Northwest Indiana Discussion

spoken like a true parasite who gets his pension off the backs of the taxpayers...

I haven't checked. Has Indiana erected barbed wire to prevent anyone from pursuing those higher-paying opportunities in other states? Maybe some Indiana residents know that even though they may make a few dollars more in Illinois, they will be taxed until they puke, more than offsetting whatever extra pay they may draw. Then, there is the poorly educated workforce that some on this board have had a hand in training....

...and they are in the tens of thousands

Yep... and Indiana is welcoming all of them...the new phrases on Indiana License plates will soon be "Do you want to super-size that"...or "Thank you for shopping at Wal-Mart"...or even "We don't need no stink'n Unions" (or their pay and benefits either)

Where are they all going? To the oil fields of North Dakota? If so, wouldn't that be a good thing? If not, where else are they going? I have a hard time believing that the average hotel maid in California or New York is making nearly $20,000 more than one in Indiana. What's wrong with someone leaving one locale for another if it leads to higher wages and a better life? Further, if these "tens of thousands" of workers are leaving Indiana, Indiana employers will be forced to raise wages to keep the remaining workers. Isn't that a desirable situation as well? Decent workers will have a lot more leverage if their ranks are thinned by better-paying employment elsewhere. But, we both know that isn't happening, and this is a silly statement you pulled out of thin air. Regardless, there will never be high demand for lazy, illiterate "workers" of the Hammond/Gary/East Chicago/Whiting variety. Nowadays, your skill set has to extend beyond leaning on a broom and going on strike at the drop of a hat.





Usually, I really am not interested in anyone's sources as you can find anything you want online, but I'd be like to read more about this as well. I recall Da' Region and the Indianapolis of the 1970's and Da' Region and the Indianapolis of the 2000's. It seems their fortunes have flipped significantly. Indy seems to doing just fine without the heavily unionized industries of yesteryear while NWI just can't seem to get it's act together. Remember, there is a lot more to Indiana than the illiterates and primitives north of U.S. 30 (the new 80/94 demarcation which separates areas with potential vs. those that are doomed to the fate of Hammond/Gary/East Chicago/Whiting).