News and Views, October 21, 2009:

I-1033 could hit higher ed especially hard: While the full impact of I-1033 isn’t known, it almost certainly would make it more difficult for the state to crawl out of its existing budget hole. And short of lawmakers seeking, and receiving, voter-approved tax increases, the measure likely would increase the size of cuts throughout the state budget — including higher education. | More: Seattle Times

In tough economic times, a rationale for publicly funded pre-k: Tiny Rhode Island is a struggling state economically. The unemployment rate of some 13 percent in September is among the highest in the U.S. The state’s economic woes are outsized. That is one reason EarlyStories found it so refreshing to see the excellent story the Providence Journal ran this week describing life inside the state’s first publicly funded pre-kindergarten program. | More: Early Ed Coverage

Higher taxes don’t necessarily translate into lower incomes: “Higher state taxes in any form will kill jobs and weaken Oregon’s economy.” We have read that again and again in these pages. Fortunately, we can test that notion by looking at the evidence. If the anti-tax folks are right, high tax states should, on average, suffer lower per capita incomes. So let’s sample a few states (based on 2007 income figures). | More: Oregonian

The Shriver Report – A Woman’s Nation: We have long heard about the war for talent and the tremendous emphasis leading HR departments put on talent management. These discussions are ironic in light of the fact that there are so many talented individuals right under our noses (i.e., women) who are either lost to an organization (i.e., they leave their present employer or opt out altogether) or underutilized due to outmoded management thinking. | More: Work and Family Network

Four Basic Kinds of Health Care Financing Around the World: All other developed countries around the world focus on making one of the first three models provide the majority of health care.  One of the reasons that our current non-system is such a mess is that we have all four systems in operation at the same time instead of focusing on just one. | More:  WashBlog