It's a sad sort of perspective

Alabama chronically underfunds all sorts of things: schools, health care, courts, public safety, prisons. You name it, we probably don't support it like we should.

But at least we're not California. Its budget deficit for next year is about twice as large as our General Fund budget, federal money and all. They're talking about closing most of the state parks and dropping health insurance for almost a million poor children.

There but for the federal stimulus money go we. And after 2011, there goes the federal stimulus money. Let's hope we're ready.