Of the many things people engage to discuss,
what are the real concerns of the citizens?
Please take a moment and think about what are your real concerns...don't ignore the question.
I do find it amazing that in this era of
Upcoming Political Change , that no one has created or posted anything even remotely of concern regarding these life impacting major changes.
I do wonder how we can be so passive and so UN-concerned and then expect to make a viable choice in the coming elections.
2014 Mayoral Races
(Some are quick to discount their voice and claim it does not matter. I say to those, if you feel that you don't matter and that you have no God given voice and an ability to utilize your voice, then you are not upholding your part in the American Experience of the Democratic Voting system.) REMEMBER, the power of the people is as strong as the people embrace their power. We can Re-call anyone from any position !!! we can chose to vote responsibly and we can and we must use our voice to make a difference. We have very smart people in our community, we may need to acknowledge that and become again a society that has interest in what becomes of us.
What we can't allow is any more people in public positions, that once they get there, they have no interest in what the people have to say. We can't have any more Leadership, who does not have a yearly address to the people and frequent open flow discussions with the people. We don't need any "cover my butt" speeches,but open talking and free flowing address of inquiry and proposals.
If any of these Candidates have not worked to embrace the young people, then it is a fact, they are going to do nothing for the young people.
THE POWER OF YOUNG PEOPLE AND THEIR ABILITY TO COMMUNICATE = GREAT VALUE IN THEIR POWER
Young people must understand their power, they may not have money, but their social connections have a value higher than money, because they can build coalitions and they can team work. They know how to use social media to community and it cost nothing for them to do so.
We are not electing anyone based on how many posters they have plastered around the city.. They had better get up, speak up and have something substantial to say. It has no importance what previous position they held, because being a Mayor has nothing to do with that. So, don't fall for the old script. ASK Questions, and those who dodge the questions is automatically disqualified. Those who throw smoke screen responses are only showing you that they will blow smoke up your butt once they get the position. Either they are a straight talker and stand for something, or they need not get elected to office. PERIOD.
If we remain unconcerned, then we may find we have no basis to say anything about what we result to get and what may come to be the impacts based on the next 4 years.
How many people have gone to look at the Budget Information, and understand the vast expanse of unfunded items, the vast number of backlogged items that have been stagnated for more than a decade with no progress to complete projects that have previously been voted on. This causes deterioration to expand, and all we get is excuses...
Is this what we will accept?
Will we have any concerns for the fact we still don't have a "Economic Development Department",
do we even consider the losses this has cost us to not have a Economic Development Division? We have Mega Plant, the Old GM facility, which is stagnant. But with a Economic Development Department, it would have a mandated task to get this facility leased and functioning.
Are we paying attention to people bouncing from the Caddo Commission < | > City council, every time they are term limited in one,
they want to jump to the other. Now how are we unaware of the lack of function, but still we give these individuals the options to make the jumps and
all we do is get more of the same.
BEING RESPONSIBLE WHEN SELECTING CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS -
no more name recognition games.
Do we understand what it take to have a truly functional City Council? We have some term limited. Now are we aware that we need people who understand the responsibility of having a council who understand the nature of INVESTMENT, and how to get a council that understand the concept of money, to the point that we should have people who have a sense of growth as well as how to understand the need to take on the right debt to build for tomorrow.
We need a system that can push back some of these Ministers who have personal agenda's and get a basis that focuses on the people, the young people and ideas for the city which aspire to building for tomorrow.
We sit here, while Bossier City continues to look to their future, and we get bogged down in bickering. Now that some of the bicker masters are being termed out, as well as others are meeting competition. Then we need to look to get a council that not only respects the workers, and pay them a living and progressive wage, to the point to understand what services that can no longer be free when so must continues to deteriorate.
Maybe in some areas, it may require some Director Changes, to get people who don't play within the spin game, but actually build budgets that address the progressive needs that will over time save us money, rather than the continual oversight which results to under-budgeting.
We may need to look to re-develop our system and pursue "Pro Active Leadership", who has interest in not just playing the Status-Quo games, but have the sensibilities to dare to push forward.
NO MORE: Secular short Sighted Growth that forces Stagnation and Regression on Other Areas.
We watched 8 years of Hightower Administration, move everything to one section of the city and neglected so many areas of the city; which resulted to further the devastation of not only the other areas but left downtown in a non growth framework.
We built a Convention Center, but ignored the fact to build up the business sector, so Conventioneers had no interest to come here, because we have nothing for them in the area to do, except Casino's, so they simply don't get the functional usage from the facility. There is not a park anywhere close to the Convention Center.
We have Commerce, sitting there under-developed and the RRD sitting there, instead of having a Economic Development which can develop a program to make it functionally incentive for people to populate and develop this area.
We have no program that helps business learn how to improve their branding, or improve the appearance of their business in many of the minority dominated areas. We simply let grass grow along the curb, paint schemes that take down the area and we have a severe problem of having no concern to have standard for parking lot maintenance.
ECONOMIC MODELING
We should be learning for Foreign Nations, how to build economic zones within our cities, we should be learning from Foreign Nations, how to inspire and promote Industrial Growth. Yet, we sit on our asses and let China suck up everything, and then we listen to ill informed economist tell us we can't do anything.
We allow our Leadership to be silent and not be a voice for change and a cheerleader to inspire people to growth modeling.
REAL SKILL DEVELOPMENT LEARNING AND EDUCATIONS that fits our general population standards or realism.
