Well, museums ARE part of educating our children -- too much of the arts have already been cut.
I'd like to know why our country hasn't invested more in alternative fuel sources, hybrid vehicles, and such rather than making tax cuts that only benefit the wealthy. (Of course, the oil lobby would never allow this) These cutback are at the expense of the poor -- the ones who truly cannot afford childcare. How many more latchkey kids will this create? You can bet that those who benefitted from the tax cuts have no concerns about where their children will go after school!
I'm all for encouraging less fuel consumption, but there are far better ways to do this than by cutting school days. Just think of all the SUVs being driven in town by people who have never even gone offroad, people who could get by easily with a compact car. I'm not talking about those who need such a vehicle...I mean the Hummers being driven to the grocery store -- stupid.
It wouldn't hurt to lower the temperature in schools (and businesses and government offices) by a few degrees and encouraging everyone to wear sweaters. Schools could be designed to take better advantage of natural daylight to save on electricity. The heat could be turned way down for the last hour or so of class, and it would not be felt until after school was out.
With a little creativity, there are so many ways we can cut costs and energy consumption without anyone having to suffer. Unfortunately, it takes foresight and a willingness to try something new, which will typically be defeated.
