In last week's "Music Friday" offering, I mused about those individuals with miles of potential that chose a path that didn't include college and the race of rats. That there are days I often wonder if that path would have brought me more happiness than the one I chose.
Don't get me wrong. I simply love the life I lead. I only wonder, is there another path?
I'm about halfway through "That Used to Be Us" by Thomas Friedman and Michael Mandelbaum. It's a fascinating analysis of how America has lost its way. How we've drifted into mediocrity. How we are no longer the best and the brightest.
The authors make the point that the world in which we now live has made those with only a high school diploma expendable. The jobs that most of those people perform are increasingly becoming automated or outsourced. And that, at the least, a technical college degree will be required for survival in the workplace.
A wake-up call to High Schools, to be sure (but they're so not listening). Public education is simply not providing our kids with the tools they need to succeed in the global marketplace.
Is there a place in the future for a "Simple Man?" One can only hope...
Having just tried to hire a plumber who quoted $52 to take a look and $25 for every 15 minutes on the job -- I'm not so sure that we automated, outsourced or under-valued. These guys are doing just fine. By the way, we did the work ourselves -- for $11.
Posted by: David Zunker | March 04, 2013 at 08:20
Yeah...there will be those that will always be needed (and thus, charge incredible sums). But, unless you're doing something with your hands, I think post-high school is gonna be a necessity.
Posted by: Bill Geist | March 05, 2013 at 17:02