Posted on 11/09/2009 2:07:09 AM PST by PittsburghAfterDark
Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl plans to propose a 1 percent college-education privilege tax to council today, in a move that's likely to set off a fight with the city's schools of higher learning.
College and university representatives met with the mayor on Wednesday and argued against the tax, which would be assessed on a college student's tuition. It technically would not be a levy on the students or their schools, but rather on the privilege of getting a higher education in Pittsburgh.
"They weren't pleased to hear that this was an option we were pursuing," Mr. Ravenstahl said. But he said he is ready for "a fight, or a battle, if you will," if that's what it takes to plug a $15 million gap in his 2010 budget and help the struggling Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.
"We don't believe that [1 percent] is too burdensome on college students," Mr. Ravenstahl said. "The city taxpayers are paying for the services that are provided to those college students," including police, building inspection and fire service, he said. "The students have a role to play."
(Excerpt) Read more at postgazette.com ...
Catholic "private schools" also have substantial tuition.
Wow! They have gone up significantly. I graduated from FSU in 1991 and the tuition was about 7,000 a year so I added two thousand for inflation. That is amazing how much colleges have gone up in that short amount of time.
I have not had to look into colleges at this point because after my wife and I graduated. College sorta went on the back burner with raising kids and other priorities. Our oldest son is 11 so we still have years to worry about tuition. I will probably just pay monthly and not have to come up with the entire amount at once. Of course, I have another son two years later that will begin college and then another son six years later and than a daughter four years after that....My wife and I may just end up eatting balony sandwhiches during that time. lol.
Like a friend of mine who had 6 children, all highly intelligent, all recruited by Ivy League schools, you will do without new clothing for at least 12 years!
It isn’t really all that amazing that college tuitions have risen so fast because it is another racket the govrnment is heavily involved in.
This is right up there with taxing health costs, or eliminating the state tax exemption as an example of government greed.
Another reason for my dislike of Pittsburg. Love those Steelers tho. OH - IO
The same thing that drives us to protect individuality and individual freedoms. I think everyone has a need somewhere inside to be unique, in some way. Ironically, being an ‘individual’ to a teenager/young adult often means being different somehow than their parents, and believing, or at least supporting what is considered ‘cool’ among their friends. It's cool to be green. It's not cool to be an old white guy who ‘just doesn't get it’.
Obviously none of that is true, but I do believe the left has helped themselves immensely by propagating the illusion that they are on the cutting edge of progress in society. I actually heard Larry King say this once (that liberals were the progressives who were pushing things forward in society). We've done a very poor job of defending what we believe against those who would label us as throwbacks.
I think the ‘big tent’ that Newt keeps talking about shouldn't be thought of as a tent made up of RINOs and conservatives. I think it should be thought of as containing people who all believe at their core in individual liberty, and the defense of this against those who would try to take it from us while saying they are only trying to help.
The big tent might contain people of multiple religious faiths, agnostics, atheists, evolutionists, creationists, fundamentalists, and cosmics, Opera lovers, and NASCAR fans. That's not where the dividing lines should be drawn. They should be drawn at the level of a much more basic principle, the principle in the Declaration of Independence that ‘All men (and women) are born equal in the eyes of God, and that we are endowed by God with the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
So, climbing down off the soapbox, the concepts of freedom, individuality, and rights of all to pursue happiness without the yolk of government suppressing them are very fresh concepts. They always will be. We just haven't done a very good job fighting the political correctness drones and letting the successive generations know that the most cool, most progressive, most modern, most hip societal concepts are those of liberty, individuality, and self-determination.
Very well said, and I completely agree. Although I think we are battling the devil here, and need to be aware of it. This should be reprinted somewhere elsewhere than Free Republic. And I think the solution is to stay true to principles while remaining compassionate and unprejudiced.
Very well said, and I completely agree. Although I think we are battling the devil here, and need to be aware of it. This should be reprinted somewhere elsewhere than Free Republic. And I think the solution is to stay true to principles while remaining compassionate,generous and unprejudiced.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.