The Trail of the Suwaree has brought immigrants across the Blue Ridge since the earliest days of European’s presence on this content. The earliest white people to settle on the western side of the Continental Divide did so in the Valley of Love and Delight. Drovers, stage coaches, wagons, and trains all moved though the center of our humble vale. As the automobile became preeminent, it’s path was laid through the valley flood, first as a highway and later an interstate. That interstate stretch has been an object of special love over the last couple of years.
It was not over two years ago that a road which was in much need of resurfacing got resurfaced. Those fancy machines that tear up the road and make it into new road did the job. (How do they do that and why doesn’t it work to remake my back fat into biceps?) Nifty. Anyway, it was nice to have a new road, although it was a shame that right past where they stopped — like 300 feet away — was this huge pothole on a bridge. No worries, they will get to that. Maybe this past spring, when the stimulus money came all rolling out? Maybe that would be a good time.
That’s the time that they decided to repave the repaved road. Same deal, same machines. Ok, maybe not the same machines but machines that look a lot like them and do the same thing. (But are no more effective on my back fat.) Still, there is a hole in the road at the bridge. So perhaps they will fill the hole now that they are putting down a new layer of asphalt over the newly resurfaced roads. Presently the new asphalt ends where the two previous projects have ended: within sight of the hole.
Now I’m not saying that the stimulus was a bad idea. Nor am I saying that I don’t like a nice smooth-riding road. It does seem, however, that someone is taking advantage of the situation. In addition to which, there are probably people being taken advantage of (tax payers not included, we’ll get to them in a sec.) Forgive the assumption on which this is predicated, but I have my suspicions that the labor for these projects has not been hired in accordance to the laws which would give the workers adequate protection in terms of workplace safety and fair pay. That is to say, they are possibly undocumented.
I am happy to have the road which carried so many previous immigrants into the Land of the Suwaree carry another group here as well. I believe there should be a reform of our immigration laws which includes an amnesty for those who are already here. What bothers me in the current instance is that, by doing work which has already been done, twice, our stimulus money seems wasted while problems (ie: a hole in the pavement) persist. But only part of the point of the stimulus was to get the hole in the pavement fixed.
The other half was to get the hole in the economy fixed. The funds spent on the projects is, in theory, supposed to be turned around into the local economy. Paying contractors for work based on the market rate for labor and then having them subvert the market by hiring undocumented workers means less of the money is going into hands that are likely to spend it. The contractors keep more of the money and put it in the bank. Not helpful. In addition, if the remaining money is going into the hands of people who are — for good reason — afraid to interact with the broader community, this means less of the money is getting into the economy as a whole. If this is the case, then the stimulus fails on both counts.
Again, I don’t oppose the stimulus in concept. It’s just that the projects it’s being used for are wack. In addition, the lack of comprehensive immigration reform makes the way the labor is paid for the job wack. For the same reason, the way their wages get spent is wack. (Plus my assumption about other people because of a few superficial observations is wack.) I guess what I am saying here is that if the stimulus is not working, it’s because our system has become so wack that pouring in billions of dollars can’t help because it can’t get where it is supposed to go. That’s wack.