Hope for The Wyoming Valley

[sheena12]

Lehigh Valley, I do agree that athletics and athletes are given preferential treatment here. However, I think that is true of a lot of areas. The South comes to mind. It's an" American" thing.

Lilyflower, I had many of the same experiences as you did on Long Island when I chose to go away to college and certain friends and acquaintances did not. I was treated with hostility and suspicion by people who decided to go to CW Post College, the local commuter school. I had the very same situation working a retail job in the summer. They managers tried to make the college girls cash register drawers "come up short", and then make fun of us for "not being as smart " as them.

People ANYWHERE are hostile about change. If another person is going to do something that will separate themselves from the others, and ostensibly better themselves, people will often be derided, treated with suspicion or ridicule.

They are threatened by actions that may improve your life, and leave them in the dust.

I see this in people every where, not only in NEPA.

People with deep seated insecurities will always be made uncomfortable by change.
They experience it as an indictment of "their way of life."

It's an aspect of human nature that I find disturbing but true.

[Lehigh Valley Native]

Originally Posted by sheena12

Lehigh Valley, I do agree that athletics and athletes are given preferential treatment here. However, I think that is true of a lot of areas. The South comes to mind. It's an" American" thing.

Certain areas of our state put more emphasis on athletics than academics. Some areas of the state place academics over sports, some other areas have enough money to put an emphasis on both. NEPA just happens to be an area that emphasizes sports.

I think my only point in the matter, is if a district is performing poorly academically as WVW has in the past, it should not be pouring money into athletics. But, it does, because thats what the residents want.

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by lilyflower7

The days of graduating and going to a high paying manufacturing job at Specialty Records is LONG over.

People in the Wyoming Valley largely can't seem to accept that as reality for whatever reason. I'm a STRONG proponent of vo-tech, trade schools and community colleges. I have a Bachelor's Degree myself and plan to pursue graduate school in Pittsburgh, but I realize higher formal education isn't for everyone. Nevertheless the amount of people in NEPA who thought they "deserved" a high-paying job just because they had a high school diploma and a strong work ethic concerned me. You can make a great living in the military, as an electrical journeyman, as some sort of nursing staff below an RN, as a mason, and a slew of other opportunities that don't require a four-year degree, but these positions still required advanced training beyond high school. Too many in "da valley" wanted to just cruise through high school and then get a high-paying job that no longer exists.

Originally Posted by Lehigh Valley Native

I agree that dumbing down isn't confined to NEPA. I do however think that academics in far too many places in NEPA takes a back seat to athletics.

I always like pointing out the millions of dollars recently spent to update the football field at WVW, while some of the schools in the district, including the high school are in pretty bad shape and use old textbooks.

^ This.

[lilyflower7]

Originally Posted by SteelCityRising

People in the Wyoming Valley largely can't seem to accept that as reality for whatever reason. I'm a STRONG proponent of vo-tech, trade schools and community colleges. I have a Bachelor's Degree myself and plan to pursue graduate school in Pittsburgh, but I realize higher formal education isn't for everyone. Nevertheless the amount of people in NEPA who thought they "deserved" a high-paying job just because they had a high school diploma and a strong work ethic concerned me. You can make a great living in the military, as an electrical journeyman, as some sort of nursing staff below an RN, as a mason, and a slew of other opportunities that don't require a four-year degree, but these positions still required advanced training beyond high school. Too many in "da valley" wanted to just cruise through high school and then get a high-paying job that no longer exists.

Probably because most of them thought they were friendly enough or related enough to someone who would just hand them a job. A few generations ago, that's how it worked when manufacturing ruled the area. You'd scrape by in high school and your uncle/friend/neighbor/dad whoever would get you in at one of the large plants where you'd be making $20+ an hour within 2 years. What they fail to realize is that strategy no longer works if there's no manufacturing in the area. Being able to be trained no longer matters because no one wants to spend the time/money training anyone - not in a market where there's so many people who already have the training/experience available who can start tomorrow.

[nepadaisy]

But if everyone has college degrees so that they can work at better-paying jobs than the call centers and warehouses, who is going to do those jobs? And are we really going to have enough of the college degree necessitating jobs around for everyone who can graduate?

I think it really should be reset so that if you expect to make gobs of money and have a very cushy lifestyle, then yes, you will probably need a college degree. But any person working a full time job ought to be able to earn a living wage and provide for their family. I don't care if you're scrubbing toilets, you should have enough money to provide a modest home, food, clothing, and comforts of life for your spouse and children, without needing government assistance to fill in the gaps.

[Magritte25]

Originally Posted by Lehigh Valley Native

I agree that dumbing down isn't confined to NEPA. I do however think that academics in far too many places in NEPA takes a back seat to athletics.

I always like pointing out the millions of dollars recently spent to update the football field at WVW, while some of the schools in the district, including the high school are in pretty bad shape and use old textbooks.

Yes, I agree!

[Magritte25]

Originally Posted by nepadaisy

But if everyone has college degrees so that they can work at better-paying jobs than the call centers and warehouses, who is going to do those jobs? And are we really going to have enough of the college degree necessitating jobs around for everyone who can graduate?

I think it really should be reset so that if you expect to make gobs of money and have a very cushy lifestyle, then yes, you will probably need a college degree. But any person working a full time job ought to be able to earn a living wage and provide for their family. I don't care if you're scrubbing toilets, you should have enough money to provide a modest home, food, clothing, and comforts of life for your spouse and children, without needing government assistance to fill in the gaps.

I agree with this as well.

[PITTSTON2SARASOTA]

Originally Posted by Magritte25

If you guys think the dumbing down of America is unique to NEPA I have a bridge to sell you in Brooklyn.

ROFLMFAO...........This video is truly frightening>>>>>


YouTube - Americans are NOT stupid - WITH SUBTITLES

[Craziaskowboi]

As long as the "old textbooks" are in good condition and contain accurate information, then what's the problem? One thing I learned in college is that the publishing industry operates a racket. What they do is, they'll take the Seventh Edition of a textbook, reverse the contents of Chapter 6 and Chapter 7, call it the Eighth Edition, and force students to buy the brand-new books for $200, claiming that the seventh edition is now "obsolete" even though the information hasn't changed. Then, when the students want to sell their books back at the end of the semester, they'll get $20 in exchange because the books will be replaced by the Ninth Edition the following year. The business model of textbook publishers relies on planned obsolescence, which is a very cheap and dishonest way to stay in business. The only textbooks that anybody can make a case for updating in less than five years are social studies books.