We dupe our kids to think University is the only answer, and in doing so, we let the greed of University discredit our Vocational and Technical Training Programs. Our youth can understand taking on 10-15k debt for vocational and Technical expertise, but they can't digest a University gouging them for 20K+ a year and when they graduate they can't find a job that pays over $10-$12 and hr.
Our area is full with youth who will gladly enroll and complete the vocational and technical programs, which are quality designed for 12-18-24 months. which gives them knowledge and skill without wasting their time with a list of money sucking classes unrelated to their aspirations and skill aims.
We need to gladly accept, recognize and fully acknowledge the value of vocational and technical skill set. These people always continue their learning; because they know that vocational and technical skill continue to advance and change.
but we have too many situations now, for the sole sake of University Greed, that claims only a Master degree is the aim. All that represent is a money grab, because many come out with the degrees, and have inability to function and often times, they don't pursue work anywhere close to the claim of their degree. they simply use it as a get a job certificate.
NO MORE DELUSIONS
I'm all for University for those who choose a field, and do not depart from sticking with that, but we know that is frequently not the case. They end up looking for a pay check, not pursuing to develop something in the field they claim. Therefore, we can no longer just assume that a degree make them eligible for any position. It only makes them knowledgeable o the particular field they claimed, Then we must realize, the number of units for a Degree, only includes less than a year of credit units focused. they are generally only required to have 12-18 units in that field.
In that case, they can get more focused knowledge and hands on skill training in a vocational or technical field program, because they deal specifically with the chosen field.
Medical and Tech, those who go to university for this, STICK WITH IT, and they demand to have labs, workshop, internship programs, and they demand to have up to date information which is why they go additional years SPECIFICALLY focused on their field, without all the money grabbing crap classes, they insure their course structure if specific.
WHAT HAS THE PAST RECENT HISTORY PROVEN TO US?
General Bachelor Degree programs are filled with too much non specifics, to claim one is skilled in a particular field... unless maybe accounting or such. And for some its just a matter of fulfilling a set amount of credit units and the degree is given. Leaving the individual UN-qualified to truly perform, yet, they are often given position higher than their ability can support. How does this impact, It impacts by agitating the long term workers in the field, who have gained much real world experiences and they become looked over for the sake of a title. When the degree should never send on to the top positions. They must work their way up, and that program should be no less than three to 5 years before they can lead and direct others or a division or department.
MAKING 'FUNCTION AND BENEFICIALLY USABLE" CHOICES
We need to become less's duped by the way University has dominated HR's mindset, and regain a respect for the individual time learned skills and business awareness of division, department and operations. If the degree riders does not want to work their way up, then they need to go some other place and apply for work, where people allow them to ride the degree to position they are ill equipped for.
We know that is true by the systemic Industrial Failure in America since we followed that backward programming.
No person with 4 yrs in a classroom will ever know as much as people who have 5-7-10 or more years of actual experience in a field, the one with experiences also understand how the business, division or department not only has its duties, but it has civic responsibility, but it has responsibility to respect the workers who do the hands one work. Often times, university degree riders detest the skilled people earning more than they do. They think the degree is suppose to give them instant higher income above people who have put in time in grade and years of experiences and work performance.
ACCEPT THE TRUTH: Everyone is not University Material, but they may be exceptionally good at Vocational and Technical Training Programs.
If the South is to rise, then it has to adopt a new paradigm, and get off the status title delusions, and learn to re-consider and re-respect what it takes to perform and function in various positions.
Making Changes where Change is Needed
We also have people who have become left in position too long, they either take a "I'm the dictator" mentality and loose sight to respect the workers in the operations. We have some who have been and continue to be inept at making progressive decisions. But what we can't afford is pushing degree riders in these slots and think that will fix anything. Use the experience people, and let the degree riders work their way up and gain actual real world working experiences, where they learn about civic responsibility, and how to respect a workforce, because they can't come from a University campus and suddenly know this. We've seen so many area stagnated, crashed or disrupted by this process and it is extremely cost in every regard.
Some come out and the only thing they learned was how to "play up to titles and name dropping games".. We create ineptitude and thus stagnation which expands.
As one said, we also need to deal with the "blue hair" crowd who resit change and growth and gridlock progress. Trying to re-capture yesterday and have no idea that tomorrow is pushing us to make change.
Upgrading how we utilize our resources and venues
Simple example: The Strand Theater, its insidious this venue is still trying to promote 1960's and 1970's worn out plays, when the crowd that use to go to this has aged and do not venture out anymore, yet we sit there watching them pursue donations to stay afloat, rather than adopt new programming and create timely and current programming which improve the venue's performance.
(get rid of the directors who are stuck in decades gone past)
We have 1000's of examples of this nature of stagnation.
We have building downtown which no one has a vague concept of how to market them for re-development, so they sit and deteriorate. We have some people use them for storage facilities, when we should be promoting and pushing them to make these facilities functional viable to the community.
Mississippi is better at this than we are, they push Economic Eminent Domain, which carries a penalty is they impede progress by skirting growth, and bleeding us to death with tax write off for doing nothing..
What are the real concerns of Shreveport Citizens for Growth and Progress
You might no like my ideas, but use them as provocation for thought, if you disagree, if you agree, expound on them with ideas of what and how we can do something progressive? But don't remain silent, and don't get envious and resentful about the discussion... but move past that and think of how can we grow and make the changes that are necessary for our city and its citizens. 
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