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The town of Iola in southeastern Kansas has experienced a declining population and high rates of poverty. (Ana Swanson/The Washington Post).

One of the great debates in American politics and economics in 2018 is likely to be how to help the country's forgotten towns, the former coal-mining and manufacturing hubs with quaint Main Streets that haven't changed much since the 1950s and '60s. Many of these places turned out heavily to vote for Donald Trump. He talks often about wanting to help them, but it's unclear how he can.

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Trump can't help anyone nor do I think he cares to. He is full of fluff. Today he was claiming that he was not only smart but was a genius. Actually a stable genius. Trump talks just like Rush. They are both full of fluff.

The factory towns of America went away with the jobs being shipped overseas. Saw something today that as wages rise in those overseas factories, it would make sense to bring those jobs back. That has nothing to do with Trump. However, if it begins while he is still president, I have no doubt he will claim that it is because of him.

FM
skeldon_man posted:

Django, you rass live in CT and you worry about redneck Kansas. We should worry about the villages and towns where the sugar workers were denied a living. Are these places going to be ghost towns?

Bhai,it shows ole USA always on the move,when one door shut others opens.

Guyana will never have ghost towns,politicians tried wasn't successful.Guyanese have resilience.

Django
ksazma posted:

Trump can't help anyone nor do I think he cares to. He is full of fluff. Today he was claiming that he was not only smart but was a genius. Actually a stable genius. Trump talks just like Rush. They are both full of fluff.

The factory towns of America went away with the jobs being shipped overseas. Saw something today that as wages rise in those overseas factories, it would make sense to bring those jobs back. That has nothing to do with Trump. However, if it begins while he is still president, I have no doubt he will claim that it is because of him.

Trump failed to realize that technology is replacing some human functions and people will never be able to get back some of the jobs that are gone.

FM
skeldon_man posted:
ksazma posted:

Trump can't help anyone nor do I think he cares to. He is full of fluff. Today he was claiming that he was not only smart but was a genius. Actually a stable genius. Trump talks just like Rush. They are both full of fluff.

The factory towns of America went away with the jobs being shipped overseas. Saw something today that as wages rise in those overseas factories, it would make sense to bring those jobs back. That has nothing to do with Trump. However, if it begins while he is still president, I have no doubt he will claim that it is because of him.

Trump failed to realize that technology is replacing some human functions and people will never be able to get back some of the jobs that are gone.

Take a close look and you will see technology is replacing mostly the low paying jobs; like cashiers at parking lots, cashiers and waiters/ waitresses at places like McDonalds, bank tellers, airport clerks,   etc....

Mitwah

The problem today is quite complex, where we have a lot of people looking for work with no skills, and a lot of employers looking for people with certain type of skills.  This is something that can easily be corrected by governments but it does not look like the governments are interested in fixing this problem.

That being said, the idea that its only the low paying jobs that are affected  is simply false.  There are many well paying jobs that will disappear over the next few years such as truck drivers and taxi drivers etc with  the coming of autonomous vehicles.

I live in a middle class neighborhood with a lot of taxi drivers  who used to own an airport license worth over $200,000. Today those license are worthless with the coming of Uber.

AJ

That is why I still worry about my kids' future. My daughter wants to be a Pharmacist and while it would seem like a good choice, who knows if when she does become a Pharmacist, a robot wouldn't have already replaced her. The boy is thinking about coding but who knows where coding will be a decade from now. There is no foolproof way to prepare for the future.

FM
ksazma posted:

That is why I still worry about my kids' future. My daughter wants to be a Pharmacist and while it would seem like a good choice, who knows if when she does become a Pharmacist, a robot wouldn't have already replaced her. The boy is thinking about coding but who knows where coding will be a decade from now. There is no foolproof way to prepare for the future.

Exactly, but I wouldn't worry about those choices since they will both be in demand for some time to come.  The idea for the future is that if you are a doctor or pharmacist etc, you will also have to be a businessman to work your ass off  and make it a success. 

AJ
ksazma posted:

That is why I still worry about my kids' future. My daughter wants to be a Pharmacist and while it would seem like a good choice, who knows if when she does become a Pharmacist, a robot wouldn't have already replaced her. The boy is thinking about coding but who knows where coding will be a decade from now. There is no foolproof way to prepare for the future.

