I know a former Buncombe County teacher who was laid off as a consequence of politicians monkeying around with the state budget. He was smart enough to know the ethical thing for him to do for his family would be to seek another job; and he was talented enough to land one – in another state. Now that the state has convinced everybody that raising taxes is good so we can pay for Star Trek centers without having to lay off teachers, Buncombe County has recalled just about every teacher it said would not get a contract renewal.