The Next Mayor of Blowhardville

“I am pleased to announce that I am running to be the next mayor of Blowhardville.”

 John Calia, April 30, 2011

Yes, that’s right, friends. I am running for office. I figure now that Trump has vacated his post as mayor of Blowhardville to run for President the field is wide open. I admit he’ll be a hard act to follow. Why am I so confident that I can win? Because it’s not just Trump who has vacated the little burg of Blowhardville. It seems that blowhards of all political stripes have hit the highways.

My first campaign promise is to create jobs by making a strategic investment in a shovel ready project to build a Blowhard Hall of Fame.

The charter inductees will include both Republicans and Democrats. It was tough to narrow the field but there are a few standouts.

This is Obama from the 2008 campaign: “In ten years, we can reduce our dependence so that we no longer have to import oil from the Middle East or Venezuela. Number one, we need to expand domestic production and that means telling the oil companies the 68 million acres that they currently have leased that they’re not drilling, use them or lose them.”

Wow. We’ve made so much progress in the last three years; I can hardly believe we’ll need another seven.

Or, how about this? During the same campaign, the current Secretary of State referred to her visit to Bosnia in 1996, thusly: “"I remember landing under sniper fire. There was supposed to be some kind of a greeting ceremony at the airport, but instead we just ran with our heads down to get into the vehicles to get to our base."

That doesn’t sound bad other than the fact that it isn’t true. Later, she admitted that she “did misspeak”. Misspeak? That might qualify as the understatement of the decade.

Newt Gingrich is a really smart guy. Everybody says so. After all, we are told he reads two books a week which is two more than Sarah Palin. I knew he was getting ready to run for President last fall when he started saying really stupid things. Yet nothing he has said recently compares to this quote from his days as Speaker of the House: “The idea that a congressman would be tainted by accepting money from private industry or private sources is essentially a socialist argument.”

A Socialist argument? Really, Newt? Really?

My favorite quote from the 2008 campaign came from Dennis Kucinich, once the youngest mayor of Cleveland and now the Mental Midget of the Left. Ready? Drum roll, please: “I am running for President of the United States to enable the Goddess of Peace to encircle within her arms all the children of this country and all the children of the world.”

The Goddess of Peace? What church does this guy go to?

Some blowhards have a style that belies their status as a blowhard. We expect blowhards to be loud like Trump. However, my all-time favorite blowhard is the former Vice President of the United States, the avuncular Dick Cheney. He can deliver a line so calmly in that you hardly notice how ridiculous he sounds. Here are few examples:

“There is no doubt that Saddam Hussein has weapons of mass destruction”. That was in October, 2002.

Or, how about this one: “I believe we will be greeted as liberators”. That was three days before we started the Iraq War. How’s he doing so far?

And, my favorite Dick Cheney quote: “Ronald Reagan proved that deficits don’t matter”. That was during the 2004 re-election campaign.

Now that all the blowhards have left for Washington, I am almost certain to win election for mayor of Blowhardville. The only question that remains is:

WHO WILL LEAD?

40 Years? Are You Kidding?

     "The best way to predict the future is to create it."

                                                   Peter Drucker

In 1920, the Great War (the War to End All Wars) had ended. Germany was utterly vanquished and in disarray. Few would have predicted that, 20 years hence, Europe would again be plunged into war and that Germany would occupy all of Europe from the Pyrenees to the Russian border. But, that's what happened.

Germany lost that war, of course, by virtue of being forced to fight on two fronts with the US from the west and the Soviets in the east. How many people would have predicted that by the time another 20 years passed, the US and the Soviet Union would be locked in an epic struggle called the Cold War -- spending vast amounts of sovereign capital on a nuclear arms race and a space race?

By the time another 30 years had passed, the Soviet Union ceased to exist. Not too many people would have predicted that either.

