One of the better anonymous comments from the A-News "Letters" section:
Oh yes, it sure would be nice to have some economic activity around here besides the university and the businesses that support it and for the most part, grovel before it like it was the Golden Calf that might be angered lest ye not grovel!
The smart development folks have been quite quiet recently. It was easy to point to bad development; when the economy was booming, but now, not many people are coming up with any realistic ideas to get some money moving our way.
The stimulus money from the federal government is going to dry up in the next year and that money has been propping up our cities and villages, our schools, the universities, and building things like the Nelsonville bypass.
Once the bypass is finished, the construction jobs will go away. I don't see things getting much better around here for a while. The stock market went back to 1999 levels last week. And the stimulus money was borrowed money. At some point the US taxpayers will have to pay it back, with interest.
Our politicians sold us out. They bought the propaganda of the wealthy elite and dismantled our country's manufacturing infrastructure, believing we would evolve into a service economy; and not have to be bothered by dirty jobs like manufacturing.
Now the service economy is collapsing. Outsourcing is just beginning to swing its wrecking ball around America. Anything that can be sent via email (e.g. writing, accounting, legal research, software development) or transacted over the telephone (customer service, including order taking) will continue to go to India and other countries where the pay is a fraction of US wages.
US professors will slowly but surely be reduced in numbers by online education and the stream of international students coming to America to study will slow down as China, India, and other countries build up their universities. These are the countries that will actually have jobs for engineers, for example, because they still have a manufacturing base in their economy. Not a rosy scenario for Athens biggest industry.
Ross Perot was right when he predicted the huge number of jobs that would be lost here due to fair trade. It took longer than he predicted, but now we can see he was correct. Of course, it isn't fair trade if the other country doesn't have a minimum wage like ours or the same degree of environmental standards.
The only industry thriving in the USA right now is the so-called defense industry. A never ending series of wars will be needed to keep our largest industry in business. A never ending supply of young men and women will be needed to be sacrificed for the never ending wars.
Who are they fighting for? Is it really for the government of the people and by the people or is it for the super rich bankers who pull the strings of their puppets in Washington?
Something to think about on Memorial Day. God bless America!
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