Ianugo at the Blue Mass Group has a post here about the Green Jobs Act of 2008 and how it has positioned Massachusetts well to receive federal stimulus funds which are targeted at green initiatives.
The Obama administration is emphasizing this type of environmentally-friendly job promotion and our Commonwealth has already secured a wind turbine testing facility in Charlestown. Let's hope some of the funds can find their way to our area given the news of layoffs this morning.
You tube embed after the jump
Saturday, May 30, 2009
It's not easy being green
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44 comments:
"if green is all there is to be, it can make you wonder why..." all the manufacturing jobs continue to leave for the south and Puerto Rico. Mass is a hostile environment to business. You only have to look at South Carolina, where the state actively encourages business without the layers of bureaucracy and taxation that make Mass less and less attractive. Do we really think Deval and Obama have any intention of expanding envirobusiness without hitching the heavy load of government requirements and consultants (read: more favors for fundraisers & cronies)? I have doubts.
But it'll do fine...it's beautiful.
If you want to sew backpacks go to SC. I'm talking about serious brainpower. MIT, Worcester Poly, and dozens and dozens of colleges, that's what Massachusetts has to offer. The state was driving the national economy from New Bedford, Lowell, Springfield and Fall River while the South was scratching around in the dirt.
Are you serious Bill? The South is populated with excellent schools. North Carolina has Duke, UNC and NC State in the Technology triangle. Atlanta has Georgia Tech and Emory, which are located miles from the Center for disease control. Georgia Tech is a state school. No state school in Massachusetts comes close. The state schools in Virginia are among the best n the country. And these southern states manage to do this without driving business out. Massachusetts is simply a corrupt one-party state that is in serious decline. I wish it weren’t so, but it is. You can sit around believing that superior brain power will save what is left of this state; but without serious structural changes, the whole state is destined to go the way of the New Bedford textile industry. Do you really believe that because Massachusetts was a powerhouse economy when South Carolina was an agricultural basket case, we are better off now? The difference is that the south learned and moved forward while we moved backwards. Arrogance like yours will not help the state. In fact it is part of the reason for our demise. Sad but true.
If you want to design and build BMW's, Mercedes, Toyotas and Hondas go south to the Carolinas and Maryland never mind sewing backpacks.
The cost of living in MA is much higher, as is the demands for compensation. American Dryer corp in Fall River is a good example of an innovative manufacturer making it in MA. Their employee base is skilled and relies on continuous design and build innovations for efficiency.
South Carolina also uses one of the few nuclear power plants for energy rather than relying on the dreaded fossil fuels. Charleston is in the top three working harbors in the country. Infrastructure: the Cooper River Bridge is an engineering sight to behold & finished on time and within budget.
Why not live there? Their public school education primary and secondary is awful. Massachusetts still leads in this one area; but without industry and innovation to support the research, the development (and profit) happens elsewhere. I wish the state with all the brainpower would wake up and address this issue.
Perhaps you are unaware of the Pilgrim nuclear plant in our neighboring Plymouth county. The electrification of the South including the nuclear plants was primarily carried out by engineers from Boston's Stone and Webster. Georgia Tech is a good school but so is UMass. I don't think that they are far apart in quality. I think MIT, Harvard, Boston University, Boston College, Northeastern, Simmons, Tufts, Emmanuel, Berklee, and the other Boston area colleges would come out very well if compared to NC or Virginia schools. That's not even taking the entire UMass system, Worcester Poly, Holy Cross, the entire State college system, Stonehill, Hampshire, Fischer, Williams, Curry, Dean, Amherst, Babson, Mass Maritime, Merrimack, Mount Ida and a host of others into account. It is precisely the brain power embodied by these institutions that has powered our past and will power our future. The urban density and mature public transportation systems of cities like Boston will serve them well as energy (gasoline) becomes more expensive. Southern and Western cities like Atlanta and Las Vegas are just beginning to face shortages of water which will require large public expenditures to address. Not to mention the billions of our tax dollars that have been poured into interstate highways that ring southern cities and are quickly inadequate.
South Carolina politics are hardly a model to hold up to the nation. They practice racial and identity politics of the worst sort.
