Who would ever want to come to Rhode Island with such regular negativity being pounded over the radio and on the Internet.

Seriously. Is there anything that ya'll like about Rhode Island??

Yeah, stop being so negative about negative news ... it's just too negative. This from a (soon to be former?) purveyor of negative sleaze. Puh-leeze.

Excellent job with the movie. The musical score was a nice touch. Unfortunately, it probably won't net $500 million at the box office to cover the deficit.

The whole point we're driving at, is that there isn't a good reason for anyone to move here, and plenty of reasons to leave. We're trying to change that. Part of bringing about the "change we need," is to face reality and to tell the truth about what's wrong, so it can perhaps be fixed. You can't fix something if you don't acknowledge it's broken first. Rhode Island is broken.

PS We have Narragansett Bay to play in. The Scituate reservoir has generally good water, too. That's about it. Try paying your rent or mortgage with that.

Brilliant job on the vidThe only blurb missing is curtesy of the "progressives" at DCYF:
"Relax boys, these are your new daddy's-make sure you obey them"

I laughed. I cried. I drank some Dels.

Exactly what I was thinking!!

These liberals have ruined our state and now they just expect us to get bailed out or be saved by "their one"

I have Ri flowing through my blood, I was born and raised here and to see our beautiful state be corrupted by these spend-happy's just makes me sick.

We need to hold the line now, and push back in the up comming years.

Rhode Island's biggest draws are it's bay, its scenery, its history, its architecture, its restaurants, its colleges, its art galleries, its cultural events, its capital city, and its pro-tourist infrastructure.

The primary industry I can see developing from that collection of strengths is tourism... especially tourism from wealthy visitors.

Then once those wealthy visitors come to visit, they may decide to stay and establish residences or build businesses here.

But, as Justin and others here have pointed out, we'll need to realign our tax and business policies to make RI competitive with other states.

Because let's face it, aside from our fixable economic and social problems, RI is still a great and beautiful place to live.

We just need to economically and industrially reposition our state.

To foster a tourism industry, we will have to educate and train our young people, and prepare them for careers in hospitality, restarants, boat building and maintaining, hotel management, tourism management, arts and gallery management, and other fields in that realm.

JWU and RISD are already accomplishing these things... we just have to prepare our young people and encourage them to go to those schools.

If we can make a concerted effort to cultivate RI as a destination for wealthy travelers from other states and countries, we could turn everything around in this state within a decade.

What do you guys think about this idea?

Combined with the proper structural economic changes, it could be a way to jumpstart the process of reviving and resurrecting our state.

The "Credits" are the best part...a true axis of evil. Great job with that guys.

Well done masked person. Jerzyk's comment is a tribute to the power of the clip's message.

They want it all sugar coated. Like Caprio's press release today that the bond rating is staying at its less than stellar rating. No press release last time when it was lowered.

Erik,

We certainly should encourage the tourism industry, but I'm generally opposed to structuring education systems and such with an eye toward a particular industry. What if our citizens don't want that education? What if businesses don't wish to invest to the degree that we desire?

Let's just educate our citizens well and make the economic environment conducive to any types of business, and let come what will.

From what the Governor and others say about our failing schools, it appears that too many of our citizens don't want to be educated.

Will writes:
PS We have Narragansett Bay to play in. The Scituate reservoir has generally good water, too. That's about it. Try paying your rent or mortgage with that.

Posted by Will at November 25, 2008 5:06 PM

As a quahogger I am well aware of those of you who play in Narragansett Bay. On early mornings leaving East Greenwich I go past acres of huge boats sporting all the latest in electronics and some whose vast interiors hold furniture and entertainment devices far superior to anything in my home. Some boats have smaller boats on their decks that are more expensive than the average work boat. Then towards mid morning those huge pleasure boat start roaring past me as I work creating rough seas on calm days. Later in the afternoon when I return to the cove after dodging the multiple high speed boats and jet skiis the resturants are in full swing and the bars are all open. There is a lot of work generated on the waterfront though. The weathly owners of these oversized fiberglass vessels have a great many needs that require an army of busy workers. The resturants and bars all employ waiters and dishwashers and cooks. The marinas employ those who pump expensive fuel into the pleasure craft and ferry less weathly boat owners to the mooring fields and their boats. It's the type of economy you people love... the weathly spreading the wealth to the little people with no pesky unions around. But Will some of these workers are there working not just to see to it that the wealthy have a wonderful time but to pay their rent or mortgages.

Phil,

Your comment above spurs a question where you have a more direct perspective than the average person:

In deciding whether to allow a bunch of wind turbines to built out in Block Island Sound, are there potential impacts on fisherman and other boating related to actual work out on the Bay that need to be seriously considered? Or is opposition to wind really about Ted Kennedy and Ocean Drive residents wanting to protect their view?

Andrew

The offshore wind projects would not affect my fishing grounds so I would listen to concerns from fishing interests that may have objections. I have not heard any but as I said my fishing is in the bay and not offshore. I would think that lobster and fin fishing may be affected. Mostly I hear positive noises about wind generated energy in R.I. I have said in comments on AR that I credit Gov. Carcieri with his efforts in regards to wind projects and hope there's a way to build a wind farm. I break with many shellfishermen and women in support of Quonset development by the way. I am in favor of job development at ports in Quonset and Providence.
As to the wind farm proposals off Cape Cod I have not formed an absolute opinion mainly because I am unaffected if you not consider the desirable although small reduction in greenhouse gas from that project. I've read the opinion pieces in the Prov. Journal and I think that there does seem to have a strong NIBMY smell to the well heeled oposition. Like you say there's seems to be more upset over the view from the exclusive homeowners than concern about developing new energy.

I don't know, but I suspect that wind farms would be good for fishing - as with, e.h., oil platforms, the underwater structures would simultaneously become artificial reefs.