Reference the picture on page 2 of the Nov. 30 newspaper. How easily everyone is misled by the union. The facts, according to the Washington Policy Center, are that the state education budget has not been cut. Education spending has increased by $789 million compared to the last budget, rising from $12.9 billion in the 2009-11 budget to $13.7 billion in the 2011-13 budget.

In 2010-11, schools added an additional 235 employees to school payrolls, increasing from 101,675 employees in 2009-10 to 101,910 employees in 2010-11.

Anyone who is interested in anything remotely resembling a fact can look up the data from the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Legislative Evaluation and Accountability Program Committee, and the State Board of Education.

We need to stop brainwashing our kids that everything the WEA says is a fact, and we need to try to let our elected officials do their job. The simple fact is we need to stop calling increases in spending “budget cuts,” or is this what they are now teaching in schools and this is why our kids are failing?

Our governor does not help by calling this increase of $789 million a “Draconian cut.” Of course the politicians are so used to lying they would not know the truth if it hit them in the face!

Steve Travis