Tuesday, March 03, 2009
Strange...
It seems my earlier post about my trip has disappeared. Hopefully it's still on a server somewhere. Anyway, as has been the case since I started this website, I missed my blog's anniversary, and the fifth one at that. I have no readers, so I'm not too concerned. Still I'm pleased I've managed to keep this blog going. I've explored many topics, and turned a frightened eye to the state of the nation and economy. It's still there. However, on this fine but cold Tuesday in March, let me go way back and exclaim: I love fucking snow days! Culminating a weekend SCA event with a day to recover is always welcome. I don't expect anymore snow days, so I savored this one by doing very little. I stocked up for the week on Sunday then proceeded to play WOW for most of Monday. Not a bad way to spend a snow day: munching pork tenderloin and playing video games. God in Heaven, I love working in higher education.
Speaking of college, the financial aid system continues to become more complicated and socialized. I wonder when the day will come when college is "free." Along with health care, never will something become more expensive than the day the government provides it for free. I acknowledge the day will come when I'm not needed, but I always thought it would be due to automation. Also, according the NY's Gov. Paterson, the Empire State will be bankrupt in 18 months. That will affect us (i.e. me, the college and students) twofold: 1) TAP and APTS will be reduced or even eliminated. As such, the aid would need to be replaced via student loans. (See below). 2) The college is supposed to be supported by 3 groups: NY state, Westchester County, and the students. In theory, each pays 1/3rd of the cost of operations, but that hasn't been the case for a while. If NY reduces the aid sent to the college, tuition would need to increase. With a 14 BILLION dollar deficit, some reduction is inevitable. Westchetser is also in a cash crunch, so can we expect county payments to be reduced? It's certainly possible.
This leaves the students to make up for the shortfall, and although we are still the cheapest game in town, we're getting pricey. This opinion exists in a vacuum, however. Paterson's jacking up SUNY tuition gave us some comparative breathing room. Another option is reducing college expenses, and I believe this will be discussed. I don't discuss how much I make, but as my friends will attest, I'm not doing too bad. I'm much more likely to discuss the trappings (and traps) of my job. Will the school want to reduce my pay? I doubt it, but I could see the reduction of vacation or overtime, paying for health benefits, or contributing longer to our pension plans. Everything is negotiated, so everything is on the table. Some fights are not worth fighting for either side, so changes are generally gradual.
The X factor in this is the possibility that state schools will be "free." (Yes, the quotation marks are getting tiresome; no, I won't stop using them). How that will be managed and administered will determine if I have a profession or not. More will be revealed, so watch this space.
As bad as things are in the USA right now, Europe and Asia are even worse, with Iceland, Ireland, England, Spain, Portugal, and most of the former Easter Bloc either bankrupt or nearing it. France and Germany are in bad shape, but are not facing the economic collapse of the other nations, which are clamoring for a bailout. Germany, the only nation in the EU capable of financing a bailout, is resisting. I can't blame the Germans for doing so, since they need to preserve capital to survive the crash in exports.
The crash in exports (read: Americans are through buying unneeded junk from China, et al.) has put Asia in a weird situation: they need to spend their own money. In the present economic mess, its easy to blame America for her profligacy. It's also appropriate, but it takes two to tango, so what blame do the Chinese or Japanese share? They set up a system that could never be sustained, and I believe I've mentioned this on the blog already. How could they expect America to continue to buy their products but never buy ours? I never quite figured that out. China recently enacted a stimulus plan, and it seemed to worked. They certainly have the money in the bank. We will not be helped however, since they will only be buying the products they already make, and China will have less money to buy American T-Bills.
That's enough musing for now. Time to get some work done.
Speaking of college, the financial aid system continues to become more complicated and socialized. I wonder when the day will come when college is "free." Along with health care, never will something become more expensive than the day the government provides it for free. I acknowledge the day will come when I'm not needed, but I always thought it would be due to automation. Also, according the NY's Gov. Paterson, the Empire State will be bankrupt in 18 months. That will affect us (i.e. me, the college and students) twofold: 1) TAP and APTS will be reduced or even eliminated. As such, the aid would need to be replaced via student loans. (See below). 2) The college is supposed to be supported by 3 groups: NY state, Westchester County, and the students. In theory, each pays 1/3rd of the cost of operations, but that hasn't been the case for a while. If NY reduces the aid sent to the college, tuition would need to increase. With a 14 BILLION dollar deficit, some reduction is inevitable. Westchetser is also in a cash crunch, so can we expect county payments to be reduced? It's certainly possible.
This leaves the students to make up for the shortfall, and although we are still the cheapest game in town, we're getting pricey. This opinion exists in a vacuum, however. Paterson's jacking up SUNY tuition gave us some comparative breathing room. Another option is reducing college expenses, and I believe this will be discussed. I don't discuss how much I make, but as my friends will attest, I'm not doing too bad. I'm much more likely to discuss the trappings (and traps) of my job. Will the school want to reduce my pay? I doubt it, but I could see the reduction of vacation or overtime, paying for health benefits, or contributing longer to our pension plans. Everything is negotiated, so everything is on the table. Some fights are not worth fighting for either side, so changes are generally gradual.
The X factor in this is the possibility that state schools will be "free." (Yes, the quotation marks are getting tiresome; no, I won't stop using them). How that will be managed and administered will determine if I have a profession or not. More will be revealed, so watch this space.
As bad as things are in the USA right now, Europe and Asia are even worse, with Iceland, Ireland, England, Spain, Portugal, and most of the former Easter Bloc either bankrupt or nearing it. France and Germany are in bad shape, but are not facing the economic collapse of the other nations, which are clamoring for a bailout. Germany, the only nation in the EU capable of financing a bailout, is resisting. I can't blame the Germans for doing so, since they need to preserve capital to survive the crash in exports.
The crash in exports (read: Americans are through buying unneeded junk from China, et al.) has put Asia in a weird situation: they need to spend their own money. In the present economic mess, its easy to blame America for her profligacy. It's also appropriate, but it takes two to tango, so what blame do the Chinese or Japanese share? They set up a system that could never be sustained, and I believe I've mentioned this on the blog already. How could they expect America to continue to buy their products but never buy ours? I never quite figured that out. China recently enacted a stimulus plan, and it seemed to worked. They certainly have the money in the bank. We will not be helped however, since they will only be buying the products they already make, and China will have less money to buy American T-Bills.
That's enough musing for now. Time to get some work done.
