Teacher: ‘I love my students, I love my job, and I feel fulfilled. But I’m broke.’

[1bigfan13]

Oklahoma voters voted against providing their teachers a pay raise. Apparently they didn't want to make a 1% tax investment into the quality of their child's education.

So when they start losing more quality teachers to other states, there should be no complaints about the quality of the remaining teachers.

If you want quality you have to invest in it. In most cases, you get what you pay for.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

Oklahoma voters voted against providing their teachers a pay raise. Apparently they didn't want to make a 1% tax investment into the quality of their child's education.

So when they start losing more quality teachers to other states, there should be no complaints about the quality of the remaining teachers.

If you want quality you have to invest in it. In most cases, you get what you pay for.

I'm sure they all support teacher raises. But the problem is no one ever wants to pay higher taxes either. So it's a tough position. I know in Missouri they tried to raise tobacco taxes under the veil that the money would go to schools but it got shot down. I think people here had very little faith that the tax money would actually ever find its way into teachers pockets or into real improvements in the schools.

 

[L.T. Fan]

I'm sure they all support teacher raises. But the problem is no one ever wants to pay higher taxes either. So it's a tough position. I know in Missouri they tried to raise tobacco taxes under the veil that the money would go to schools but it got shot down. I think people here had very little faith that the tax money would actually ever find its way into teachers pockets or into real improvements in the schools.

This is precisely what I pointed out earlier.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

This is precisely what I pointed out earlier.

And you're right. Everyone wants to receive more but no one wants to give up more. Which is why a guy like Bernie Sanders became so popular. Basically telling everyone they will receive more and the only people negatively impacted will be the 1%. It's also why government spending has gotten out of control. Because everyone wants to help more people and give more perks through the government but when government starts cutting spending in areas or starts laying people off or lowers social security or cuts spending in some other fashion there is a massive uproar and cry that people aren't going to get what they are used to from the government.

 

[L.T. Fan]

And you're right. Everyone wants to receive more but no one wants to give up more. Which is why a guy like Bernie Sanders became so popular. Basically telling everyone they will receive more and the only people negatively impacted will be the 1%. It's also why government spending has gotten out of control. Because everyone wants to help more people and give more perks through the government but when government starts cutting spending in areas or starts laying people off or lowers social security or cuts spending in some other fashion there is a massive uproar and cry that people aren't going to get what they are used to from the government.

As a general matter tax based systems are going to be very uncompetitive to other entities that generate their own revenues. Wages will be less and waste will be greater. The solution to every problem in their system is always more money but never reduction of expenditures.

That's the fundamental difference to them and income generating companies. Also tax funded systems will never return budgeted items or revenues. The will instead find ways to spend every dollar in their budget in fear that the next budget will be cut if they return money.

It has been an age old problem and continues to be so. This is the reason that business needs tax reductions in order to divert those resources to further increase revenues and jobs.

Bottom line is that services relying on tax funding for revenues will always be like they are. Never having enough but finding ways to require more.