Today at work I had an opportunity to walk through how the stimulus bill will provide and/or sustain a variety of jobs in a variety of sectors. Come on below to see how the story unfolded
In a meeting today one of the participants (by the way, I am keeping this very vague in an attempt to anonymize [is that a word?] the locale, the organization and the people) talked about having applied for and qualified for a significant grant from a government agency - BUT - and a big "but" indeed - despite qualifying, there was no money to fund the grant.
But - lo and behold - if the stimulus bill passed, there would be $$ for the grant. Everybody was happy, and they got ready to move on.
I then asked the presenter of this information for some more details ... "how long was the grant for?" - answer - four years. Were there any jobs for our organization -- not directly, but money to provide "administrative support." Being the type of organization that we are, everyone understood that meant job security for at least several folks whose positions are dependent on grant funding.
Next question -- any other direct jobs - Yes - two FTE positions with the state. That's two more jobs.
Next -- what was the grant for? Answer -- building greenways and bike paths and such... so now we know that the activities supported will be environmentally friendly, support physical activity and thus be health promoting, and oh - by the way ... next question ...
So - to do this building of the greenways, etc., folks will have to be hired to do the actual grading and shoveling and planting, etc.? Answer - yes, of course.
In the end, an opportunity to educate about 40 people on how the stimulus bill would provide meaningful NEW jobs, protect existing jobs, and advance a health conscious and environmentally sound initiative.
I think that this is the way we bring change (eventually) to our legislators - by educating our citizens about the positive effects of action, and by not too subtle comparison, the consequences of inaction. All in all, it felt pretty satisfying.