we can afford only one teacher in the family.  These days schools are being asked to solve a pile of social ills. The kids spend 7 hours in school, so most of the time they’re at home or elsewhere in the community. The most reliable indicator of a school’s test score is how many kids qualify for the free or reduced lunch program. It’s just easier for the politicians to try and mandate performance standards than address the larger social problems, or fund schools to the degree we say we care about education.  Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erik Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 ONE QUESTION I HAVE IS... Â IF WASHINGTON STATE IS ONE OF THE HIGHEST TAXED STATES WHERE DOES ALL THE MONIES GO TOO??(AS I CASH MY UNEMPLOYMENT CHECK) Â ACCOUNTABILITY IS WHERE THE STATE IS LACKING..NOT MONIES OR WAYS TO SPEND IT....THERE SEEMS TO BE A LOT OF LEAKAGE IN THE SYSTEM... Â AND TRANSIT SEEMS TO BE A MAJOR WOUND. SHOULDNT PEOPLE WHO USE PUBLIC TRANSPO BE REQUIRED TO DO THE MAJORITY OF THE FUNDING?? I THINK SO.... Â Â Â Â Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iain Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 IF WASHINGTON STATE IS ONE OF THE HIGHEST TAXED STATES WHERE DOES ALL THE MONIES GO TOO??(AS I CASH MY UNEMPLOYMENT CHECK) road salt is expensive. didn't you read any history books on the salt trade in the middle ages? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allthumbs Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 Comrade Locke played a large role in damn near bankrupting this state. Heil Locke!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattp Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 Trask, I couldn't agree with you more that Governor Locke sux but where are you coming from with this one? He is hardly a "tax and spend liberal" and even the republicans commended him for producing a sensible budget that was intended to reign in State spending, didn't they? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minx Posted January 15, 2003 Author Share Posted January 15, 2003 i hate to be a pest (ok i'm lying) but can anyone answer my question? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sk Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 I thought some one said that they only had to do the initutive if there was funding available... so in essence they can fund what they want and throw out the rest..... Â ?????? but then what the fuck do I know Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob_Clarke Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 Minx your question would be great for KVI AM 570. Do you ever listen to them? I don't listen, although I bent an ear their way after the Govenor's speech the other day. I too was wondering about this question and I'm interested in the answer. Â Locke wants to honor the pay raises but he doesn't want to raise taxes in order to do that, for that he should get some respect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattp Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 Minx - They do it all the time. How do you think the stadium was built or the light-rail proposal stonewalled? It's called politics, mixed with the legal process. Where powerful interests want something done or not done, it really doesn't matter what the people want. Â Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minx Posted January 15, 2003 Author Share Posted January 15, 2003 ok then...being the stubborn creature that I am I want to know what the legal explanation is. It torques me off. No offense I'm not really concerned about the teacher's in particular. I just want to know how/why the voter's can so readily disregarded. I respect his stance on the issue but I still have that nagging question. Â I can't listen to KVI or any other radio right now b/c some rat bastard stole my stereo out of my rig! I wish the creep would at least give me back on piece of my ID. OOPS-i'm bitter and ranting sorry! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allthumbs Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 Comrade Locke started turning me off when "his boys" squandered billions on a non-existent transit system. He also crys, whines, pisses and moans when he doesn't get his way. His government is huge and pork-ridden.... want me to go on? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Flash_Amazing Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 Next thing you know, he'll be spending a bunch of money on some bullshit missile defense system or something ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allthumbs Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 I think we should strap a missile on DFA's back and send him to the moon. Zoom, zoom, zoom... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sexual_chocolate Posted January 16, 2003 Share Posted January 16, 2003 Comrade Locke started turning me off when "his boys" squandered billions on a non-existent transit system. Â What on God's green earth are you talking 'bout, Willis? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Flash_Amazing Posted January 16, 2003 Share Posted January 16, 2003 Dude, the moon ROCKS! Â Hey, moon rocks. Heh heh! Â Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairweather Posted January 16, 2003 Share Posted January 16, 2003 (edited) Eyman's initiative, 695, was thrown out by the state supreme court! The state legislature and governor then enacted, by the representative govt process, major portions of the license tab reduction. His more recent initiative, 776, has NOT been put into effect in King, and parts of Pierce and Snohomish counties. Â So exactly WHICH Eyman initiative was it that decimated our state buget? Have you done your homework? Is Eyman just a convenient scapegoat for the tax-and-spend crowd? Â ...or could it be that repressive taxation enacted by state (mainly Democrat), county (mainly King), and municipal (mainly Seattle) governments has scared business (read: JOBS) away from our great state? Not to mention the generally business-hostile atmosphere 'roud certain segments of our "communtiy", and the black eye our state received from the WTO protests. Â Â Edited January 16, 2003 by Fairweather Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pope Posted January 16, 2003 Share Posted January 16, 2003 (edited) As far as teacher's salaries go, students contemplating the profession know full well what the job pays. If a bright young person is driven solely by the almighty buck, might I suggest taking up law, medicine, or some field that traditionally pays more. Â That's exactly what they're doing. In two years of teaching calculus, I have met only one senior who intends to enter education. Â I'm sick of having my property taxes raised to pay for school referendums and teacher's salaries. Teachers need to quit their bitching and get on with teaching. Â Nobody likes potholes and ignorant children, but if you want to do something about it, you'll have to pay for highway projects and capable teachers. Last year, my school district had three openings for middle school math. We interviewed only three applicants, and we were happy to have them. Does this inspire confidence? Do you think the most capable college graduates are filling these positions? Think again. Â ...students contemplating the profession know full well what the job pays... Â It pays less than it did when adjusted for purchasing power. While prices in the local economy have more than doubled in the last ten years, salaries for teachers at every level have grown at a glacial pace. Â I believe it was Pam Roach who suggested roughly the same as you have, when she said that "going into teaching is like entering Peace Corps and everybody knows it .." or something like that. Every time I hear a comment like this, I think about the fact that I have a degree in mathematics and graduated summa cum laude from a reputable school. I've never bitched publicly about my salary, but I have wondered why I feel such a commitment to my community and students that I would sacrifice a lot of potential salary (not just at my expense, but also my family's). Edited January 16, 2003 by pope Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sk Posted January 16, 2003 Share Posted January 16, 2003 pope  as I am sure you know there are more important things than money. I would rather have an adiquit teacher who realy cares than a highly paid hyper educated teacher who doesn't give a shit. I am not saying it is "right" that teacher saleries are so low, but it to me says alot about the people willing to dedicate their lives to teaching. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.