The reason that Republicans have failed in this state and indeed nationally is that they have not presented solutions that work. Trickle down economics is a lie, the Laffer curve is just that a laugher, laissez faire regulation has allowed widespread fraud and left us bankrupt, our military spending is stifling investment, our invasion of Iraq has become a tragic and expensive travesty, and mistreatment of prisoners has eroded our moral standing.
Wow, straight off the Daily KOS website. Good thing us new englanders are so sophisticated (except New Hampshire. How dare they have no income tax, low business taxes, no sales tax, but still have as competitive public schools, and lower unemployment. They must be transplanted southerners!) Mass is headed down the road of California and New York and Michigan. people and businesses leaving all four states, so what do you do? Tax those that are left to high heaven because we couldn't possibly cut anything. But we can take solace in the fact that at least we are morally superior. Those backwoods Texans, all they've done is create more jobs the last few years than the rest of the country combined, yet without the punishing business environment, and despite terrible problem with the border.
Those evil trickle down economics: Fact - during those evil Bush years, the government had the largest revenues its ever had AFTER the dreaded tax cuts. The problem was the SPENDING. This year, tax revenues down 34% the solution - TRIPLE THE DEFICIT. Laffer curve a joke? Keynes never recommended this type or amount of spending. Why? Because the burden on the economy on the other side. just look at those sophisticated Europeans. "Social democracy" leading to high unemployment, wage stagflation and punishing taxes to pay for all the benefits. The big O will be out of office when the pricetag is due, so he's not worried about it. Spend, spend
spend. Next up Bailout California, then I guess New
York, since we are starting the bailout today for Michigan.
Most theories of economics don't work out in reality, but there are some constants. Job creators, small business owners, are the engines that drive this economy. To emerge from this recession, we need to create jobs that can employ people. The service industry and construction jobs are fine up to a point, but they are largely dependent on a good economy to thrive. The technology sector, (computers, biogenetics, pharmaceuticals, medical technology & equipment) is a growth industry for all levels of labor which would truly benefit this area and work hand in hand with the local universities for R & D. Energy development of all types (perhaps 4-5 more nuclear plants in addition to LNG lines, wind power, solar, and geothermal) to decrease our dependence on oil, as well as provide another avenue for growth and innovation.
All the potential and educational facilities are in place. And yet it hasn't happened here. The Dems have been in charge in this state for the better part of a half century. If you want to talk identity politics and corruption, you can't do much better than Beacon Hill. The only solutions the Dems ever provide is to grow the state larger and larger while chipping away at our freedoms and take home pay. I don't care for some of the Republican ideas either, but with a two party system, at least you can have a choice, or a deadlocked and therefore less active government.
You are so right Bill. I guess the New England Brain Power explains why Massachusetts if bleeding population at a frantic pace.
Yes Bill - look at the web site for BMW's plant in Spartansburg SC and then lecture me about what's wrong with the south again.
http://www.bmwusfactory.com/#/home/
While you're there Bill you might also review BMW's program on a diverse work force and the program on recruiting a diverse supplier network that focuses on minorities and women.
http://www.bmwusfactory.com/uploadedFiles/Factory/Community/BMW-MC-Diversity-Brochure-May-2009.pdf
But those must be stupid BMWs coming from the South unlike the much brainier ones we build up here. Oh yeah that's right all of our factories have moved South since manufacturing jobs are beneath the enlightened State of Massachusetts.
I've lived and worked in the South and I'll take my chances here in Massachusetts any day. If your idea of a nice place to live is Texas or North Carolina that's OK by me.
In reality, Keynesian economics does work, it's the Randian nonsense that only works in novels
Those social democratic Europeans are the ones who paid for that BMW plant. Don't look now but the European Union is doing just fine, thank you, despite having to endure the awful consequences of universal health care, excellent public education through university level, an innovative and thriving green economy, rigorous environmental protection, and social policies that bolster families and communities.
I would rather be represented by Frank, Kerry, and Kennedy than Clyburn, "Opie" Graham, and DeMint too.