All of this came to mind recently when I was asked back for the third time to give my lecture titled "How to Choose a Career for the Next 40 Years" to undergraduate business students at Johnson & Wales University in N. Miami. The topic first came up extemporaneously when I was asked a question during my first visit to the class. By the second visit, I had turned it into a prepared lecture; however, many of the students challenged my “facts” which, I must confess, came straight out of my middle-aged memory.

So, in preparation for this latest visit, I did my homework. I pulled data from the Congressional Budget Office, the US State Department, the World Bank and even the economic development bureau of the Russian Federation. I won’t recount it all here but here are few of the highlights:

Basic economics: I needed to give these kids some context. So, I started with a little Econ. 101. After laying out the formula for GDP, I gave them the formula for GDP growth. It’s the sum of population growth and productivity improvement. That’s the definition not an economic theory. So, to see where the jobs are, you need to understand both demographics and what drives productivity improvement.

Demographics. The Baby Boom has been a key driver of the economy since the end of WWII. And, so it will be for the next 20 years. But, then what?

The birth rates of the industrialized countries have slowed to a rate that will not sustain their populations. This will result in GDP shrinkage. Within 20 years, we will be competing for immigrants.

Technology. Tech of any kind will be the place to be. How do you improve productivity? Technology, that’s how. Any kind of technology: infotech, biotech, nanotech, aerospace tech, etc. Especially, aerospace tech.

But, the students of J&W are not the big brains who will invent the next Segway or send a man to Mars. They are the ‘B’ students -- the future working stiffs. Dilbert Cartoonist, Scott Adams, wrote a great column in the Wall Street Journal called "How to Get a Real Education" aimed at these students. Use your college experience to learn how to be an entrepreneur. That’s his advice.

Healthcare… NOT! The growth of healthcare spending will not continue at the same rate. Baby Boomers may cause their own boom in expenditures in the near term but before this crop of college graduates experiences their mid-life crisis, the rate of growth will slow. The industry will do what all industries do when the market growth slows. They will consolidate. And, consolidation causes layoffs.

Go Global. If you want a great job, learn to speak Portuguese and move to Brazil. Latin America is growing three times faster than the US, as are Russia, China and India. If you don’t want to move overseas, work for a global company based in the US. The Global 2000 have been investing in the infrastructure of developing countries for 20 years. Now is the time to reap the rewards.

Keep an eye on DARPA. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Administration has been the source of disruptive inventions since the 1950’s. The silicon chip, email, the internet and GPS all originated in their labs. In other words, everything on your iPhone came from DARPA. What are they working on now? Alternative energy to reduce the military’s dependence on oil.

Countries to Watch. Turkey will be a major player. Their economy is humming and their government and business institutions are productive. Their most recent rejection by the EU will cause them to turn eastward to Iran and Russia for both economic and security cooperation.

Poland will become more important to the US as a bulwark between Russia and Western Europe and a counterbalance to Turkey. Oh, and keep an eye on Mexico. Today’s 17th largest economy will eventually get past its drug war (as Colombia did) and become a growing economic power.

Countries whose influence will decline over the next couple of decades – Russia, Germany, Japan and China.

The world will be as different 40 years from now as it was 40 years ago. Remember 1971?

And, so it goes……

Veterans. What Are They Entitled To?

Congress should stop treating veterans like they're asking for a hand out when it comes to the benefits they were promised, and they should realize that, were it not for these veterans, there would be nothing to hand out.

 Congressman Nick Lampson (R-TX)


This is what arrived in my Inbox a few days ago:

Case # 7658: SM (that’s Service Member, in case you didn’t know) filed a VA claim for service connected PTSD ( that’s Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) on November 17, 2010 just beyond the 24 months per SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) policy for consideration…. SM became homeless (emphasis added) in October 2010 and was forced to live out of her car while her 12 year old daughter resided with friends that lived close to her school…. once all the required documentation is submitted to HUD, it may take up to two (2) months to process the case completely…. landlord requires SM pay, security deposit, first and last month’s rent immediately.

