Letter to the Editor
Rural jobs
Published Sunday, January 4, 2009
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To the editor:
The stimulus bill that is going to be built and proposed by President-elect Barack Obama is likely to be huge and beneficial to Alaska. This stimulus is to create jobs during an increase in unemployment, and I am among them.
Yet already, urban legislators are making plans for the potential dollars headed for Alaska. I say that none of it should benefit areas where there is not a high unemployment rate. The governor should instead instruct the urban legislators to leave it alone, so that rural areas have a shot at badly needed jobs.
There is no mortgage or banking crisis in Alaska. There is no serious economic downturn, maybe in investments. But overall, I see no serious need for the politicians to be vying for funds where it is not needed.
To those politicians: Direct it where jobs are more needed, not just where you want it, or where previous priorities were. I’m sure that even a lot of urban residents agree.
Community Discussion
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Other than service jobs to the villages, what "urban" jobs are there?
Editor: Looks like the letter writer and the topic headline switched places. Makes it look like the letter is about "Eric Huntington, Galena," and written by "Rural jobs."
Whoops?
Of course I meant to do that, TAC. It's just an accident that it's been fixed now.
sorry to tell you this eric, but i think you got the wrong impression from during the campaign. i assure you that while obama might care a little bit about you out there in the village (maybe not.... being voters in a hopelessly red state) congress doesn't care one whit. in fact, i'm willing to bet that most in congress don't think you should be allowed to live out there in the villages and should be moved to the urban areas. you are under served out there in the villages. if you lived in a city they can provide their health care, education and social programs to you. and besides, you hurt the environment and you own guns out there.
This stimulus is for building infrastructure to facilitate delivering natural resources & to create jobs during an increase in unemployment.
There is mortgage & banking crisis in Alaska. Alaska has serious economic downturn, serious downturn in state's & private investments.
To those politicians: Direct it to building infrastructure to facilitate delivering natural resources & to create jobs during an increase in unemployment, not just where you want it, or where previous priorities were. I’m sure that even a lot of Alaskan residents agree.
The governor should instruct the legislators to leave it for building infrastructure to facilitate delivering natural resources & to increase employment in Alaska & make utilities & fuel affordable.
The governor, the legislators should listen to the needs of all the state by building infrastructure to facilitate delivering natural resources & to increase employment in Alaska & make utilities & fuel affordable.
Even Obama says it is for building infrastructure to facilitate delivering natural resources & to increase employment & make utilities & fuel affordable.
I'm not prone to believing Obama. But for the nation's sake I hope he builds up the nation's infrastructure to facilitate delivering natural resources & to increase employment & make utilities & fuel affordable. As well as decreasing our dependence on foreign resources.
I'm not prone to believing Obama. So I'll see what Obama, Governor Palin, & the national legislators & the state legislators will do to rebuild the state & nation.
When will our state's people realize the ones who disagrees with this package, are the ones who will have less benefit to our way of the life here in Alaska or the US? PEACE! Give Peace a chance for Obama who is already in a crisis for America! May God bless him for Recovery!
You are talking about politicians and you left a question open that will cost you time and money:
What is 'high unemplyment'?
By the time that is answered you will have lost half of next years construction season.
Seriously though, if you look at national levels of unemployment you will be including any community over 4.5-5% unemployment; that is the majority of the state so now everyone gets some dough.
When are people going to stop looking at the Federal Government as the savior for their lives. People who acted responsibily and didn't build up thousands of dollars of debt are going to pay the taxes to bail out those who did. Alaskans have an average of $14,000 in credit car debt alone. Mortgages, why should we bail out people who thought they deserved to live like millionaires on a hamburger budget. Companies that ran hugh salaries for their CEOs and upper management now expect the little guy to bail them out. By the way the auto union workers still have a $33 million dollar golf restore to go to to cry the blues and people are still getting full salary for not working. So yes, trust the people who brought this insanity to the nation to fix the problems. When all is said and done, can someone tell me who will pay the trillions that Obama will be putting this country into debt. The piper will come due one day and how will you like 50 % of your income going to government in taxes to pay off this ridculous spending spree. Your great grandchildren are going to thank you for making their lives miserable.
A very good question, FreeDarfur. I don't think the people will ever stop looking away from Uncle Sugar's handouts until it's apparent Uncle Sugar has nothing left to give; except a currency crisis brought on by monetization of the government's debt.
What's tragic is that Alaskans have all the potential for prosperity right under their feet. Too bad though, it's too politically adverse to dig it up.
what i want to know is how is the rural interstructure going to support itself.people here in the bourough pay taxes and if they live in the city they pay city taxes. also we pay for our own heating oil and electricity i hope the smaller villages in the interior can pay their own way because it is apparent that their will be less help from the federal and state goverment than their has in the past.