Don't know much about living in the South but a friend was just about to buy a house in S.C. until he discovered and researched the nuclear facility nearby. It seems they have one of the largest nuclear waste sites in the country. Can't remember the particulars but if the site was glowing by night on satelite pictures, it wouldn't surprise me. Otherwise, I have always thought that the Carolinas might be a nice place to live. Lots of country coastline, which is what was so great about Dartmouth before the building boom of the last 20 years.
ahh yes the fabulous Euopean Union. Strikes and strife are a way of life in much of Italy. Racial and class warfare an almost yearly occurrance in France. Universal healthcare? More like rationed healthcare. No thanks Bill, I know its easire to shift the argument when people have differeing opinions than you but that does not make it right.
You made a sweeping generalization about the south, South Carolina specifically, and when I pointed how how that generalization is patently wrong in at least concrete example you shift to the beauties of the european union.
What has decades of democratic leadership brought Massachusetts? Specifically S.E. Massachusetts. Layer upon layer of government programs that simply 'feed the beast' and lead to more programs. Witness Massachusetts foray nto universal healthcare. Guess what we can't afford it. The answer from Boston? Raise taxes. Go figure.
Bill should be happy that he rest of the nation seems to be following The People's Republic of Massachusetts into socialism. My guess is that the rest of the nation will wake up after a little reality check of unchecked tax and spend led by President Obama; but Massachusetts will not. This will be of course followed by more negative population growth.
BTW, compare high school and college graduations of
New Bedford and Fall River with similar cities in the South. But sewing backpacks is beneath us.
Please Bill, enlighten this lowly individual with an engineering degree and an MBA on an actual example on succesful keynsian economics. The Carter years? Why yes, we did have skyrocketing inflation, with those beautiful interest rates through the roof. Clintonomics? The federal revenues as a percent coming in didn't come anywhere near what they were under Bush, but again it's the SPENDING that matters, and that's what started us down this road, and yes republicans and dems are both to blame. The state of massachusetts is headed towards bankruptcy Bill, and that is from our glorious DEMOCRATS who have been in charge of Beacon Hill for 50 years and have overrode any governors attempts. We think its bad now with decreased state aid, your gloriuos Democrats on beacon hill won't even let cities and towns have the whole piece of the proposed meal tax, but a portion has to pass through their grimy hands. Businesses and people (with those wonderful masachuestts degrees) are fleeing the state - but at least we have univeral healthcare we can't pay for! You want to be represented by our current crew, well don't sentence the rest of us. Frank has been on the banking committee for his 20 years in congress so he has an infinite amount of culpability in our present financial mess.
Wonderful green Europe! Germany built all these solar panels because the government mandated- but guess what - they don't have enough sunlight consistently to msake them useful. France is powered by - wait for it - NUCLEAR ENERGY (GASP!!)
wonderful universal healthcare - where they don't refuse treatment, they just don't grant it in time to get treatment - look at the indicidents of blindness from glaucoma in britain amongst these wonderfully educated europeans. By the way - the nice experimental treatment teddy is getting for his cancer won't be available for someone his age in the future under the plan he is working on. where does canada go for their healthcare - well I can tell you where 2 of their former prime ministers went for their healthcare - i'll give you one guess - it wasn't canada!
And your Keynesian economics - the wonderful european union was blasting the big O saying that too much spending wasn't the answer. Please, just explain why states that aren't following the model of michigan, california, massachusetts and new york are better off than our state. California is practically a country in itself and its bankrupt - and massachusetts is the same model only smaller. Hawaii and California have already given up universal healthcare - but we can spend our way out of it and tax who's left in the name of "social policies that bolster families and communities". By the way, clyburn is a democrat.
Please let me clarify one above point. Germany built a bunch of wind farms that don't generate energy, not solar farms. They don't have enough wind.
Also, I find it interesting that we need to be concerned about "social policies that bolster families and communities" but darned if we can't afford a youth advocate in town - there's just not enough money! But if the federal government would use keynesian economics and spend money we didn't have, well then...
Maybe we should do as the French do and strike for a thirty hour work week. Then after all the jobs in this dying state Kerry, Kennedy and Frank can bail us out.
The monetary policies adopted by the Federal Reserve while Carter was President actually put an end to over a decade of rapid inflation which started during the Johnson administration, continued through the Nixon/Ford years. President Carter backed the policy of raising interest rates so that the cost of money was higher than inflation. The result was that inflation was brought under control and the economy has benefited from it ever since.
