Curren, and Bell divided on jobs
MONTEREY — During an hourlong debate Tuesday night, the two House District 20 candidates clashed over the best way to create jobs.
Democrat Erik Curren pointed to a clean energy revolution. “Green jobs can pay a decent wage and provide health insurance,” he said. “You can’t build a high-paying job off working at Wal-Mart.”
Curren said green jobs can start now with weatherization of homes. He said he also would like to see a green enterprise zone for the 20th District.
Republican Dickie Bell said any kind of job is what Virginia’s unemployed are seeking. He said the Governor’s Opportunity Fund — a $20-million pool of state incentive money — needs to be expanded as do enterprise zones. “We don’t need to reinvent the wheel,” Bell said.
Government, Bell added, is not the solution for jobs, but it can help create the proper environment for growth. “Government does not create jobs, the private sector does,” he said.
The two also sharply disagreed on education.
Bell said he wants to increase teacher salaries but believes in merit pay for teachers who are successful. “If money is tied to results, you get results,” Bell said.
Curren opposes merit pay. Lack of money is a problem for Virginia’s education system, he said. “Our students deserve smaller classrooms, better technology and teachers who are paid,” he said.
As for Virginia’s transportation crisis, Bell said money raised from offshore drilling could be used to fund transportation needs as well provide more jobs. He also called for an external audit of the Virginia Department of Transportation, echoing a Republican theme.
Curren said he did not like the proposals from either party’s gubernatorial nominee on transportation. “I don’t support taking money from education and public safety and I don’t think offshore drilling is the solution. Offshore drilling will take 10 years,” he said.
Curren said what is needed is a representative who will speak loudly for the 20th District on transportation.
Curren also announced that if elected Nov. 3, he would appoint a citizens task force from all four jurisdictions in the 20th District to advise him on issues of prosperity, quality of life and ways to create jobs.
Bell told a group of listeners at the Highland Center that the answer for the public is to fight to take their government back.
“Take back the government at the grassroots level,” Bell said. “You can solve problems that way.”
Not surprisingly, both candidates said their door-to-door campaigning over the past several months led them to a logical answer about the number one issue on voters’ minds: the sluggish national and state economy.
Curren said the government in turn “should be one that is responsive” to the people’s needs and not be one of “us versus them.” In the short-term, Curren said Virginia should take $125 million in federal unemployed stimulus money to provide relief to part-time unemployed workers and others.
Republicans in Richmond beat back a Democratic plan earlier this year to use that money to extend unemployment benefits charging that the move would lead to a crippling unfunded mandate for business.
Bell said not only are there unemployed people in the 20th District, there are the underemployed.
“We need to make it possible for small business to hire the unemployed. The main thing is to put people back to work,” he said.
Tuesday’s debate was the second between the two candidates.
Bell is a four-term member of Staunton City Council and an Augusta County special education teacher. He replaced incumbent Chris Saxman on the ballot when the veteran delegate surprisingly withdrew from the race earlier this year.
Curren is the marketing director of the American Shakespeare Center in Staunton.
Anne Adams, the owner and editor of the Recorder newspaper, moderated the debate.
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—also I would like to add, that even though a Presbytarian college, Mary Baldiwn holds more liberal based views and ideas than what a traditional religious entity would care to embrace. Not that it is not effect in some areas since it has a deep relationshp with the Shakespearean market, but it would be nice if the people of the city had access to full disclosore of these entites affairs—and why the keep hush hush all the time? I mean, is the silence of what takes place behind close doors a symbolism of “its” own theme—to be sneaky?
—come on guys and gals, lets let all on the table and let the public know for once—who stands for what, and what one will stand for.
—it is too easy to quell the fears in great speeches while having no intent to every stand by that speech. I call this buiding a straw man. A diversion of a truth—to cover a mean lie.
“Government, Bell added, is not the solution for jobs, but it can help create the proper environment for growth. “Government does not create jobs, the private sector does,” he said.
—untrue, by facte of legislative acts and appellate court decisions, the government makes huge stakes of claims of who the gov’t represents and vows rather than disavows for: Antitrust laws, copyright laws, and even workers compensations laws—through all of these the gov’t has supported the int’l corp. rather than small business—if it’s not the gov’t's responsbility, then why does the gov’t create unjust enrichment by its own act—or failure of action to stop outsourcing and NAFTA (of whom both parties have supported).
Green jobs will create jobs, but never like production and those Green jobs will require formal education.
—it is impossible for the private sector to create any type of jobs other than mom/mom shops/retail because of Agency regulations—those given broad auth. to act by Congress—the bicameral of House and Senate.
“‘Curren said… Offshore drilling will take 10 years,.‘“
—and Green will be ready next year?
—with this fuss about transportation—is it a hyperbole? I mean, where and what are we traveling for—JOBS? Can anyone tell us where the majority of transporation costs will go, so that us consumers can plan to move there—“where will it be?“ Please to do tell!
“Curren also announced that if elected Nov. 3, he would appoint a citizens task force from all four jurisdictions in the 20th District to advise him on issues of prosperity, quality of life and ways to create jobs.“
—isn’t this Marx’s and socialism’s idea (premise) of CENTRAL PLANNING?
“Bell told a group of listeners at the Highland Center that the answer for the public is to fight to take their government back.“
—Bell has a point, we do need NEW government, a new congress, a new idea of how the STATE is run—the economy is prima facie of that ALL legislatures failure to manage and act according to the people’s wishes. I say, “that they care more about policy and international growth than the American citizens—and if ‘they’ want to do this, please have them step completley off our American soil, its extraterritorial boundaries—and THEN continue to do your “legislative” work that is the antithesis of American interest.“ “American law makers are completely out-of-control and lack FIDUCIARY capacity to its own people.“—while they, they gov’t, expect corporation’s officers to offer the same fiduciary standing to its shareholders—how can they, when they look at our gov’t officials and watch them daily wreck havoc on our American system “of weights and balances.“
—and awe, this proves my intuitoin: “Curren is the marketing director of the American Shakespeare Center in Staunton.“ I think there is a Staunton “offical” who marks himself or herself as a GOP, but secretly behind closed doors is pushing liberal ideas—and that comment about Curren and his hands in the Shakespearen community is a foreshadow of my congecture. Can anyone tell us how the Shakespearean, the Jackson Hotel and parking lot are being paid for? Is is both tax payers monies, some federal grant with some coming from donations? I don’t think that entire setup was out of a fiduciary setup—without the public’s knowlege.-and since “that” ties in with Staunton’s downtown “growth” of middle-middle class restaurants and shops, I would like to know how many of those shop owners actually live in Staunton, and how many actually live in downtown Staunton, and then why are all those shop owners a face-value of Malcom X’s “community’s segregation power?“ Why are all those “owners” European Americans? I think Shakespear had some black men in his plays. LOL (of course, we do not know who some of the silent partners are.“ But keeping the black onwers up the street from the downtown area does not seem to be a nice gesture of the community, now does it?
When proposed delegate don’t mention inequality in their messages for job placements—then I question both, their integrity, thier knowlege, and their personal capacity to offer fiduciary hope to the local citizens—ALL of the citizens, the working poor and the offended.
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