Do I Vote for Ramona's Proposition R? [Blog]

I have never seen a school bond I didn’t like, but Ramona’s Proposition R presents some questions that have slowed my impulse to vote yes. 

Ramona School District’s fiscal insolvency appears a fractal of local, state and federal fiscal problems that we are experiencing. Where poor long-term mismanagement fueled by a desire to fix a problem by throwing money on it has aided in a decline in our standards of health, living and education across the country.

So the question is, do I vote yes on Prop. R and kick the underlying problems down the road with more taxes, or do we let the system fail and hope that it will come back stronger and smarter with our kid’s education?   

Some things I have to consider before casting my vote: If the prop. R fails it is very likely that the state will take over the school district and chaos will follow.  The management will be terminated, the school board dismissed, and the state will make the district solvent by closing schools and firing teachers and employees.

This is an ugly prospect, and it will be very painful for everyone. If prop. R passes we will be taxed to pay for poor management, and band aid the real problems for the foreseeable future. An alternative, that is not available, would be a commitment to taking bold action such as closing schools and restructuring to address the issues, paid for through taxes to make the transition easier, but I haven’t seen any such plan.

One thing is certain, some day the fiscal reality of a poorly managed school system will come to fruition. It may not happen while our kids are in school, but pushing the problems onto someone else’s kids does not feel right. 

So, do I vote for more debt and mismanagement, or let the cards fall where they may and then the school system gets fixed?  This is my dilemma.