Schoolchildren need governor's help

What gives with our governor's inability to govern? Perhaps ability has nothing to do with it. Could it instead be a mere refusal to govern because Gov. Rod Blagojevich has been subjected to reminders that Illinois, like the rest of the country, is a democracy and not a dictatorship?

In Logan County, those are million-dollar questions. In fact, more than a cool million if you are a school administrator or school board member left to wonder if and when Blagojevich is going to free up additional funding for Illinois school children. For local school districts, the additional money they are expecting from the state tops out at just over $1 million.

The extra money is based on legislative approval to increase per-pupil spending throughout the state by $400. The new average of total, per pupil spending would be $5,734 if the governor signs off on the measure. Some of the money is earmarked for special education, low-income lunches and transportation …

"What's hard to understand is the fact that the governor complained that lawmakers were slow to pass this legislation," according to state Sen. Bill Brady, a Bloomington Republican, who notes that a bill to free up the funds was sent to Blagojevich on Nov. 2. The bill is growing mold on the governor's desk.

Brady contends the extra funds should have been made available in July, had it not been for political infighting over the budget by the pack of Democrats that dominates state government these days. But Blagojevich has taken this fray and many others beyond the scope of party politics or in-party bickering. In the process, he's shortchanging our schools and our children.

Helpful hunting

Three cheers for the Illinois Department of Natural Resources for a historic firearm deer season, which concluded earlier this month.

Today's hunters are doing more than providing themselves with tasty venison. They're performing a public service. The burgeoning deer population, pegged several years ago at about 700,000, has created problems for humans. Deer-vehicle crashes number about 24,000 annually in Illinois. Also, when there are too many deer, they eat farmers' crops and homeowners' shrubbery, causing more problems for people.