I have to admit, when I first heard about the furloughs, I was actually kind of excited about the prospect of not having as much class to go to. I know it has always been a relief when a teacher canceled class and I got to go home early, but this just doesn’t feel the same. It’s not just a teacher being sick or having a conference call to take. It’s a teacher deciding which days we won’t be getting our full $2,450 worth. There are few things in life that we would pay a relatively high amount of money for and not expect the most out of them. I wouldn’t buy a new car if the dealership told me it wouldn’t work two days out of the month. I wouldn’t install a home security system if the Brinks guy told me it wouldn’t work every day. So why would I pay for a college education if I’m not going to get a full one? We all know the details of the state budget crisis, or at least enough to know that it is hurting every state employee from Los Angeles to Eureka. We know that our faculty and staff alike are feeling the pay cuts and their hardship is no easier than ours. However, along with the cuts in their pay came a rise in our fees. And now we are left with more expensive, yet less educationally satisfying classes.So we protest and shake our fists and stamp our feet and we try to make a difference, but are we directing our anger toward the wrong people? I’ve called out our administration in past articles and discussed with many students and faculty the poor decisions made by those in charge, but not once have I ever pointed the finger at those who teach us. Never once have I blamed those who have taught me to be a critical thinker or analyze situations from an unbiased and thoughtful perspective. I never blamed those who have taught me to be the kind of person I am today. But should I have? The teachers at California State University campuses statewide purposely take furlough days on days of instruction. Some of them have no choice having classes every day of the week or close to it. But what about those who only teach Tuesday and Thursday? Or only on Monday and Wednesday? What excuse do they have to be canceling classes when they don’t have to? Because the California Faculty Association has fought to let them to have the right to choose. Otherwise, it would be left up to the President Alexander Gonzalez and the rest of the administration as to what days. The thinking is if they can show how much of a hindrance the furloughs are to everyday life, the administration may do away with them or find an alternative. Sociology professor Kevin Wehr, CFA capital chapter president, said exposure to this problem is the only way it will be solved. “If we simply chose non-instructional days only, then that makes it appear to the students, to the administrators, to the public … to anybody involved in the community that there is no consequences to these cuts,” he said. “But cuts do have consequences.”The only problem is that this form of protest keeps students out of the classroom. Wehr made the argument that it’s not the teachers who are hindering the students, it is our government and the highest level of the CSU system’s administration. “It’s not the faculty being selfish, or hurting the students. It’s the Legislature and the governor and the chancellor who are hurting the students and not doing the right thing,” Wehr said. So yes, our professors should be taking their furloughs on days of instruction. It is their way of showing not only the campus, but the administration and everyone else who is paying attention, that our current system isn’t right.The big thing we should realize, however, is that they shouldn’t have to be making this decision at all. When our educators are put into this position, everyone is hurt.

Matt Rascher can be contacted at [email protected]