I had the pleasure of attending the Grand Blanc Arts Council’s art fair this past weekend, which featured artists from throughout Genesee County, including artists from Grand Blanc, Burton and Goodrich.
One gentleman, a retired school teacher, was there showcasing his pottery: a few booths away, one of his former students displayed her pottery. While I enjoyed the fair and appreciated the artists’ creativity, I left feeling somewhat despondent about the future of the arts, particularly the impact of the arts on our students.
Nearly all school districts have cut their fine arts departments and after-school clubs to stave off ever-decreasing state aid. When budget-crunching time comes, schools can’t sacrifice calculus to save improvisational drama.
As the arts continue to dwindle, it seems community groups that support the arts — such as FAME in Goodrich, The Thread Creek Players, the New Century Chorale or the Flint Cultural Center — are becoming increasingly more important in arts exploration, not only for students, but for the general public as well.
To be fair, I’ve never heard one board member, teacher, administrator or parent say schools shouldn’t have arts programs. As school districts are forced to make cuts, it’s clear that something has to be the sacrificial lamb — and the arts aren’t high on the list of jobs of the 21st century.
Society needs to support artistic development, even if that means participating in arts groups outside the schools. But we also need to demand that our schools — supported by the necessary funding from the state — continue to provide artistic outlets for our students, giving them not only the opportunity to practice swirling paint, but to find opportunities to enrich their lives.
To quote a popular writer: “Life isn’t a support system for art; it’s the other way around.”

On writing
and dissent:
I appreciate dissent. We’re a nation of dissenters, founded by dissenters who didn’t like an expensive tea tax and being told what to do from afar. There is, currently, dissension in all levels of government and society: it’s our birthright, our privilege to voice differing opinions and one of the factors that helps make our country work.
If everybody agreed with everyone else in the nation, or, on a smaller scale, with what I write, one could easily argue that we must all be wrong.
Part of the duty of a columnist — at least one who cares about the community and issues — is to present a viewpoint and hope it facilitates discussion. If the columnist is lucky, some readers might be enlightened on an issue. But the goal remains to present information and a different perspective, not to dictate what people should think.
I encourage everyone to write in, whether you agree with some issue or not, and make your voices heard. While disagreements are certainly necessary to resolve issues and forge a compromise, calling someone un-American because they do not agree with you says more about the person who writes it than the person being accused.
By the way, I should probably mention that I belong to neither the Democrat nor Republican parties. Take a look at the federal administration (Republican) and the state government (Democrat): if that isn’t enough to convince someone that politics has degenerated into a partisan menagerie of self-serving hacks — and that drastic reforms are needed — nothing I can say will sway them. What we should be asking is, “Where have all the statesmen gone?”
Actually, I belong to the Party of Common Sense, preferring plans that have some chance of accomplishing the necessary goals — no matter which side the plan comes from.
Perhaps clarifying my party affiliation will make it easier the next time anyone wants to take the initiative to write in. Consider it a public service.

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