SM requested just over $5900 for first and last month rent, food and other expenses. What would you do?

On July 28, 1932, U.S. Army troops commanded by General Douglas MacArthur attacked WW I veterans marching on the U.S. Capitol demanding payment of veterans benefits promised to them by the World War Adjusted Compensation Act of 1924. Believing they were communists and criminals, the General ordered infantry and the Third Cavalry Regiment (led by Major George S. Patton) to attack the marchers. Fifty-five veterans were injured and 135 arrested.

Well, I guess things aren’t that bad for veterans. Are they? Here’s another one:

Case # 9051: SM participated in the OIF (Operation Iraqi Freedom) campaign from May 1, 2003 to April 23, 2004. SM was discharged as an Army National Guard reservist on August 26, 2010 and was subsequently admitted to a Rehabilitation Program at the Miami VA Hospital [for PTSD]….. SM states he did not want to admit that he had this and this is why he waited 3+ years to seek treatment.

I am not making this up. These are real cases of SM’s who have submitted claims to Operation Homefront, a non-profit that provides assistance to wounded warriors, combat veterans and their families. In a strange twist on Joseph Heller’s novel of WW II, Catch-22, one can get help from the VA for PTSD but is discouraged by a culture of denial to apply.

SM has applied to VA to increase his PTSD rating. He requests assistance to avoid eviction….

The Serviceman’s Readjustment Act, or GI Bill, was passed in 1944 to provide veterans with educational opportunities after the war. Most soldiers and sailors who served went straight from high school to boot camp and received little or no vocational training. As such they were trained to be soldiers but had few skills required in a manufacturing or service-oriented workforce.

President Barack Obama appointed retired General Eric Shinseki to head the Veterans’ Administration at the beginning of his term. In August of 2009, he liberalized rules used by the VA to diagnose and treat PTSD saying, “The hidden wounds of war are being addressed vigorously and comprehensively by this administration as we move VA forward in its transformation to the 21st century”.

SM returned from deployment with a mild case of TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) has been unemployed for eight months……

Unlike previous wars, including the war in Vietnam, our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan are exposed to danger constantly with little opportunity for rest. Operation Homefront provided assistance to over 160,000 veterans and their families in each of the last two years. The cases ranged from dysfunction related to PTSD to debilitating wounds that prevented veterans from finding work to veterans and their families becoming homeless.

SM is E4 Army veteran, infantry who served 7 years with Army with 2 tours with OIF. SM was honorably discharged April 6, 2007 ….. SM displayed PTSD symptoms after return from second tour in Iraq, and these symptoms increased after his discharge.…. SM was incarcerated in November 2008 when he fired “warning shots” at an aggressive driver from his gun in his car.

I am delighted that Secretary Shinseki has embarked on a program to increase the numbers of service members who would be eligible for treatment for PTSD. However, in my role on Op Homefront’s Florida board, I am exposed to the extent to which the VA and the services themselves are guilty of not helping discharged veterans to successfully transition back to civilian life.

This is not an attack on the Armed Services or the Veterans’ Administration. There are laws governing what they can and can’t do. The laws are converted to regulations and the people who deal with these cases are legally bound to follow the rules. Any set of rules will create exceptional cases and many of them will be egregious.

I think the larger question is: are we, as a society, ready to deal with the aftermath of our dual combat missions? The amputees? The psychologically impaired? The family problems?

There are ancillary questions as well. How do we evaluate these cases to ensure people are getting the help they need? What is the responsibility of government to help them? How will we expand the existing entitlement programs to encompass this new population?

Or to say it differently, WHO WILL LEAD?

Rules? What Rules?

"My, we seem to be a little short on brotherly love round here." 

