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Supporting the Arts
Parents who want more money for the arts in the school budget came out in force Tuesday night. It was difficult to argue with their premise. Certainly both the band and art programs deserve more help than they are currently getting.
Private donations bought a group of instruments for the band several years ago. Those instruments are in fairly bad shape now. For years the band boosters have put their efforts into getting uniforms for the band. The uniforms are on hand, but what happens if the band grows.
Clearly the program cannot continue to prosper without more funding.
Similarly one art teacher is stretched too thin trying to provide programs at both schools. Another teacher would be very welcome.
But it is never a good year to ask for a large increase from the school budget, and this one promises to be more difficult than most.
Besides the risk of major cutbacks in state aid, there is a need to spend more to provide the remedial help that will enable county students to do better on tests that may be used to determine the level of funding the county can expect from the slate in the future. That will probably involve providing summer school. It will certainly mean providing more teachers.
If there is truly support for a large tax increase, citizens need to let their representatives on the Board of Supervisors know it. Lobbying School Board members who have nd taxing authority may be an exercise in futility.
Medical Uses
Of Marijuana
It is difficult to escape the conclusion that the haste with which Del. Jay Katzen rushed to suggest repealing Virginia’s law that allows medical uses of marijuana is political grandstanding.
There is no evidence the law has led to any abuse. Instead of feeling this offers hope that fears for what may happen in California and Arizona are groundless, politicians rush to repeal a law that has done no harm. There has been no apparent effort to find out if any Virginia physician has taken advantage of the law to prescribe marijuana for a patient.
Members of the General Assembly are burdened with too many matters requiring votes to give each the careful consideration it merits. It is a shame to create further burdens for them by asking them to vote on repealing laws when there is no evidence any action is required. v
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