So That's What "Restoring Hope" Means

Ernie Fletcher ran for governor of Kentucky under the slogan "Restoring Hope." I took issue to this in an earlier post, but apparently not enough people felt as I did, because Fletcher was elected and now reigns as governor, the first Republican governor Kentucky has had in decades. In my opinion, Kentucky is not a destitute place. It is not a place without hope. There are areas that are struggling, especially as tobacco comes under more frequent attack and factory jobs relocate to Mexico where they don't have to pay their workers a livable wage. But all in all, it's a place of potential. It's a place plenty of people are proud to call home. It's a place where more people are able to find hope in the smallest things than most other places in the world.

Fletcher, despite his catchy slogans and rhetoric, is, like most politicians, not living up to his word. He's spent hardly any time in office, and from what I can tell, he's doing his best to destroy hope. In a cut-throat attempt to balance the budget, he's cutting funding left and right. Certainly there are places where the budget could be cut...perhaps that job he just gave his sister-in-law, for instance. Fletcher, however, seems to think the best place for budget cuts is in education. Dear God, if there is one thing that can bring more hope to the most people, it's education. Education is the great equalizer if there ever was one. The cuts are at all levels: primary, secondary, and post-secondary. Special services to those who are unable to afford school supplies are being cut. After-school programs are being cut. Remedial programs are being cut. And to save the tens of millions of dollars that Fletcher is demanding, students are going to be affected. This is more than trimming the fat. This is taking away the Thanksgiving turkey.

In a state where education already ranks fairly poorly, why would you even consider taking money away from schools. Obviously, money isn't the sole answer. Pouring money into schools doesn't necessarily make them better. But taking money away can't help. For years, the state has been working to cure the so-called "brain drain," the flight of intelligent young people from Kentucky to other states and other universities. The goal of the state schools in Kentucky is to improve the quality of student they attract. How, I want to know, does anyone think they will be able to attract these students when they are cutting funding which allows schools to bring in high-profile professors, to perform cutting-edge research, and to keep up with the ever-changing technological advances? Oh sure, they're not cutting scholarship money. But if a student is smart enough to earn a scholarship, they're smart enough to see that a school without quality resources is not a school one wants to be at.

It's a real shame. And it's only the beginning. Four more years. Maybe by then, Fletcher can put us in a position where he can run again with the slogan "Restoring Hope" and have it actually make sense.