-- Butch Cassidy, as played by Paul Newman in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

I got into a Facebook Fight last week. Have you ever been in one? It's kind of like that scene from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. You know the one where Butch has to get into a knife fight with a really big, scary guy. He asks him, "What are the rules?" Big Scary Guy replies: "Rules? In a knife fight? No rules!"  He no sooner gets the words out of his mouth than Butch kicks him in the groin. Well, there are no rules in a Facebook Fight either.

I use different internet tools for different purposes. LinkedIn for business; Facebook for personal stuff, pictures and messages to friends and family, etc. So, when I woke up at my usual 5 AM to a posting on my Facebook wall supporting the Wisconsin 14, I went off the deep end. Last year, I had de-friended members of my own family for posting their support of the Arizona immigration law. So, why am I waking up to some commie crap on my damn wall? By a so-called friend no less.

Now, 5 AM is not my best time of day. I could have deleted it. I could have blocked the friend from posting on my wall. I could have de-friended him. But, no-o-o-o! I responded aggressively.

My opponent was a very well read Ph.D. And worse, he was abetted by an old high school chum of mine with whom I haven’t spoken since graduation day. In fact, I am not sure I even spoke to him then. Two against one. That’s not fair! Oh yeah, there are no rules in a Facebook Fight. My H.S. buddy is a school psychologist according to his Facebook page. So, he is right there with the Ph.D.

Ph.D. hits me with Robert Reich. I parry with Freidrich Hayek. He’s never heard of him. Hah! Take that, Ph.D.

I am a fan of NY Times columnist, David Brooks. I never miss a column. He mostly writes about political and policy issues and represents a moderate voice that does not adhere to any political dogma. I guess that’s why I like him. His new book is called The Social Animal. I understand from the reviews and summaries that it is a fictional representation of the ways in which we form relationships and connect ourselves to ideas and social norms. Though not an expert on brain science, Brooks has written of our new understanding of it and how it has affected us. Think of all those bright business school grads on Wall Street and how they self destructed during the financial crisis of 2008/09.

So, here I am parrying the thrusts and jabs of my formidable opposition and it occurs to me that Brooks is right about all this. I am fairly well read myself and yet could not convince either of these guys of the wisdom of my thinking any more than they could convince me of theirs. It’s not that their thinking was irrational. Indeed, their thoughts might be considered to be a rationalization of their beliefs.

All their reading and learning had been directed to support their values and biases. So, were mine. There was no winning this Facebook Fight for any of us. No way, no how.

Isn’t that what’s happening across the nation? Don’t you get emails from your friends and colleagues that either reinforce your views or infuriate you? So, how can we solve the big national problems when we are all so enamored of what’s going on in our own heads that we can’t compromise?

A recent speech by Republican Governor Mitch Daniels of Indiana to the Conservative Political Action Committee provides some insight on how we might answer that question. He counsels his right wing followers to put everything on the table including tax increases and defense spending to resolve the problem of our deficits and debt.

He reminds his followers that “big change requires big majorities” and that we will “need people who never listen to Rush or Glenn or Laura or Sean”. He also reminds us that the founders “made compacts and concessions and, yes, compromises” in the cause of creating one union from the 13 colonies who won their freedom from the British crown.

NPR called it a Grown Up brand of GOP politics. We need that from both sides of the aisle. A recent report from economist John Mauldin found that a “majority of voters incorrectly believes the federal government spends more on defense/foreign aid than it does on Medicare and Social Security (63%). Also, a similar majority (60%) incorrectly believes problems with the federal budget can be fixed by just eliminating waste, fraud and abuse.”

The President created his own version of Grown Up politics with the Simpson Bowles Commission aimed at resolving our national debt. Their controversial proposal is dying a slow death like those of most Presidential commissions.

Our debt problem is serious and addressing it will be painful. What is called for is the equivalent of Ronald Reagan’s dollar bill speech in 1981. He held up a dollar bill and opened with “This is a dollar bill…..”

We guffawed about it the following day on the trading floor at Goldman Sachs. But, that’s the kind of communication that is called for now. Reagan explained to voters how every dollar they earn is divided up. The equivalent of a PowerPoint pie chart.

