I think it could be said that I enjoy writing. I think that's pretty evident in that I write a blog. I'm having trouble writing a paper for my English class, though. It's a research paper that needs to be 8-10 pages, with at least 8 sources cited. I got to choose my topic, which is budget cuts to education, specifically in Nevada and Clark County. On the surface, this seems like a no-brainer. In a state that is at the top of the bad lists and the bottom of the good lists, you would think that writing a paper on why we shouldn't cut the budget would be easy. The Clark County School District is one of the largest in the nation, and one of the stupidest. I would like to make a note here that I have received all of my education in Nevada. Most of it in the CCSD. But from elementary to my higher education, I have been in Nevada. I obviously don't think that I am uneducated. But I'm the girl who still recalls third grade grammar and is baffled at those who don't. I also like to be a know-it-all, so that helps. But I can see times throughout my educational career where teachers and counselors didn't take the opportunity to push me further. I had to take typing my senior year of high school because none of my school counselors told me it was a requirement to graduate until then--and that was in the Washoe County School District, which would like to think it's better than the CCSD. I understand that the economy is in the toilet right now, so many public programs need to tighten their belts. But education certainly shouldn't be one of them.
So, why can't I write a paper about it with facts to back me up? The real question is, what difference does it make? I feel like politicians almost want to perpetuate an unskilled workforce to cater to our tourist-based economy. By not funding education, they are guaranteeing a population that has no bigger aspirations than dealing blackjack and inhaling everyone's second-hand smoke. They are keeping our Spanish-speaking population, well, Spanish-speaking. That way they can keep cleaning up our dishes in restaurants and making our beds in the hotel rooms. They (the politicians) aren't ecouraging potential scientists, doctors and lawyers to go into those fields. They are making sure we don't diversify our economy to compete with our precious gaming industry. They are ensuring that generation after generation does not get involved in their children's education. Even better, bad teachers are impossible to fire. But if I write a paper about it for a hundred-level college course, none of that will change.
I know I should just take the assignment for what it is. It's a tool to teach me how to research and make an argument. I know this. I'm just making it more difficult than it actually is. I can feel the fire in my belly when it comes to this topic. I just can't seem to find the motivation to write the paper. Maybe I'll take my friend's suggestion and actually submit the paper to the state legislation. That might motivate me. Maybe I'll take my other friend's suggestion and cry. And get drunk. And then write it. That might work, too. After all, I'm not tasked with saving the world. Just write a paper. Just write a paper about the school children getting f*cked out of a decent education so that I can get an A. It's a crying shame, really.