Take care of yourself and stop asking the government to do it for you. Do you wipe yourself or does a official come do it for you. Grow your own food, hunt your own meat. And take care of yourself. You can have the stimulus crap. I will take care of me and mine.
Regarding a FED stimulus package for Alaska: While on the one hand I do agree with the writer that some attention should be given the bush villages, for the stated reason. I am also concerned in how any kind windfall might be spent. There is no quick fix. In my view, unless expenditures are directed toward well planned efforts that would affect employment opportunity for the long term we can count it as wasted.
We should not over look some additional investment in current activities that do provide work. This would secure those positions. New job creation would be more complicated however not impossible. Somehow we need to find ways to become producers instead of being just users and I believe that with all that we have available to us in the bush job growth can become a reality.
One reality in the village I do see continually is that those villagers who really want to work do find jobs and do hold on to them; and those who choose to slough off do continue wallowing in their look for a hand out and their complaining of lack of opportunity. This is evidenced by what I see. A majority of available jobs positions are held by non-village people primarily because (putting it to the point) we are not ambitious much less motivated and “we really don’t want to work” as much as those who come taking the jobs “want to work”.
I take this opportunity with the hopes to encourage some of you readers who are without work. First, can we agree that one thing that we all have in common is “the desire for something better in our lives”? I say on, the condition/state we find ourselves is determined by the attitude of our hearts (the core of each man’s being). Each of us have some idea what we want for ourselves and I know that if one can focus all their energy in “doing” things to attain it there will be successes. One has to make some “moves” in order for positive changes to happen and one move a person can make is getting equipped of become prepared (education). I know our young people in the village. They are intelligent and very capable to accomplish most anything they set their hearts on. So, set your heart , your mind, your strength (and educate yourself) on accomplishing your desires and most assuredly you will be happy with the successes you make (and you will be happier).
There is a fundemental problem with rural Alaska. It takes a fair amount of cash to live a "subsistance" life. Most of us dabble at it because of cultural roots but we don't want to do it for real. For real would mean travelling by snowshoes and canoes and our own feet, gathering our meat with set nets and fish traps, snares and arrows, living in houses that we built and being constantly on the move.
If you want to live in the bush then God bless you...do it. Just dont expect the rest of the world to subsudize it. at the point where the govenment starts paying you then you become just an Alaska Disney exhibit.
Sorry, Obama is going to direct the money to lower 48 urban centers that helped get him elected. We aren't going to see much if any of it. Infrastructure money is going to be spent where there are roads and other infrastructure. That's the reality of these kinds of spending programs. For once, the residents of urban Alaska will learn what it's like to be considered "rural". Anchorage and Fairbanks are such small communities on the scale of this community, they will be forgotten after Chicago and San Francisco scoop up their share. We will have to enjoy the few salty drops that trickle down to us.
hahahahahahahahaha... all you crazy people think i was looking for a handout, or that i'm unhappy. in fact, i am happy. i own my own home. i fish during the summer.
and who are you to say that subsistence is subsidized? if it is going to be subsidized, it should be subsidized by our native corporations, which i have already advocated to do with my own corporation, Doyon.
my letter to the editor was to the politicians opportunism and their innate habit of grabbing the government 'handout' that eventually gets them re-elected. it's exactly what Ted Stevens did for Alaska for a few decades. you urbanites don't really think that your jobs are the result of your 'creativity' and 'ingenuity' to build distinct and separate economies did you? no, in fact, it was the federal government's programs, their military, as well as their subsidizing a 500% kickback on fuel taxes to fund the maintenance of your roads and whatnot. quit grumbling about the bush villages requesting federal and state dollars, when you ask your politicians to do the same thing, yet at much higher requested dollars. please
we need road connections to the cities to bring down the cost of living. we need less expensive utilities. we have the right to be treated as equals, and not simply second-class citizens who don't deserve anything except a kick in the pants for living where we live. so if you don't like villages, screw you
Alaskaman100 -- "There is a fundamental problem with rural Alaska. It takes a fair amount of cash to live a "subsistence" life. Most of us dabble at it because of cultural roots but we don't want to do it for real. For real would mean travelling by snowshoes and canoes and our own feet, gathering our meat with set nets and fish traps, snares and arrows, living in houses that we built and being constantly on the move." God's truth, sounds like you've been there. To say nothing of going back to high infant mortality, short life span, and a brutal existence. If you're living anything like subsistence in the bush you don't have time for any frills like television time or reading or helping your kids with homework, much less working a job on the side. In today's world just maintaining the minimum standards expected by the Department of Children's Services and the schools precludes anything like a "subsistence" lifestyle.
gigabytesak- Well said.
You want money and jobs? Build a road to Galena! Move to where the jobs are! Otherwise quit crying. Until Alaska builds infrastructure (roads, rail, and power lines) you are not going to see any of the stimulus money.
