It is a general expectation that when two parties make a deal, both groups will hold up their end of the bargain. Unfortunately, in the case of tuition increases and the state education budget, the deal has gone sour.

It seems odd that the state House has gone the other way on a deal struck in January that made universities promise not to raise tuition by more than the rate of inflation in exchange for even funding from the legislature.

If put through the Senate and signed by Gov. Jennifer Granholm, the new deal, which allows universities to raise their tuition by as much as 4.2 percent, might come back to - pardon - bite us on the butt.

Students will be hurt. It is to be expected that we - or our parents - will be hard hit if the new higher education budget is made official.

With the current state of the economy, many students and families are struggling to afford tuition. Yet it is this state of affairs that is a deciding factor in the potential tuition hike.

We are stuck between a rock and a hard place. An increase in tuition would be painful.

No one will be happy about it, but it seems there are few attractive alternatives.

The extra money will likely be spent on the necessities of running the business side of higher education: health care, attractive compensation packages, keeping the lights on and making sure the buildings have heat.

Instead of grumbling over our now souring grapes, we should look to the brighter side of the potential tuition increase. The additional funds will work to prevent programs from disappearing from the campus community.

MSU already has felt the effects of the slow economy and budget problems and has reacted by cutting departments such as Agricultural Engineering.

If the proposal is passed, the potential of additional funds for MSU should not be ignored, but students and others should keep their eyes on what's happening in the Capitol as well.