Watson apparently still believes in government solutions and the political sideshow starring racial relations.

How will we know when that era has fully arrived?

It won’t be hard to miss. We’ll know it when, for example:

• The Buffalo Niagara Partnership, the Buffalo Niagara Enterprise, the Erie County Industrial Development Agency and the rest of the region’s horde of development specialists hold a joint press conference in front of a boarded-up East Side business. The economic experts detail how they plan to lure businesses to that part of town and make it a focal point in their effort to revive Western New York.

We need the elimination of these failed groups, not a meeting on the East Side.  Development specialists taking care of themselves and their friends only squander the money that could be used through a free-market to create real opportunities for ALL people.

• Spurred by that newfound interest but not content to leave the fate of business development in the hands of others, the Black Chamber of Commerce of Western New York picks up the ball by calling its own press conference to unveil a long-awaited legislative agenda.  In making a big splash, the Chamber brings new attention to problems — bonding, insurance, access to capital, etc. — that its members have long cited as barriers to growth.

We’ve been beaten to death with legislative agendas.  Calling for more is foolhardy at best.  Yes, access to capital is a problem.  Not because government isn’t addressing the issue, it is because government squanders the capital and denies our access through its inherent functions.

• Adopting the business motto that “what gets measured gets done,” groups like the Buffalo Local Action Committee, the Buffalo NAACP or the Black Leadership Forum take up the challenge of measuring those performances and issuing public report cards.  They follow the model of the national NAACP, which has long rated congressional candidates, and some local branches like the Cincinnati chapter. Last fall, it rated that city’s nine council members, and only one earned a “B.” Five Cincinnati lawmakers — including one black representative — got “F’s.” Two earned “D’s” and one received a “C.”

Where’s the logic?  So the NAACP rates politicians, big deal!  The result has been a bunch of politicians with failing grades.  Why on earth would someone call for more of the same?  Shrink the government, let the market work and let people have the opportunity to work and vote for worthwhile expenditures with their own money.  Any sane person, working and earning a living, is not going to voluntarily throw their money at failed projects and bureaucracies.  The free-flow of money will naturally support successful endeavors.  That process is what creates capital, the capital necessary to spur growth in the form of employment and opportunities for all.

We have been coerced into a system of involuntary servitude that supports the favored class (politicians) and their friends.  Most people have been conditioned to look for more and more government solutions.  Engaging in this futile exercise just exacerbates the problem.

People are innately resourceful.  Given the opportunity, people will take care of themselves without relying on the government for their every need.

 

The Buffalo News: City & Region: Rod Watson: How to know when new era arrives at last