The pie chart needs to be updated. If nothing changes, every dollar of tax revenue will go to paying interest on the national debt within 10 years. Nothing left for national defense. Nothing left for social programs. Nothing.

The only question is: WHO WILL LEAD?

The Disunion of 'Dis Union

The dogmas of the quiet past, are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise -- with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew, and act anew. We must disentrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country.

                                                               ---  Abraham Lincoln


It’s hard to imagine that President Grover Cleveland ordered the US Marshalls and the National Guard to put down an insurrection in this country. The year was 1894 and the insurrectionists were members of the American Railway Union. The troops killed 34 union members and wounded 57. The leader of the ARU, Eugene Debs, was arrested, convicted of violating a federal court order and was imprisoned for six months.

Trade unions have been around for a long time but it was the labor movement of the 1930’s that forged the cultural institutions that survive today vexing corporate executives and state governors alike. Laws signed by Presidents Hoover and Roosevelt gave impetus to larger unions banding together to bargain with employers. It was a period in which attacks against striking workers by US troops and hired thugs gradually came to an end. But, the unions were poorly run and infused with Communists. During the depression, with unemployment at 25% and workers unable to pay dues, they were not very effective.

After WWII, Walter Reuther became head of the UAW, purged Communists from their management to become well administered and powerful negotiators. He set an example for his peers to follow. The booming economy of the time coupled with higher wages and benefits created a middle class economy throughout the Midwest and northeastern US underpinned by union workers.

By the 1970’s, the impact of a new, more global economy called for a paradigm shift. The impetus for that shift was provided by Ronald Reagan who famously disemboweled PATCO, the air traffic controllers union. I think he did it to set a precedent and prove to industrial leaders that they could too.

But, ultimately, it was the market not politics that undid the union. Union wages and benefits added costs to the manufacture of finished goods that made US industry uncompetitive on a global scale. Foreign auto manufacturers seeking to neutralize the impact of volatility of the dollar built their US auto plants in the South where they were less likely to unionize.

I won't go through the history of unions for the past thirty years.  Nor will I reiterate the issues that are well covered in the news of late.  If you have read this far, you probably already know and have an opinion.  Instead, I would like to pose a business question. 

Union membership has declined precipitously. In 1950, 25% of American workers belonged to a union. Today, the percentage is half that. And, tellingly the percentage among employees of private companies is 7.5% while over 36% of public employees are union members.

Now, if a business had seen such a precipitously decline in its fortunes, it would have to transform itself or face liquidation.  Instead, unions have resisted change.  The unions won’t win this war. They might win a battle or two but I am here to tell you that their day is done. The model doesn’t work anymore.

What should they do? Give up? Close up shop? NO! They should transform themselves into 21st Century institutions. Why would anyone think that the 19th Century model honed to perfection 60 years ago will work now?

Unions should be transformed into Centers for Human Capital Development. Instead of an entrenched interest that fights progress; they should be training people for 21st century jobs. Manufacturing has become more high tech. Math and science skills are lacking.  Last year, the NY Times reported that a factory in Cleveland had over 3600 applicants for jobs to run a high tech machine used in fabrication.  Each applicant was tested to see if their math skills were at the ninth grade level.  The company was unable to fill the 100 job openings in a city that has lost over a million manufacturing jobs in the last decade.

If a manufacturing company could come to the union to find workers trained to work in this new environment, they would see a union contract as beneficial to their business rather than an obstacle to be overcome. This new model would work for public employees as well – including teachers.

If unions offered benefits – healthcare, 401K’s – to their members in addition to training matched to employers’ needs, they would find membership an attractive value proposition.  It would take the burden off the employers who contracted with them. 

If unions were to follow this model, everyone would be a winner: the employers, the employees and the unions.

