Givin’ us Pell

Congress has really done it this time.\nIts recently proposed government spending bill for the rest of the 2007 fiscal year is nothing short of disturbing. These new budget allocations will affect students across the nation and have strong implications for government funding of higher education.\nWhat’s this surprising new development? Brace yourself for this one: Congress is allocating more funds for student Pell Grants. In short, lawmakers are actually giving us more money!\nSounds good, right? Well, the problem is that this is one of the things we have specifically asked for and is part of the congressional commitment to higher education. Congress has been listening to us. Sure, that may sound like a positive thing to many, but consider this development from our perspective: If the government continues to give us what we want all the time, what will be left for us to complain about? The editorial board might be out of a job!\nFortunately, it does appear there are some issues left unresolved by the spending bill. The maximum amount for Pell Grants that can be provided to students has only increased by $260, from $4,050 to $4,310. To some students, that may seem like a pretty wimpy attempt to win over young voters. The increase will only go so far. To put things in perspective, think of the prices at our food courts – $260 will buy about 52 baked zitis from Sbarro’s. After that, you’re on your own.\nNow imagine trying to cover your textbook bill with this same amount of money – $260 might buy the table of contents to a single book, and maybe an appendix or two, but it wouldn’t stretch much further than that.\nWhen you look at the numbers in this manner, the increase doesn’t look too substantial. Still, we ask these students to “suck it up!” and remember that payments of $260 to masses of students add up really fast. Congress is actually making a considerable investment and sticking its neck out for us this time, so we should not be quite so quick to criticize.\nHowever, if you must have something to disapprove of, take into account that the EPA got the budgetary shaft. True, spending a limited amount of money does require prioritizing, but considering the current climate crisis, it might be important to place the EPA a little closer to the top of Congress’s to-do list. Besides, deficit spending has never fazed Congress before. What, then, is the excuse for limiting funding to such an entity?\nSo while we acknowledge that the lawmakers’ priorities still need a little tweaking (whew, we still have a job!), we’d like to thank Congress for making higher education more affordable. And so, we dedicate this editorial to our favorite legislators as a belated valentine. We’re sorry we didn’t get you anything fancy – by now they’re all out of the gross candy hearts that you love so much – so this column will have to suffice.\nRegardless, our message remains the same: We heart you!\nWell, at least for now.