Do you see how the NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) folks are whining about a rail line to Delta Junction/Ft Greeley? You are lucky to even have phone service in Galena.
It has to be a debate, Lsmith, because villages are a financial dead end for everyone involved except for the village. They offer nothing in return for dollars spent compared to larger cities like Fairbanks and Anchorage that have large tax payer percentages. Do people in villages even pay tax other than federal if they have a job? Most Americans are firm believers in getting what you pay for and are not just looking for a handout.
Really, think about it, why in the hell would you want to live in a village and expect to have a good paying government job that doesn't exist? Koolaid anyone?
this is Eric Huntington. i am damn well free to live where i want to live. if i want to live in a village, that's my decision, not yours and most certainly not the governments.
i didn't say to build a road to Galena explicitly. i'm not crying about anything, merely advocating spending on rural infrastructure. and yes, we pay local taxes that contribute to education. did you guys even read my last comment? the federal government still makes up 1/3 of the states economy. sure, we've gotten a lot already, but it is in the State of Alaska's constitution, that we have a right to the same education and infrastructure as the urban areas. look it up. the rural areas of this state not on the road system has been ignored for decades when it comes to economics. you people want the jobs in the cities and you get it, because politically you're stronger in numbers.
beyond all this, the urban areas eventually and always benefit from spending on rural areas because we import everything from your stores, your services, etc. that's why i say to give everything to the Denali Commission and nothing to the cities, cuz they'll eventually get it.
You know, there are hundreds, if not a thousand-plus, communities that now lay empty, "ghost towns", if you will, in the Western United States that once were thriving communities with hundreds-thousands of inhabitants. Why are they gone? Primarily because the economic REASON for their being is no longer there or viable. Look at Virgina City, for example.... it once had a population of 30,000 or more, now..nothing. Maybe we (both the urban & the bush) should start thinking of whether or not some of these Alaskan communities are really viable... after-all, there's no industry, no employment opportunities... WHY are they there? And, yes, if you maintain the minimum standards required by the Child Services, there is no time for a "Subsistence" Lifestyle. Its something we're going to have to face, sooner or later.
Why in the hell would anyone want to live in a village, well ask some of the people that live there, you do not know these people and their reasoning. Please do not be so ignorant. So you guys are telling the rural residents their villages and everything they stand for is worthless? Not everything in life is measured in monetary standards. What would happen if every resident of rural Alaska moved to an urban area?
Akgg, You didn't read the entire sentence. I don't care why anyone would live in a village, it is their own choice. My statement asks how could a person expect there to be jobs there that serve no purpose and do not benefit the state or country as a whole. The government has for years tried to eliminate useless jobs that offer no benefits for money spent, why create more waste? I never said that villages and everything they stand for are worthless, you did. People should have the right to live where they like as long as they are ultimitely responsible for their own. To answer your question about rural Alaskans moving to an urban area: I think the post office would be able to close a bleeding wound (read subisidized) that has been oozing for years in Alaska.
-55 at my garden fence this morn. I walked down on the ice of the big Yukon River this morning scoping out my "JOB" for the day; make a water hole through the ice for the nice clear water under it. In the summer the water is the color of mud but his time of year it crystal and it makes for the best tasting coffee. Oh, how wonderful it is to live in a village by the river. I pity those in the city who miss out on its offerings and who live lives secluded in their abode away from such treasures. I think after I fill my buckets up and finish my tasty brew I’ll consider the challenge of going to the wood yard; not that I need the extra “work” but, just because I like it out there even in the cold. This old fart needs the exercise anyway. And likely, when the day light begins its fall into the dark blue horizon I may look again the comedy I read in these posts.
Just because a city may have more to offer doesnt mean its superior
Just one suggestion...
Vocational/Technical Training!!
Education...Training people for the jobs available in Alaska is paramount for keeping jobs in Alaska, employing Alaskans, and keeping the monies provided by these jobs IN ALASKA! We need to build training (vo-tech) facilities in/around rural areas of the state (on/near the road system). This creates jobs in its self while increasing the number of trained/skilled workers available to fill jobs...
Think about it!
L smith, I like your post. My points exactly. Contentment with blessings no matter how great or small; or even our location is next to bliss. It's more wonderful, after working for a living throughout my more youthful years, and to almost rest knowing that I don't need to bust my butt anymore. Just continue being active in my daily living, make the most of each day, be a grandpa to 15 and love their grandma.
Fishdancer: Real excellent ideas. Keep at it.
