Now this is an idea I've had for a while, probably I'm not the only one but to read the media - well, my point of view is seriously underrepresented.
That is - given the climate of economic cutbacks, budgets, politics, etc - the priority for government funding should be education.
Education first, as it were.
Now this is not a popular choice, especially in Alberta, where the Conservative Party has had sway for some 40 odd years.
It makes sense that the Conservatives would underfund education - if only in the fact that educated - by this I mean properly educated - well rounded educated - people - generally don't vote Conservative. I say generally, there are always a few...
To quote John Stuart Mill:
"Although it is not true that all conservatives are stupid people, it is true that most stupid people are conservative."
So the legacy of the Conservatives is explained.
But I'll explain it in an even clearer way, that should make it obvious to all but the most stubborn and conservative.
Invest in Education, and you can reduce your expenditure in any number of other areas - some examples: Welfare, Social Services, Healthcare, EI...
I could go on.
The fact is, any investment in education - be it elementary through to University - always pays off, if only in increased taxes. But it has spinoff benefits as well - The bulk of healthcare spending is on people of lower education. Educated people take an interest in their own health and maintain it at their own expense.
Welfare, Social Services, EI - all these claims can be directly and inversely correlated with the amount of education people have received.
Invest in education, and over time you'll be able to reduce funding to the other sectors.
Now there are other reasons too, far too esoteric to go into here, things such as quality of life, community, etc, but - it all begins with education. So - on any government's list of priorities - it should always be "Education First". Any talk of cutbacks to education should be considered a flag that the government needs to be replaced.