Thursday, March 29, 2012

Call in Pigpen to get more than Peanuts

Was reading around, looking at the school system's proposed zillion dollar budget and thinking about how painful it's gonna be to sit in on those budget meetings. Lot of showboating gonna take place on the county commission dais. Lot of arguing, too. Heh. Stated the obvious.

Anyhoo, I'm wondering if this year will be any different. Because it's going to have to be if the school people want the budget passed. The commission isn't going to listen to Superintendent Jim McIntyre. There's a few board members who just flat out don't like him. (They don't like me either, so he shouldn't feel bad.) And the school board? Heh. Quite a few on the commission just don't trust the school board.

So, if they want that plan to succeed – and really, it's highly unlikely that it will – they're going to need the teachers and principals to get out to the meetings. If I was McIntyre, I'd shake down every one of them that I could. Drag them kicking and screaming to the podium to argue my case. Do it for the children.

Heck, I'd find the poorest kid in the school system and drag him up there, too. Man, I'm talking Pigpen from the Peanuts. Dust would be swirling, kids would be crying and the violins would be a playing.

And I'd be counting my few extra million.

(Cause let's face it, they're not getting all of the $47 million McIntyre is requesting. But, there's a chance the commission could give the schools some additional coin. So long as Pigpen is there.)

UPDATE: Dan "The Man" Andrews called in to note that even if Pigpen was a member of the mayor's fraternity, the "school system isn't getting no $35 million." Point. But maybe the commission . . .

No comments: