Cutting the education budget

A possible 18 billion-budget cut is what Texas is facing. State leaders are promising that there is not going to be a raise in taxes.  The reality is that they are going to cut budgets in some departments like education. Many teachers in the state are not surprised about these budget cuts. Some of them are trying to be positive and say that they will try to educate their students no matter what the budget is. Sadly, many educational employees will lose their jobs and this would affect our children directly. Having more than 40 kids in one class is definitely not a good idea.

Many teachers are expressing concerns about using textbooks that are out of date and also about not getting enough technology in the classrooms to teach kids effectively.  They are concerned that if other countries are providing technology to their students they are going to be ahead of our students. This is a big concern for citizens and also should be a concern for our government. Not educating our children for a competitive world will affect the country in the future. If we don’t have prepared citizens then our economy will not be able to remain competitive. The government needs to find a way to improve our state education and by cutting budget this is not going to be possible. Since our community is growing we need to make sure we are ready to educate more kids at all levels by having better books, better supplies, and also better prepared teachers.

“Keep Rose, Maldonado in Texas House"

“Keep Rose, Maldonado in Texas House” is and article from a recent edition of the Austin American Statesman. The article explains that State Representatives Patrick Rose and Diana Maldonado have been working for our state and also the probabilities of them staying in the Texas House of Representatives. Both are Democrats and are trying to work with voters in Texas. Maldonado as the first Representative discussed.  She is an incumbent from District 52 who has been trying to secure money for higher education, and this gives her better opportunities with the citizens. Rose is a big dreamer who believes in Texas and thinks that Texas can grow even more. The author believes these two candidates are good for the Texas House and believes that they should remain because they have demonstrated that their work and their ideas are important for Texas. I agree with this idea.  Since these two Democrats are really working for the state they should stay longer. The author also talks about the challengers for each incumbent. Maldonado’s opponent Republican Larry Gonzales who is a good candidate but Maldonado has more experience and her background as school board member, and as a veteran agency employee gives her a valuable perspective.  I also agree with this.  It is s going to be hard for the challenger because her background demonstrates to the citizens that she is more interested about people’s needs. Republican Jason Isaac is Rose’s opponent.  He is running his candidacy on the promise to cut taxes.  He has a tough battle because Rose has proven that he is important for the people and that is a very important reason in people’s voting decision. I agree with the author that Representatives Rose and Maldonado should stay in office for more time in order for them to continue their good work and bring even more benefits to the people that have elected them.

Taking government to people.

 “Mayor has the right idea by taking city government to the people” an opinion from the Austin American Statesman. In this opinion, they are discussing the decision of the mayor about moving the Thursday’s city council meeting from the city hall to George Washington Carver Museum and Cultural Center in East Austin. The author believes this is a good idea because this can make government more interesting for the citizens. This meeting is going to be moved every now and then to different locations around the city so people near those locations can participate in the meetings by attending to give their opinion on issues like water conservation, parks, safety and the city budget. The author also author mentions the cost of the movement of the meeting. Some people were criticizing this idea because city officials estimated the cost to $6,224 because it takes time away from city workers. The article states that the true cost is not going to exceed $400 since it is only going to take some of their time. The author agrees with this idea of getting the people closer to government. I agree with this idea.  It is very important that government encourages people to attend these meetings and participate in them. Moving the meetings to different locations will make easier for some citizens to get involved and also to look at government’s movements in a closer way. I also think it is good to know that the meetings are not a reason for spending a lot of money, having workers from the city doing them will save money and also will encourage citizens to feel more inspired by the workers.