Looking for the payoff

This morning I sat down to read my email. In my in-box, I had a personal letter from the Honorable David L. Boren. Well, I'm not really sure how personal it was, but he did sign it. In this letter he proclaims how bad the economy is and how the University is struggling and that we, as faculty and staff, must ride this economic struggle together. To sum up the main point of the letter, we're not getting a raise this year. Although, I am waiting for the announcement of how much additional money Bob Stoops will receive for losing another national championship game!! I've been at OU since 1994. There has always been something under construction there. If the economic times are so bad, then maybe we should stop building new buildings!!!

But the thing that really popped into my mind out of nowhere, was, the Oklahoma Lottery. I mean after all, this is what got Brad Henry elected as governor. The lottery was supposed to be the salvation of our public education system. All of this money was supposed to be pumped into our schools. This money was supposed to be in ADDITION TO what was already being budgeted. The state was not supposed to decrease the budgeted amount of money given to education with the expectation that the lottery would fill the gap. So, if this is the case, then why is our education system still in shambles? Why do we still have some of the lowest paid teachers in the country? Why can I not even get a cost of living raise that will off set the amount that they raised my insurance premiums this year?

I see the problem as being two fold. First, our schools do not properly manage the money that is given to them. While this lottery may not being holding up its end of the bargain in the amount it was able to give, there is some extra money available. Why is it that during the good years the schools did not make provisions to survive the lean years. The economy is like a roller coaster. It will always have its ups and downs. Everyone is screaming about how this is the worst the economy has been since the Great Depression. Doubtful. The problems that do exist were created because people do not know how to live within their means. And financial institutions in their greed, did not know how to say no. The system itself is set up for failure. All government systems I know of base their budgeting strategies on "we gave you money last year. You didn't spend it, so you're not getting as much this year." Institutions and departments are being punished for making sound decisions with their money. I know that within my department, near the end of the fiscal year is the time to start putting in requests to buy any nifty little toy you might want. Because we have to spend our money or we won't get it the next year. Plum foolishness.

The second part of the problem is that how can you expect to fund anything based off of gambling? Even if the lottery generated massive amounts of money for education, you have now created new problems. Gambling addictions and the crime that is associated with any type of addictions. You are breaking apart the foundation of the state, the people that live in it. You are putting forth a temptation that some cannot resist. And ironically enough, the people that gambling seems to target the most are low income folks. Do you really thing Donald Trump plays Powerball, or grabs a scratch off ticket when he stops in his local 7-11? I seriously doubt it. He did not become the wealthy man he is by putting his money in a place that is almost statistically impossible for it to make money. Yet people are doing it every day. If you really wanted to make a difference in public education, take that $1 or $5 or whatever it is you're spending on gambling and just give it to the school your child goes to. At least it won't be wasted (or at least it can be wasted directly by the school instead of the government wasting it).

Well, I could go on and on about this topic, but I'll stop. I think you are somewhat clear on my view of gambling, state sponsored lotteries and so forth. The sad thing is, it's becoming the norm. Good day and God bless.

Dale

I am Resovled!!!

Resolve: to reach a firm decision about Webster’s 9th Collegiate Dictionary.

Well, it is the start of a new year. And this year, just as in every other year that has been, we decide that we need to make resolutions. We see it as our chance to get a fresh start, a new beginning. A mulligan if you will. 2009 will be our chance to right all the wrongs that occurred in 2008.

Now, I’m sure that somebody has the statistics on it, but it seems like the majority of New Year’s Resolutions that come down the pike are broken, usually within weeks of making them. I know that is usually the case for me. Why is it, that we continue to make the same resolutions year after year, only to give up on them weeks after making them? They say that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting a different result (that’s not a Webster’s definition by the way!). Yet every year we set the same goals for ourselves. But do we approach them differently than we did last year? Do we actually have a plan for how we are going to be successful in fulfilling the resolutions that we have set? Another common phrase is, “ Failing to plan is planning to fail.” If you want to lose 20 pounds this year, what is your plan to do it? If you don’t have some means by which you are going to accomplish your goals, they never will be accomplished. Now, I raise my hand in embarrassment as well. I always have these grandiose plans that never get followed through with, because I never made to plans to accomplish them. It was something that sounded good in my mind, but it is a long way from there to reality.

Webster says to resolve is to reach a FIRM decision. The decisions we make are seldom firm decisions. They are usually some passing fancy in our mind. Something that sounded good at the time. But things get too hard, times get tough, or we just get lazy and we don’t follow through with these plans. It was something we wanted to do last year but couldn’t. Now for some reason, we think if we make another resolution, by golly we will make it this year. And next year, we will be doing the same thing.

So, what is the solution to this resolution conundrum? Well for starters, make a resolution that is reasonable. It is probably not reasonable for you to become a millionaire this year if your salary is only $30,000 a year. Be specific about what you want to accomplish. If you are too vague, then you won’t know what you are trying get to. Have a plan. Written is probably the best. Set markers for yourself throughout the year. For example if you want to lose 20 pounds this year, set a goal to have lost 5 pounds by the end of March. This will help you break it down and help you to see that you can reach your goals. Staying with the weight loss theme, devise a plan on how you are going to reach your goal: are you going to change your eating habits, your work out habits, etc. Have a friend or family member who will keep you accountable. Peer pressure works wonders! If you have someone there prodding you along, and propping you up when you feel like giving up, it will benefit you greatly and help you to keep pushing towards the goal. And finally, set a goal that will be a benefit to you. For example, read through the Bible in a year, pray every day, etc. Look beyond just the physical and into the spiritual. If you can get your spiritual life in order, it will make the rest of your life easier to deal with.

Well, that is all that I have for this blog. I wasn’t sure where it was going to go, but this is what I came up with. So have a blessed 2009 and may you succeed on your resolutions!


Dale