30+ at my rain splattered window. After a long day at my wonderful government "JOB" it is nice to be sitting at my computer, with my tall glass of sweet tea. Soon my favorite show will come on. When that is over I will turn out the lights in hopes that the sound of the rain hitting my roof will put me to sleep. hmmmm...can't wait for summer to get here. I miss the sweet smell of my lavender bush. The constant noise that the locust makes. The wonderful green grass me and my equally wonderful fiance worked so hard to look so beautiful Thoughts of jumping on I-81 driving toward Tennessee or DC pop into my pretty lil head. Something I would not be able to do if I lived in the village, or Fairbanks for that matter. I do not pity those who live in Alaska where the road eventually ends. But, it is always nice to visit.....in the summer.
"we need road connections to the cities to bring down the cost of living. we need less expensive utilities."
And apparently we need more "shift" keys. Perhaps Obama can provide them.
Wish to live in Galena? Fine, just do not expect me to pay for your lifestyle.
I would rather live in a village where its not gang related. Where it 's quite and you don't hear sirens or guns in the middle of the night. The only problem that i have is that it's so damn expensive!
people don't seem to like galena. and who pays for the lifestyles of the rural or the urban. likely, it comes from the federal government or oil money. the oil doesn't sit under urban land, and the federal government is actually thousands and thousands of miles away. so alaska is really getting it easy compared to most states. quit saying that you're paying for rural infrastructure and education, learn about where all the money comes from for all that is built in this state, also learn about our state constitution and how that is exactly what forced the State of AK to build schools in all the villages and provide financing for an improvement in sanitary conditions the same way the state did for urban areas. in fact, oil money from rural land paid for much of what built fairbanks and anchorage. so we're really paying for your stuff, unsustainable spending as it may be.
Socal_lady3, your right, it's not gang related in a village................it's family relations! Don't even start the balony about villages being more safe.
Mr. Huntington, I suppose all of the technology to get your oil out of the ground comes from villages?
Not only is this a great letter gigabytesak, but you've also done a good job of uncovering the common misconceptions and ignorance of people towards village lifestyle. They don't have to worry about buying their whole winters fuel during the highest period of gas prices. They don't realize how infrastructure to villages can drive your costs down, which will lead to more of your money going to the suppliers from say...Fairbanks. But that can't happen, because that spends money on people we really don't understand and can't relate to, and in all honesty can't form an educated opinion on.
First, there is no oil money from rural land. We, that is you and I, get our oil from land all around Alaska and the oil money comes from urban areas which refine the oil and sell it to consumers located in mostly urban areas in all countries. As citizens of Alaska we, that is you and I, will benefit from the oil money secondhand or firsthand from our annual permanent fund dividend. The PFD check is not based on where you live in Alaska.
Second, we do not and did not have to build public schools in the rural areas. Molly Hooch lost her court case. Our legislators did build public schools in rural areas because we were rich in oil money. We also built schools in urban areas with that same money. The difference being the urban areas pay up to 30% of the building costs and had to operate and maintain their schools with their own funds. Rural area schools, many of which are closed down now, were never operated or maintained by the "users" in the rural areas and the residents of the village where these schools were located paid no money from their pockets to build their school. Now if Galena does pay annual taxes for their school system Galena would be an exception to my last statement. One of the few exceptions.
Rural area villages are not investment areas in general. There is little if any private land to purchase and build a house or business on. Most rural villages do not have a chartered city but they do have tribal councils where only tribal members can hold a position. In general there are no property taxes, no local law enforcement and no job opportunities except for state or federal subsidized jobs.
The airstrips in rural areas belong to the state which maintains many of them and has the staff and equipment at the village. So the state is already sustaining job opportunities in some rural areas. These airstrips allow commerce to take place...yes urban airstrips do the same thing but urban airstrips do obtain funds from users in addition to their state subsidies.
Our state has and continues to subsidize electrical bills in many rural areas. Our state builds and maintains electrical power plants and fuel tank farms to keep those plants running.
The rural areas are getting sustainable funding. If some rural areas are not able to make it without the outside funding it is time to come up with a way to develop their own economy or move to an area that can support them and the lifestyle they have become accustomed to.
Being fair has never been the standard for distributing Alaskan oil wealth. Being thrifty has never been a factor in distributing Alaskan oil wealth. Being a legislator determines who and how much.
If your legislator can't get you your funding then fire him or her and get yourself elected.
I like what you have to say and how you say it Eric. We are all Alaskans and the city folks are no more special than anyone else. If they cannot understand that simple concept then you have pointed out something that responsible leadership from the Governors office on down needs help them grasp.
There has been way too much of this for way too long. Any thing I write more just repeats what you have already stated so well. I hope to hear much much more from you in the future. You sound like a leader to me.
Never said I did not like Galena or the village lifestyle. I just do not want to pay for you to live there.
Build a road to Galena, put in a McDonalds and Wal-Mart I might then find a job opportunity! Of course there must be property that I can purchase to build a house on too.
Next thing you know it will look just like Fairbanks!
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