Friday, February 25, 2011

Universities whine, but they don't seem to be talking about self-imposed sacrifice.

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University presidents can use huge words to describe how horrific their circumstance seems to be. But when it comes to renegotiating their contracts and those of the staff and faculties that work there for us... well, not so much.

This Seattle Times article lays it all out. It sounds like the I-695/I-200 "The sky is falling!!! The sky is falling!!!" Chicken Little-ism that marks politics today.

Like our government at every level when they want another tax increase (and really, don't they ALWAYS want another tax increase?) painting a picture of bodies in the streets and a post-apocalypse world ala "Road Warrior."

I missed the part of the article where these whiners offered to cut their own pay and benefits to set the example for their staffs and faculties.

What's that? They didn't make that offer?

Gee. What a surprise.

That the UW has a quarter billion to waste on yet another stadium renovation, while they screw the students by jacking up their ticket prices to the stratosphere... all while they COULD be using Qwest Field permanently and for a lot less money... AND they're asking for tuition setting authority?

If what these presidents were whining about was so important, then they should get the donors to donate to the core mission of these schools: educating students.

Shift the hundreds of millions they plan on spending for a football palace so they can use luxury boxes 6 days a year to the core mission: educating students.

End the moronic illegal alien in-state tuition plan that costs us millions every year while keeping legal citizens out because of the lack of space; double the required number of platform hours, cut the staff, cut the faculty...

In short, reflect the society you allegedly serve... and BTW... what DID happen to the 28% you've jacked up tuition over the past 2 years?

This Husky wants to know. (UW '81)
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2 comments:

Blogging around the Pacific Northwest said...

Do you know how many stadium seats and luxury box seats are at the Qwest Field? Now if you and I knew THAT, it would be even more damning.

And was not Qwest and Safeco Fields not built with about 2 billion dollars in taxpayer subsidies?

K.J. Hinton said...

Well, the totals were around $1 billion for the pair.

Paul Allen invested around 15 million in lobbying and lying (We have to have grass for a playing field... you can't grow grass indoors... otherwise, we'll never get major league soccer!) Of course, they only play on fake grass now, but what's a little lie every now and then if it gets you what you want?

On Qwest Field, it was $400 million in tax dollars and $100 million in Allen dollars.

It was kind of like building a house and getting the suckers in the neighborhood to pay for 80% of it, while your 20% gets you full control and the right to live there for ever... even if you never paid for it.

Qwest has everything Huskyville needs, from luxury suites to a central location to a MUCH cheaper cost... a cost where the school actually can MAKE money just from playing there... and they can do it without screwing the student ticket holders...

The new and improved Husky Stadium is something Huskyville may WANT to have, but definitely not something they HAVE to have.

And all this talk about hundreds of millions blown on unneeded facilities while simultaneously sniveling about cutting back on students.... particularly when we're giving instate tuition to illegal aliens... makes no sense at all.