UA geology prof and dean of sciences Joaquin Ruiz published a well-written convincing op-ed in the Tucson Daily Star yesterday laying out the benefits the university brings to Arizona through education, training and jobs.
I made the mistake of reading the online comments following the article. I thought there would be comments about the contributions UA makes to the community and economy.
Unfortunately, the first group I read were angry, bitter, often ill-informed attacks from people who seem to detest our government.
One theme was criticism of state tax dollars being used by the university. In the responses I didn't see this state specifically, but I understand that UA gets only about 30% of its funding from state appropriations, so it basically leverages those dollars 3 to 1 with outside funds coming into Arizona to create jobs and new opportunities here. That sounds like a good investment.
The ring-wing nut jobs are out in force. Anything associated with government is bad now, haven't you heard? Even though it is the American work force who mans and maintains our agencies. Higher education is essential, and if a person needs this explained to him/her, there is no hope. These bitter, un-informed, ill-informed, Glenn Beck types will eventually run out of angry steam. Let's ignore them in the interim!
ReplyDeleteGlenn Beck and his kind are a disgrace to this country. We need more Universities, as the number of ignorant people grows.
ReplyDeletethat's how you do it
ReplyDelete