But, entrenched interests have over a century of momentum. Quoting Lincoln again, “As our case is new, so we must think anew, and act anew. We must disentrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country.”

The only question is WHO WILL LEAD?

The Bulworth Solution: Try It Now!

All we need is a voluntary, free-spirited, open-ended program of racial deconstruction…. Everybody gotta start f***in’ everybody till we’re all the same color.

           Senator Jay Bulworth, as played by writer-director Warren Beatty in the movie, Bulworth (1998).  (Listen to the whole speech HERE)

Last October, German Chancellor Angela Merkel denounced multi-culturalism at a meeting of young Christian Democrats (her political party).  She cited a study that found that 13 percent of Germans would welcome a “Führer” to run the country “with a firm hand.” Some 60 percent of Germans would “restrict the practice of Islam,” and 17 percent think Jews have “too much influence,” according to the study.

This past week, British Prime Minister David Cameron echoed her words, pointing to the failure of “multi-culturalism” in the UK as a factor in national security. He noted that home grown terrorism in the UK was not always the product of poverty. Terrorists, such as those who perpetrated the London bombings in 2005, were middle class. The failure, in Mr. Cameron’s view, is that “we have encouraged different cultures to live separate lives, apart from each other and apart from the mainstream.” He believes that the UK should strongly defend its values and culture and let it be known that those who don’t believe as does the mainstream should find someplace else to live.

Open borders and an influx of immigrants from the Middle East have challenged Western Europe in ways that we can only imagine. However, America has an extraordinary history of absorbing and integrating foreigners. Perhaps the so-called LEADERS of these great European democracies should study our success before giving up.

The Irish, Germans and Scandinavians who came here in the 19th Century were followed by Japanese and Italians in the 20th. All faced resistance from the establishment at first. However, they brought up their children here. By the second or third generation, the children and grandchildren of these immigrants had become as American as the Britons and Scots who revolted against the British crown at the birth of this nation. As a resident of South Florida, I can tell you that the children of the Cuban, Puerto Rican and South and Central American immigrants who predominate here want to act like their American peers by age 6, have unlimited texting on their cell phone by 12 and to be driving and dating by age 18.

One of the challenges of last year’s census was how to “classify” its respondents. The NY Times, this week, published the story of Michelle Lopez-Mullins who is of Peruvian, Chinese, Irish, Shawnee and Cherokee descent. How did the government classify her? It depends on which cabinet department you ask. The Department of Education classifies her as “Hispanic” so they can measure the educational progress of that “class”. Meanwhile, the National Center for Health Statistics classified her as Asian and Hispanic. But, if she had no “Hispanic” in her background, she will be classified in the “two or more races” category along with the children of black and white couples or Asian and American Indian parents.

While many here have been concerned that Latinos do not want to be integrated into our society, the College Board reported this week 14.6% (an increase of 2.6%) of US high school seniors who passed an Advanced Placement exam in 2010 were Latino. This, despite the fact that 41% of Latino’s over the age of 20 have no high school diploma.

One can only wonder how Mr. Cameron and Ms. Merkel would respond to that. Perhaps they should consider how the provincialism of European societies dooms multi-culturalism. Perhaps they should consider that their LEADERSHIP role requires them to address the challenge rather than to denounce its failure.

As for the US? Well, maybe it’s time to stop “classifying” people.

The forbears of Ms. Lopez-Mullins didn’t really care about their classification. Their multi-racial, multi-cultural multi-copulations were the product of sexual attraction, pheromones, whatever! Indeed, the Times story reported that one in seven births is the result of a multi-racial relationship.

So, it seems that we are taking Senator Bulworth’s advice. Maybe we’ll all be the same color someday.

