GA schools close

[Reds]

Due to high gas prices the schools in Georgia will be closed monday and tuesday becase the schools cannot afford to run buses on those days. I should point out that education is around half the budgit. For those of you in the US has this happened were you live?

[ÑóẊîöʼn]

You guys will be completely fucked once your gas prices reach UK levels.

[bolshevik butcher]

On the otherhand 2 days off, sounds good. Seiously though this sounds pretty drastic. Is it relaly neccessery?

[Lacrimi de Chiciură]

Cancelling school for gas prices sounds crazy to me; what are they going to do when prices stay up? I live in the U.S. and I haven't heard anything about cancelling school because driving buses is too expensive. I also heard that gas could go up to $5 a gallon after Hurricane Rita.

[Reds]

My area is mostly made up of the middle class so this is most likly hitting the poorer urban areas like atlanta very badly.

[Dark Exodus]

Originally posted by [email protected] 23 2005, 09:39 PM
You guys will be completely fucked once your gas prices reach UK levels.
Precisely, we have to pay almost twice as much.

I find this a little strange though, can't parents drive their kids to school for a few days? Or walk? It's only temporary and its not like the school will be giving flak for absences when the bus is not running.

[Commie Rat]

we dont have american style school buses here in Aus mostly parents drop kids to school but most walk or ride so (unfortuanly) that shit aint gunna affect us
here we are paying $1.50 a litre (which i cant be othered figuring out how many gallons that is ) which is still fucking expensive, especially since the gov. collects 43 cents in fuel tax.
Biofuels are not the future, we need them now!

I also love the fact that cuba and vensueala pay under $2 to fill up their tanks
long live the 'free' market

[revwarrior]

What is your source? Or is this something you "heard somewhere"? Please amplify since gas prices will NOT affect education. Only 10 to 20 % of students are bussed to school.

[Commie Girl]

Source (http://www.ajc.com/news/content/metro/atlanta/0905/26perdue.html)


Political price for Perdue unclear

By JAMES SALZER
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 09/26/05
Gov. Sonny Perdue has gone from political hero to heel in the minds of some voters in the space of three weeks and two hurricanes, and Democrats say they will remind Georgians of his decision to shut down schools to save fuel when he faces re-election next year.

But it's unclear whether voters will even remember Perdue's move by next year.


"I don't think voters really judge a politician on one decision," Emory University political scientist Merle Black said Sunday.

Democratic critics say it's a sign of a "shoot first, think about the consequences" mentality that has pervaded Perdue's administration since he won office in 2002. They call Friday's announcement a publicity stunt for a governor seeking attention. Republicans argue that the slow reaction of federal and Louisiana officials to Hurricane Katrina left Perdue little choice.

"The one thing policy-makers learned from New Orleans was that it's better to overreact than underreact," said Rusty Paul, a lobbyist and former GOP state senator. "You have to make decisions on the front end of things. Given the [political] environment we're in today, you have to take that step."

Internet blogs, campaign headquarters and state offices were flooded with messages and calls Friday after Perdue called for public schools to close today and Tuesday to save diesel fuel.

Three weeks ago he was winning praise nationally for suspending the fuel tax, a move that was expected to save Georgians about 15 cents per gallon.

However, such savings could be more than eaten up for parents who have to pay for two extra days of day care because of the school closings.

"Right now, half of Georgia is saying, 'Just how out of touch is this guy?' and that's going to be remembered," said Morton Brilliant, campaign manager for Secretary of State Cathy Cox, who is challenging Perdue. Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor, another Perdue opponent, also criticized the move.

"When he made this hasty decision, Gov. Perdue obviously didn't take into account the family needs of parents and students and didn't seem to understand that this could easily create a panic that will drive up gas prices and hurt consumers," said Kristi Huller, Taylor's spokeswoman. "Sadly, it's part of a pattern. With Gov. Perdue, schools, students and families always come last."

Democrats also argue that Perdue's call to remain calm in the face of possible fuel shortages caused a rush to the pumps, similar to what happened just after Katrina.

"This is typical of him. He has an idea, he doesn't talk to anyone, and he does it," said Rep. Bob Holmes (D-Atlanta), a Clark Atlanta University political scientist. "I think he basically did it for political reasons. He thought, 'I'm on a roll, so I'll do this next.' "

But Perdue's communications director, Dan McLagan, said the governor had little choice because the state faced the possibility of a fuel shortage later this week.

"We knew this was going to be an inconvenience, but it is a lot less of an inconvenience to have no notice later in the week," he said. "Politically, the smart thing would probably have been to do nothing and blame any shortages on the hurricane, but that's not leadership. It's possible you pay a political price for doing the right thing."

That price includes doing a lot of national television news shows. McLagan said Perdue was on "Fox News Sunday," and he is doing CBS' "The Early Show" today to talk about his action to save fuel.

Phil Kent, a Republican consultant, said he doesn't think Perdue squandered any political capital he gained with the fue

l tax suspension by closing schools.

"This gas thing is going to be pretty much forgotten," Kent said. "It's still a lifetime — politically — until November 2006. I don't think this is a huge misstep."