Perhaps you can tell us how the President Clinton was able have a surplus in the federal budget but Bush more than doubled the national debt despite those record receipts. Federal tax receipts rose every year from 1971 to 2000. Thanks to the Bush tax cuts they did not reach the 2000 level until 2005 while deficits skyrocketed. http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxfacts/displayafact.cfm?Docid=200
The theories of Keynes have been the cornerstone of the monetary policies applied by governments and quasi governmental bodies such as the Fed since the end of WWII. Do you disagree with that?
Does anyone think that health care is not rationed in this country? Ask someone with a chronic illness who has no health insurance if they think it is rationed. The World Health Organization's ranking of health care systems puts the USA at 37th. Canada is 30th. France is first. the USA spends more of its GDP for health care than all of those countries. So we pay more for less, isn't that great!
I was aware that Mr. Clyburn is a Democrat. He is the House whip. I'll still go with Mr. Frank.
Bill, you have outdone yourself: longing for the good old days of Jimmy Carter (misery index over 30%, created the problems in Iran we see today) and touting the virtues of Rep Frank (large contributor to the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mack debacle). Since you will take them, you can have them both.
And you can have that highly impartial World Health Organization as well.
Bill, I'll let you debate Keynesian economic theory with the other posters, I'll assume you'll concede the point on South Carolina however. Also since my spouse does have a chronic illness I do feel qualified to speak on that point. Her health care is not in fact rationed here in the U.S.. I work hard to provide health insurance that fully covers the condition. I don't expect you or anyone else to be responsible for this cost. It's on our family and I accept that. I do not accept that a national health care system will provide any better care than what I can guarantee her right now. That's a risk I am unwilling to take given government's long history of un-fulfilled promises and failed programs. No thanks.
Hey Bill, BTW it's not a brother in law or sister in law. It's your neice who works for a charter school and it's your nephew who works for the water dept. Family just the same.
I have a third cousin twice removed who is a teacher but that doesn't make me have a conflict of interest like Lara has with those developers. Perhaps Lara can tell us a little more about the plans for the rest home on Bakerville road. Right now it is a blight to the community but with Lara's help it will be 4 condos with a parking garage underneath on a tenth acre lot. It also just happens to be owned by one of Lara's Lincoln Park Development buddies. What's next Lara, high rises on High Hill Rd? Mind your manners and things will stay civil.
As someone who currently makes his living in the present public healthcare option for our seniors (managing rehabiliation services in skilled nursing centers) the government does a terrible job - as noted by the fact that medicare - managed by the government - will be broke in 2015. The solution is not forcing everyone else into a "public option". Its just a power and money grab by the feds. Just look at MASS' universal healthcare: doctors refusing to take patients, waits going up. Yet again MASS proving to be an example of whats not working. The solution is not a Value added tax(just like europe imposes) to pay for it because its in the management of the system that matters, and as with the present system, we already have taxes directly for medicare - yet the government cannot manage it.
Back to the Keynesian front, just because it has been used alot, doesn't mean it works. Ask Japan about its lost decade, or look at ireland, and how it set went straight to decreased taxes on business and investment to turn things around. Federal Governments like the Keynesian model because its an excuse to spend money they don't have, because governements can run deficits. Worse comes to worse, they can always print money, as we're doing now. Since you wanted me to read something, you can try this, an interesting piece discussing our countries current path and how its leading us to our own lost decade - and how keynesian economic policy had japan wallowing for a decade in the 90's.
www.reason.com/news/show/133862.html
Hey all!
The nuclear plant in SC is called the Savannah River Site. There located at the mouth of the Savannah river, is one of the foulest human follies of modern mankind. It is a superfund site of enormous proportions. Jim Clyburn is one of my heroes and I once voted for him as a Charleston, SC resident.
Jimmy Carter was a great president, but I am not talking about measuring from the misery index.
He was saddled w an oil embargo and OPEC had its first stranglehold on the American economy. Jimmy said we shouldn't be dependent on foreign oil, (has ANY president since him disagreed?),he even had solar panels placed on white house. My father was a newspaper man and actually went to UAE in the mid 70's too report on the energy crisis.
Jimmy said we should be building smaller and more efficient cars, when was the last time we heard that?
