James Gill, in his column in Wednesday’s New Orleans paper, makes some great points about the effect of out-migration on our state. The headline says it all: “Smart folks leaving; the rest run our state” See column here.
The chickens aren’t coming home to roost. They’re here.
Why don’t they know?
Some of you have asked why our elected officials don’t know about out-migration. They do.
Despite the low intelligence of those of us who remain in LA, there’s is hardly a person in this state who has not personally been affected by the out-migration of a family member or friend. Those who left, for the most part, didn’t want to. They have to leave in order to find better economic conditions.
The young folks haven’t left because they are un-educated. They have left because they are either over-educated or too ambitious. I recently got a note from a Texan thanking Louisiana for sending them so many well-educated young people to help Texas expand its economy.
Former State Representative and Secretary of Labor Garey Forster tried in vain for years in 90s to get the state to focus on the problem of out-migration. Other than lip-service, those most responsible for addressing the problem did not.
When he was governor, Big Daddy wrote the just graduated college graduates a letter asking them to stay. The results are obvious.
What’s economic development?
We hear lots of talk about “economic development.” What is meant by this term is paying a business that is not here to move to our state.
Few of these “pie-in-sky,” failed efforts involved jobs for the well-educated, ambitious young people already in our state.
We hear nothing, but talk about “business retention.” Retaining businesses, especially small business would go a long way toward keeping our young people in LA. No matter how educated one is, it’s hard to walk away from a family business that has potential to grow in the future.
Expanding government exponentially during in recent years has only addressed the symptoms of the failure of the state officials to address the state’s economy and only serves to make it more difficult for those of us who remain by increasing the cost-of-living.
Re-focus needed
Our elected officials should be focusing on why LA is not more attractive for our “best and brightest” to stay in LA. We don’t have to attract them. They’re already here; we just need to give them to stay.
Among solutions not being discussed are cutting the size of state government and the state taxes to make it cheaper to remain in LA.
The lack of knowledge about the problem is not the issue. The issue is the failure of us citizens to put pressure on our elected officials, especially those at the state level to address the problem.
What to do
We must slash government in Louisiana so that the private sector can grow. Currently, government is growing despite the decline in the private sector. It is a recipe for guaranteed failure.
Politicians react to public demand. The recent veto of the obscene lege pay raise is a perfect example. As Gill points out, our elected officials aren’t bright enough to figure it out for themselves.
It’s up to us to demand the state politicians address, directly, the out-migration issue. Out-migration is not a symptom of the problems facing our state, it is the result.
C.B.
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CB
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