It's happening now already, you major in one area and end up working in a different field, and constant 're-training'.  I majored in accounting and work in Project Management now and loving it.  Hubby has 2 degrees and doing another certification now.  My older one is doing a double major so she has something to fall back on - just in case. 

Pharmacists make decent money but they stand on their feet for long hours to fill those prescriptions, that was a deterrent for my daughter.  However if you do it for a few years in your younger days and have something to move on to next it is a good choice.

Coding is good, my little one is looking at that, but with all these Indians coming with H1B visas and willing to work for cheap, companies replace you so quickly and give your job to a HIB visa holder.

alena06
alena06 posted:
ksazma posted:

That is why I still worry about my kids' future. My daughter wants to be a Pharmacist and while it would seem like a good choice, who knows if when she does become a Pharmacist, a robot wouldn't have already replaced her. The boy is thinking about coding but who knows where coding will be a decade from now. There is no foolproof way to prepare for the future.

It's happening now already, you major in one area and end up working in a different field, and constant 're-training'.  I majored in accounting and work in Project Management now and loving it.  Hubby has 2 degrees and doing another certification now.  My older one is doing a double major so she has something to fall back on - just in case. 

Pharmacists make decent money but they stand on their feet for long hours to fill those prescriptions, that was a deterrent for my daughter.  However if you do it for a few years in your younger days and have something to move on to next it is a good choice.

Coding is good, my little one is looking at that, but with all these Indians coming with H1B visas and willing to work for cheap, companies replace you so quickly and give your job to a HIB visa holder.

A lot of these jobs are going to places like the Philippines etc. You call for service on your phone or some other stuff and you get a foreign voice taking care of your questions.

Coding is good but you have to constantly keep up with new software. I am glad I retired when I did. Globalization and corporate greed is what it's called. I hope they can stop the exporting of these jobs overseas. Whatever happen to patriotism?

FM
Last edited by Former Member
ksazma posted:

That is why I still worry about my kids' future. My daughter wants to be a Pharmacist and while it would seem like a good choice, who knows if when she does become a Pharmacist, a robot wouldn't have already replaced her. The boy is thinking about coding but who knows where coding will be a decade from now. There is no foolproof way to prepare for the future.

I convinced my older son to study accounting, and he seems to be good at it. He wanted to study Psychology ( I told him he can do that later if he still feels like it).

My younger son may do something like Physical Therapy or something in Chemistry. He is very personable and could do very well in sales, but I want him to be skilled at something as well. Computer science is also an option

 

FM
Riff posted:
ksazma posted:

That is why I still worry about my kids' future. My daughter wants to be a Pharmacist and while it would seem like a good choice, who knows if when she does become a Pharmacist, a robot wouldn't have already replaced her. The boy is thinking about coding but who knows where coding will be a decade from now. There is no foolproof way to prepare for the future.

I convinced my older son to study accounting, and he seems to be good at it. He wanted to study Psychology ( I told him he can do that later if he still feels like it).

My younger son may do something like Physical Therapy or something in Chemistry. He is very personable and could do very well in sales, but I want him to be skilled at something as well. Computer science is also an option

 

Something has changed in me lately. I dwell more on my kids' and their kids' opportunities even though my kids don't even have kids.   I think of how much we sheltered our kids and hope that our grandkids get equal if not more sheltering. 

FM
ksazma posted:

Something has changed in me lately. I dwell more on my kids' and their kids' opportunities even though my kids don't even have kids.   I think of how much we sheltered our kids and hope that our grandkids get equal if not more sheltering. 

There are benefits to sheltering kids from things that definitely will be a distraction and detriment to their future.

I have extended the latitude quite a bit for my two daughters while indeed keeping "an eye" to see that things are in order.

They have progressed exceedingly well in their studies at university.

FM
Demerara_Guy posted:
ksazma posted:

Something has changed in me lately. I dwell more on my kids' and their kids' opportunities even though my kids don't even have kids.   I think of how much we sheltered our kids and hope that our grandkids get equal if not more sheltering. 

There are benefits to sheltering kids from things that definitely will be a distraction and detriment to their future.

I have extended the latitude quite a bit for my two daughters while indeed keeping "an eye" to see that things are in order.

They have progressed exceedingly well in their studies at university.

Same here. Our kids have very wide latitude. They are not micromanaged in any way. We shelter them so they can feel loved because feeling loved goes a far way in kids doing well in school and in life. 

FM

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