The boy who cried "wolf!"—and then got et

• Aint no big deal

OC Weekly’s Gustavo Arellano reports that money is so tight at Cal State Fullerton that libraries there can’t even afford to purchase professors' newly published books.

Um, that’s no big friggin’ deal, if you ask me. Let's move on, please.

• “Like the academically dubious University of Phoenix”

Meanwhile, over at the University of California, fiscal Sturm und Drang continue to wrack that system.

On Friday, the Reg’s Gary Robbins reported that a “small group of UC Irvine professors has proposed raising the state income tax as one way of way of shielding the University of California from the impact of the $813 million the system has been told to cut to help the state balance its budget.”

Like the way Robbins zeroes in on the tax idea? It was just one of several, Gare. Way to throw raw meat at the Real Neanderthals of Orange County.

The four Humanities professors opine that UCI’s chancellor and other officials are being dishonest with the public about the crisis. Drake is assuring everyone that the good ship UCI can weather this storm by swabbing the deck and closing the portholes. In truth, say the Professors, he's planning to save the vessel by sawing a series of neat little hole in its hull.

Here’s how the four humanists describe Drake and co.’s de facto vision of the U of Cal of the future:

Imagine overcrowded classrooms and reduced expectations for students, and the substitution of computers for teachers, and you’re in the ballpark. What looms is the transformation of a world-class university into either a factory for BA students or an online correspondence school like the academically dubious University of Phoenix.

I just love that last part.

So they’re asking Drake to step up to the plate and show some real leadership:

“UC Irvine Chancellor Drake and the Commission could take the lead in forging the public consensus necessary to halt the erosion of … state support of public education. They could propose and support legislators endorsing viable alternatives, which range from levies on the state’s petroleum production and closing corporate tax loopholes to, yes, raising state income taxes, which are among the lowest in the country. What role would be more natural than this for them?”

The Four note that this situation applies just as much to the Cal States and the community colleges.

Dang!

• The boy who cried "Wolf!" an' villagers blew 'im off and then he got et (an old folk tale)

When huge budget cuts come down the pike, everybody goes into “We be essential!” mode. At such times, cynicism comes easy.

Reminds me of this couple I once knew in grad school. When one of ‘em got sick, he or she would be a total whimpering, mewling lout. I’d make fun of ‘em. "Listen, save this stuff for when you're dyin', OK?"

One time, they got sick at the same time. It was a perfect storm of miserable, desperate whimpitude:

“[Cough, choke.] Help me!!”

“What?! [Sniff, whimper.] Shuddup, shuddup, shuddup! [Yelp.] Help me!”

It’s easy to snicker. But, you know, when you hear lots of cries and whimpers and bleats over time, it’s likely that someone, sometime really does have something serious to yammer about.

You know that it’s at least possible. You’d be an asshole to deny it. C'mon!

Years from now, we’ll realize that, among the noisy chorus of “wolf!” cries, there were a few boys who cried wolf because there was a friggin' wolf.

"Yeah, sure," we said.

Then they got gobbled up.

They're not around anymore.

Bummer.