From Zell to Fiscal Hell

“A college education should be more than an item of currency to be traded on the job market. To view it solely as an economic asset is to devalue it.” – Zell Miller, former Governor and US Senator representing the state of Georgia

I would like to welcome a guest blogger this week, my brother Christopher.  Chris has been actively involved in matters pertaining to public education for several years and has served as Chair of the Georgia House District 103 Education Advisory Board to Rep. David Casas.  A few weeks ago, the NY Times published an article titled, Georgia Facing a Hard Choice on Free Tuition.  I asked Chris for his view and here is what he wrote:


I have lived in Georgia since 1981. While the state has many things to boast about, public education is not one of them. For the past 30 years, student achievement has ranked at the bottom or near the bottom of state rankings. Every Governor comes into office vowing to make measurable improvements in education and most fall short. One significant exception was when Gov. Zell Miller fulfilled a campaign promise to institute a State Lottery and use the proceeds solely for public education.

The controversial Georgia Lottery law was written so that the funds could only be used for three specific purposes: Pre-K programs available to every family at no cost, technology for primary and secondary school systems, and the HOPE scholarship.

HOPE stands for Helping Outstanding Pupils Educationally. The program provides that any student who maintains at least a B average will not pay any tuition when attending a post-secondary program in a Georgia public college. The HOPE Scholarship is based on merit, not means.

A recent NY Times article talked about students at The University of Georgia driving “HOPEmobiles” which are cars given to students from families with means. The parents don’t have to pay tuition, so they reward their kids with cars. But, to talk about HOPE as giving money to families who don’t need it misses the point. The principle of HOPE is that it rewards hard work. You give something; you get something.

The HOPE Scholarship program has had many consequences for Georgia; both intended and unintended. Over the past two decades, many of our top high school students have stayed in-state for college when they may have otherwise gone out-of-state. This has swelled the rolls of many of Georgia’s colleges, created a demand for new colleges to be built, and increased competition for admission to the top schools. The University of Georgia, for instance, once was accessible to average students. Now, it’s the hardest public school in the state to get into.

The demand for HOPE money has increased as attendance in Georgia’s post-secondary schools increased. Then, as the economy declined and the state cut the education budget, colleges have had to raise tuition and fees. The result is that HOPE’s liabilities now far outstrip its funding mechanism. The newly elected Governor, Nathan Deal, has had to propose some tough and unpopular choices. Do we increase the GPA requirement, reduce the percent of tuition covered, or institute means testing?

Attempts to duplicate the success of HOPE at the national level have fallen short. Tax credits for education involve complex IRS rules and only rebate you after the money is spent. A federal education loan is good but it has to be paid back. A recently released government report indicates that the total outstanding education debt held by Americans is greater than that owed on credit cards. Has the ease of getting these loans created another economic “bubble” waiting to burst?

Few would disagree that a well-educated work force is key to our future success in this global economy. While we used to view a high school education as the door to opportunity, increasingly that is not enough. Persons without a college degree, on average, have seen lower pay and higher unemployment. Few parents would discourage their children from seeking a college degree, but more are having trouble paying for it.

America has the finest post-secondary educational institutions in the world. That’s one reason why colleges are bulging with enrollment of foreign students. Should the best and brightest Americans be excluded because it’s too expensive? For once, the politicians in Georgia got it right. While HOPE will certainly change with the current economic realities, it’s not going away. Good students in Georgia will continue to have opportunity regardless of their means. The question is why other states haven’t followed Georgia’s lead.

Since 1993, the Georgia Lottery has generated $5 billion for education. So, go out and buy a lottery ticket and feel good about it. We shouldn’t be “HOPE-less”, we need to invest in the next generation.

- Chris Calia

Christopher Calia graduated cum laude from the University of Virginia and received his Masters in Mechanical Engineering from M.I.T.  He was a national Fellow in Nuclear Engineering and now runs a small, private software company.  He clearly values the education he was fortunate enough to receive, and is a frequent activist on legislative issues related to education.


In my last posting, I repeated the oft spouted phrase that governing is about choosing.  Clearly, we are all facing some tough choices which will create controversy and disillusion many Americans.  The only question is:

WHO WILL LEAD?