OPEC was responsible for misery index.
Iranian terrorist students overtook the American embassy and took hostage 52 Americans. It is said by former Iranian leader Bonnie Sadr that he met w George Bush (that is the smarter one)
to see that those hostages were held until Reagan had defeated Carter in Nov. 1980 election. One of the worse crimes ever committed by a US president. That was until his son was elected and fabricated the Iraq war.
And Jimmy Carter is all you can come up with?
James said: It is said by former Iranian leader Bonnie Sadr that he met w George Bush (that is the smarter one)to see that those hostages were held until Reagan had defeated Carter in Nov. 1980 election.
It is also said that Bigfoot roams the northwest and crop circles come from little green men from outer space.
The hostages were released after 444 days, on the day that Reagan was inaugurated. Draw your own conclusion from that but i say the fix was in.
Wow! That's real evidence.
Maybe somebody was elected who the Iranians did not think would be so bumbling and indecisive as your hero Jimmy Carter.
Or maybe the little green men arranged it after cutting crop circles. You know its not easy being green!
Or maybe bonnie sadr was telling the truth and the Bush Crime family got away w another one, as you law and order Repugnicans worry about keeping your cop killer bullets and try to make intelligent women carry brain dead fetuses to term.
On a happier note SC is third from the worst in unemployment rate with a whopping 11.5% unemployed. To you w a SC education - that is worse than every state in the union (they were against the union perhaps for this reason.) except
mississippi and louisiana.
For momof3 the "Cooper River bridge" is actually replaced by the Arthur C. Ravenel bridge.
He was a congressman reknowned for the fact that after maybe twenty terms in congress he had not a single bill authored and named after him. Typical Repugnican - unable to lead. But very able to bring home the pork.
Yes James and our 'leaders' John Kerry and Barney Frank have certainly led our region to greatness as well. Sorry can't come up with any clever names for them though.
Tossing in the dead fetus crack was good too James - way to debate an issue! attaboy - lets just kill all the unwanted late termers and be done with it.
But on a happier note, recently relocated relatives are doing quite nicely in their newish jobs at the BMW plant in SC. We'll be visiting in the fall - can't wait.
Since your going, tie the mattresses on top of your Pontiac, buy a double wide when you get there and just stay put. You're probably pulling down our test scores or something anyway. Maybe your cousin can get you a job screwing on hubcaps. I hear it's great there and I mean how can you pass up a chance to live in the state that started the civil war and still wants to fly the Confederate flag on the capital.
Why live in the past? Perhaps that's part of the problem here in MA. The Civil War was almost 140 ago. My relatives are engineers and rest assured are not screwing on hubcaps-which by the way BMW's have not had for over 40 years. So go right ahead and peer down your noses at our neighbors to the south, I'm fairly positive they could care not a wit.
Well, my SC fan. I am pleased by some advances of the south. I lived there for 3 years and still visit yearly. But if you think the public school system is anything but institutional racism than you don't know anything. Up here we pay taxes and get a certain level of quality schools. In SC they keep taxes low by not adequately funding schools, why? Because that is where black people and poor whites are educated.
Most southern states do this.
The reason I brought up the issue of late term abortion was over the recent heinous murder of the abortion doctor. Now if you are capable of deductive reasoning - answer me this, why would a woman carry a baby nearly to term and abort it late? the answer - she took a trip to the doctor and he told her of severe abnormalities or unviability outside the womb.
And being free to try to concieve again the woman may chose not to deliver a dead or severely damaged baby.
The stem cell issue is another canard that bedevils the idiot followers of Repunicanism.
Since when is a collection of cells in a petri dish an unborn baby? Not even the Catholic church has gone that far. You idiots that support the ban on stem cell research are the biggest bunch of Luddites I ever saw. Why have education and research if you let idiots in power (ie Repugnicans) equate the never to be born w living humans suffering from deadly diseases?
It sickens me and obviously angers me. Next you wackos will be calling the discarded kleenex next to a teenage boys bed - human.... ooo, you are sick.
No, you shouldn't live in the past. You waste a good deal of precious living that way.
