Originally Posted by mwmistak
Quote:If all of Georgia's schools close, the governor estimated about 250,000 gallons of diesel fuel would be saved each day by keeping buses off the road.
The governor also said an undetermined amount of regular gasoline also would be saved by allowing teachers, other school staff members and some parents to stay home those days. Electricity also would be conserved by keeping the schools closed.
Notice that the main point is a save in diesel (although I must admit the article headline glosses over this). Diesel fuel that would be used in school buses could instead be used in construction equipment or trucks carrying supplies.
While I strongly believe that some politicians need to think more strategically, sometimes immediate problems require tactical responses that have a possibility of short term benefit.
A friend of mine teaches school. The first thing he did upon hearing this news was call me to see if I wanted to go riding Monday and Tuesday at a trail about an 80 mile round trip from his house.
So construction is more important than education? Georgia schools are already number 50 in the nation. At least Bill Clinton managed to get Arkansas schools up to 49th. As a person living in Georgia, I can attest to the fact that these people need more education more than they need more roads.
The other thing the Gov. did was to eliminate the state fuel tax to help keep gas prices low. Here again, he's not thinking ahead. Keeping gas prices low simply encourages people to go drive more. If we need to conserve, he needs to raise the tax to about a dollar.
Az