Got a bit of a kick Thursday, 20th, when the media if I may use the word loosely, had a story on Energy Express? This is a program to provide activities to the lads and lassies in four Wood County Schools. Provide reading, projects and free breakfast/ lunch. At Neale School which is the one they just happened to use as the model, it was noted last week I believe that they had 31 students with room for 12 more. Plus the program ends in a week and a half. It is the brain child of AmeriCorps and West Virginia Extension Program.
What was interesting was that I had been critical of so many programs with so few children. I am still ticked at the Vienna Public Library buying time on a Bill Board. And this may well have been the $5K it suckered out of I believe was United Care Grants. I noted that the two programs should have been combined for use of efficiency in funds/ facilities. Let's face it, walk out of Neale, make two rights and go down the block and one is at the Library. Or just cut through the parking lots; much shorter.
I have just made a new oxymoron; that being "Vienna Public Library and the West Virginia Extension Program WITH efficiency". As one can see, it did not and will not happen. So a lot of money to include that damn Bill Board I suspect wasted in competing with each other? Isn't it possible we could have done more for more kids and not flushed how many dollars down the toilet? I think we could have done much more for many more?
They both seem to be doing good things and I am all in for the tykes learning to read and have said so many times. Typing this, I thought about the Leather Backed Set of Classics my parents bought for me when I was 6 years old. Still could not read well, but as a minimum, would sit and stare at the pictures even if only black and white to keep with the stories. And as I learned to read was fascinated with those stories/ books for many, many years. Being able to read is "POWER". Parents please take that to heart and you will have given your babies a tremendous free gift. And nowadays, it may be to "hear" the words versus read them. But to listen will not replace looking at them to understand the spelling and pronunciation of a given word. Try for an example: So, Sow and Sow?
And what finally ticked me off was trotting a few of the little darlings out as tools/ props to tell what a great program and how much they liked it. That to me was a cheap trick probably set up by the local media in collusion with whomever trotted them out?
The true issue(s) were the inefficiencies of wasting what I suspect were thousands of dollars for a much smaller return than what could have been achieved by both programs if anyone was using their heads on maximizing the Children over the hype?
And to show how fast things are moving in this Country, I also watched a News Program (yes, real honest to God NEWS, not local). It had a remarkable story on Robotics which I have posted about a couple of times in the past weeks. This story was remarkable for two reasons:
1. On the 19th, it was said that Congress authorized putting up to 100,000 driverless vehicles on the road a year. NOTE: did not say private vehicles; this was specifically for Cabs and Truck Drivers. This is going to reduce very quickly unless it goes South the huge demand for Over The Road (OTR), drivers we have today. These OTR jobs can be very, very high paying jobs depending on what is being hauled and where?
2. And this is what really astounded me, the use as I post this and for sure since June, the use of a Robotic Brick Laying Machine. The program was visiting a site in Winchester Va., where ever that is. The Robot can lay about 3000 Bricks a day and on the day of the program actually did 3206 I believe. The Robot does NOT make mistakes.
Where does this affect Brick Masons? They can do if well experienced about 900- 1000. At this time, the Machine requires a person to load Concrete and another to load Bricks to lay. Okay you say, still takes away only one (1) job? True, but the real question is the difference in pay and benefits the two helpers make versus the laid off Masons? This is where NOW the efficiencies begin to come into play. Companies using the Robots and the one in play here was already working on other Robots to do other Construction type jobs will save over a certain amount of time as Robots are amortized, a lot of dollars.
I wrote before that this was coming and while it is still said by 2050 that 51% or those jobs will be done by Robots, it is also suspected as soon as 2030 (and I also noted this), it would be well underway. The article also noted that younger people do not want this type of work- Masonry. Thirty- fifty years ago these were in high demand but were/ are dangerous and hard work. No desire to work hard by many no matter the wages. Plus, I suspect the infamous Urine test?
It was posted correctly before the Blue Collar Professions could not be outsourced. In that, I was correct. The now what I call "insourcing" is what is sneaking up on us. 'nuff said'.