… no reason to cheer

This from the Courier-Journal:

It's unclear whether University of Louisville president James Ramsey got bad information from Frankfort or whether he maladroitly misread what the General Assembly was about to do in funding higher education.

In an
article Sunday on our op-ed page, he lathed praise on the lawmakers, claiming this:

"In these tough economic times, the budget for the next biennium is one that seems certain to say that education is a priority. This is important, as Kentucky has lingered in the bottom rankings of educational attainment and performance.

"It's something to celebrate. And, it's something for which I want to say a heartfelt thank you to the General Assembly.

"Our legislators have decided we cannot afford the opportunity lost and instead have stepped up to support higher education."

But when the General Assembly's budget deal was finalized early yesterday, it cut base funding for the state's public colleges and universities by 3 percent. And House funding of Bucks for Brains, the critically important research initiative, was slashed by $55 million.

The legislature should be held to account, not lauded, for this shameful failure to do right by Kentucky's future, and the future of its young folks -- this sabotage of the momentum that educators like Mr. Ramsey have tried to build for real quality on our public campuses.

It makes no sense to praise the General Assembly and pass another tuition increase.

As for the encomiums handed to Frankfort lawmakers on this page by Mr. Ramsey, in Sunday's article, we recall the words of Gilda Radner as Emily Litella: "Never mind."