EXCELLENT article written by a UM student regarding Steele's Senate run.

[nickshepDEM]

Higher-ed hypocrisy

by Lee Fang

October 26, 2005

At Prince George’s Community College in Largo yesterday, Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated next year by Sen. Paul Sarbanes. The sheer hypocrisy of making his announcement at an institution of higher education should be obvious to all. Since rising to Annapolis in 2002, the Ehrlich-Steele administration has made it its top priority to make in-state universities and colleges more difficult for Marylanders to afford.

More than that, do Marylanders really want another senator in Congress who will rubber stamp the Bush agenda? Steele has proven himself to be a professional ribbon-cutter and poster boy for minority Republicans, but has he done anything substantial to actually help minorities other than make speeches and spew rhetoric?

At this university and many other state schools, it costs almost 40 percent more to take classes this fall than it did three years ago. The Ehrlich-Steele administration has been aggressively appointing members to the University System of Maryland Board of Regents who are determined to privatize our school.

Last session, one of the appointments included Dick Hug, a man who publicly stated he wants to double tuition at the university. On the Office of the Governor’s website, Steele’s biography states he “understands the value of cooperative assistance to help poor and underprivileged citizens.” By making the university and other places of higher education (Towson, Frostburg, UMBC, etc.) only available to the wealthy, Steele seems to have little comprehension of how to help “underprivileged citizens.” Education is the best way to escape poverty — period.

EDITED BY ADMIN: COPYRIGHT

http://www.diamondbackonline.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2005/10/26/435f63f90bda8

[Stinky The Clown]

1. This is the first time I ever nominated a Maryland Forum thread for the

"Greatest" page.

This young man knows his stuff and knows how to articulate it.