But you shouldn't forget it, either. If we continue along with the spend-it-even though-we-haven't-got-it attitude and the we'll-worry-about-it-later behaviour, as evidenced by Mr. Watson's comment at the Town Meeting (spend it now, worry about it again next year) then we will continue along the path of irresponsible financial management that helped put us in the situation we are now in.
We simply cannot afford (literally) leadership such as that indicated by his comment.
Just tuned in to hear the SC supreme court overrule Gov. Sanborn who rejected federal stimulus money going to those pesky public schools.
Point of interest - I met Gov. Sanford when he was SC businessman, my wife served as his secretary. She, who never spoke ill of anyone, called him "not smart". Another typical Repugnican presidential candidate. At least he is as smart as other Repugnican presidents, but not as smart as any Democrat.
James, I had hoped for a civil discourse but it seems that's not possible here. I won't resort to nasty name calling, I don't think I am an idiot and if you can make that deduction from a couple of blog posts well hats off to you.
One does not have to look too far in good old S.E. Mass to see the same problems in our public education system but luckily my children are grown and don't have to worry about such things.
In any case I'm sorry you are so bitter but perhaps this will make you feel better; I am not a republican.
James, I had hoped for a civil discourse but it seems that's not possible here. I won't resort to nasty name calling, I don't think I am an idiot and if you can make that deduction from a couple of blog posts well hats off to you.
One does not have to look too far in good old S.E. Mass to see the same problems in our public education system but luckily my children are grown and don't have to worry about such things.
In any case I'm sorry you are so bitter but perhaps this will make you feel better; I am not a republican.
Well anonymous, if that is your real name. I don't know who you are and frankly don't care. My point was not directed at you, but at the disaster called the Republican party, which is very much a stronghold in SC. it is a racist party in SC. Remember G. Bush defeating McCain there in primary by insinuating he had a black child? typical racist dirty trick which someone in Rep party should have disavowed.
That u use the anonymous label tells me that u are not a person w courage of his/her own convictions.
As for being bitter, not really, I have a good life and a ton of adversity which I face w resolve.
That resolve includes calling stupidity for what it is. And I fight those anti union, anti choice, anti intellectual, anti American voices each time I encounter them.
You my SC friend seem to be a bit bitter. Why not move to SC? Why are you complaining about New England so much? I have found NE a delightful place, full of problems that are different but fantaastic none the less.
James, why on earth would you think me bitter? I have found your comments amusing but somewhat hateful towards those with a different view. I am actually quite tolerant of opposing viewpoints and never have felt the need to name call or cast aspersions on others who think differently than I do. I think it quite American to be able to voice one's views without being called an idiot, wether it's a faith-based belief in the right to life, to be anti-union in most of its current forms and many other topics. How is that anti-American I wonder.
If its of any consequence, my name is Judy. Does knowing that make my comments any more or less valuable? If it does, wonderful.
I have no desire to move to SC, a yearly visit is enough, and perhaps a vacation condo near a golf course would suffice. I enjoy the seasons that N.E. offers and could not see myself down south in the summer. I have been there enough to know there are loons of the republican and democratic stripe down there just as there are up here. I do not choose to define an entire culture by the actions of a few. Perhaps that what you define as anti-intellectual. If it is, so be it.
Judy, Im sorry for being so harsh. I really do hate that anonymous tag and lash out at views I think are wrong, especially to the anonymous.
I like to be amusing and harsh when I write, but when a name is attached I lighten up. Those right wing TV and radio hosts do it all the time and I think they are putting out talking points that their followers parrot. I just do the same going the other way.
I have health problems that could be cured by stem cell research and I hate the religious right for the demogogery. Also a member of my family died from lymphoma which gave me a 16 month view of the medical industrial complex that I would never wish on my worst enemy.
I lived in SC, and now I am writing a book and one of the main themes involves racism. I actually live in Philadelphia. So now you know a little about me. Please consider using a tag/ nickname rather than the anonymous label. sorry again for my harshness.
Well James, now it's my turn to apologize and I am sorry for the issues you've faced and continue to face. So fresh start for both of us then. I'm not one for talk radio although I do listen on occassion and wonder why everyting must be so black and white when they discuss topics. I suppose it gets ratings to egg people on with extreme views and to a degree most blogs fall victim to this too. So, I'll use my name and try harder to be civil too. Regards, Judy.
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