Bad governor! No steroids!

"Money's too tight to mention"
-- Simply Red

Yesterday morning, between 11:30 a.m. and noon, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed an executive order laying off more than 10,000 part-time and temporary state employees and consultants and cutting the pay of more than 200,000 California civil servants to $6.55 an hour. I can tell you that $6.55 isn't enough to buy 7 pounds of Purina Cat Chow at WinCo Foods.

All this happened because the state Legislature has not agreed upon a budget. The Democrats say they've already cut enough and want to raise "revenues." The Republicans have vowed not to raise "taxes." Therefore, both sides are involved in a spitting match, with state workers being spat upon.

In all this budget darkness came a shining light -- Controller John Chiang said that he would not carry out the executive order because there's enough money to keep the state solvent through September. "Ah-nult" said he would take Chiang to court if he had to. So, there may be another legal spitting match. But if Chiang ever decided to run for governor, I'd support him.

I'll be OK, I think. I have long-standing direct-deposit account with the Golden 1 Credit Union, which has offered state workers with accounts opened before June 30 a zero percent loan to cover their paychecks until the budget mess is settled. Other banks may offer their own deals.

I contacted my mortgage company this morning explaining my financial situation. The customer service supervisor I spoke to advised that I call later in the month if the budget situation is still in flux so I could make a payment arrangement until the budget is signed.

But I admit I'm better off than a lot of people who lost their jobs. A single mother who works part-time as an office assistant making $15.98 an hour had just closed on a new house. Now that she's just lost her job, she has to tell her mortgage company that she can't make the first payment on September 1. Now, that's just awful!

I've read posts on newspaper Web sites that portray state workers as lazy whiners. Having worked for the private sector as well as the public one, I've found both sides pretty much the same. Most people work hard for their money. So, I wish the critics would leave us alone and let us provide the services they ask for.

If the Republicans want to cut services, I'd love to know which services they'd like to cut. Would they like to cut my job as an editor? Would they like to cut my older brother's job at DMV? What about my older sister's job at the Board of Equalization? Let the Republicans come up with their own version of the budget so we can get this thing settled.

As for "Ah-nult" and his pathetic apology, "sorry" doesn't pay the mortgage!

Writing Diva