Marilyn

The blatant hypocrisy surrounding the thousands who spoke out nonstop about Gaza but have said not a word about Iran is astounding. Actors and celebrities, university students and professors, major news networks, government administrations from every country regularly spewed lies and propaganda after Israel was attacked, supposedly in support of an oppressed people. Yet here we have Iranians being slaughtered by the thousands under a corrupt, despotic, anti-woman, anti-gay, anti-Jewish, anti-Christian, anti-western Islamic regime, and their silence is deafening. How have they become so psychologically beholden to Islam?

@mikeroweworks Hit it out of the park once again.

“CPAC? Really, Mike? Since you’re now officially out of the closet, are you still going to insist that you’re not a Republican stooge? I’m guessing you will. Go ahead, prove me wrong.” Carol Blevins Hi Carol The only way I can prove you wrong is by ignoring you, which is tempting, since there’s no hope in trying to change the mind of a person who doesn’t like me but follows me anyway. On the other hand, it’s entirely possible that other people on this page who share your disappointment - but not your lack of manners – might be curious to know why I accepted an invitation to speak at the largest gathering of conservatives in the country. So, I’ll answer your question with them in mind, and do so by sharing an open letter I wrote to Barack Obama sixteen years ago, shortly after I launched mikeroweWORKS. You can read it here/ mikerowe.com/.../03/mikes-l… That letter was posted in 2009, when the country was entering a recession and lots of people were unemployed. In an effort to get America back to work, President Obama pledged to create three million “shovel ready” jobs as part of his Highway Infrastructure Act. In my letter to him, I wished the new President every success, but shared my concern that many of the business owners I had met on Dirty Jobs were already struggling to fill thousands of “shovel ready” positions. According to the BLS, even with twelve million people out of work, 2.3 million of these "shovel ready" positions remained open, many in manufacturing and the skilled trades. Despite the mainstream assumption that more jobs would automatically lead to less unemployment, it seemed pretty clear that the skills gap was not a consequence of too few jobs, but rather, a consequence of too little enthusiasm for the jobs that already existed. In other words, along with the skills gap, there was also a “will gap.” It seemed to me that “creating” more shovel ready jobs would be a tough sell to a country that was not all that excited about picking up a shovel. That’s when I started to incorporate recruiting messages into every episode of Dirty Jobs. And that’s why I offered to help the Obama administration make a more persuasive case for the new “shovel ready” opportunities they hoped to create, by partnering with mikeroweWORKS. To be honest, I didn’t really expect President Obama to respond to a guy who had become famous for crawling through sewers, but it never hurts to ask – especially when you’re trying to raise awareness about an issue that impacts every American. And so, I wasn’t discouraged when my offer was ignored. In fact, over the last sixteen years, I’ve made similar offers to other presidents, and other elected officials. I’ve met with several governors, partnered with several likeminded state-run initiatives, and spoken to Congress, twice, about the importance a national campaign to reinvigorate the trades. Unfortunately, the “will gap” is still with us. Today, 7.2 million able-bodied men are not only unemployed, they’re not even looking for work. And still, according to the BLS, we now have 7.6 million open jobs - most of which do NOT require a four-year degree. In part, I think the “will gap” is a consequence of stigmas, stereotypes, myths and misperceptions that dissuade millions of people from considering a career in the trades. I think it’s critical to debunk those misperceptions with real-world examples, and mikeroweWORKS does that every day. But there’s nothing we can do about the underlying math, which is exacerbating the problem exponentially. Consider: for every five skilled workers who retire this year, two will replace them. It’s been that way for over a decade, and the arithmetic is clearly not sustainable. In fact, every big company in the country that relies on skilled labor – including those responsible for our national defense – is in desperate need of skilled labor, and competing with each other to get it. And now, President Trump wants to create more skilled jobs by bringing manufacturing back to America. As with President Obama, I wish President Trump every success. I want our country to be less reliant on China, and less dependent on foreign workers. But my questions today are no different than they were sixteen years ago – if the President succeeds with his objective, where will the skilled workers come from? As of last February, there were 600 hundred thousand open jobs in the manufacturing sector. If we can’t fill the jobs that already exist, how will we fill the jobs the president wishes to create? How will we persuade the next generation to give the skilled trades an honest look? At mikeroweWORKS, the answer is simple. We award work ethic scholarships to people who qualify, and then, after they begin their career of choice, we share their stories as widely as possible. Stories like Johnny Goodson’s, a former musician who found a rewarding career repairing heavy equipment. Johnny is one of 2,200 people we’ve assisted to date, who found a new and rewarding life in the skilled trades. Its stories like his that need to be shared far and wide, so please help me do so. As for my party affiliation, it’s hardly a secret. I’m a registered Independent, and have been for some time. It’s true that I hold some conservative opinions, but those opinions haven't kept me from addressing dozens of liberal organizations over the years, or from appearing on countless liberal outlets to talk about this issue. Nor do my political opinions keep me from encouraging you, Carol, or any other liberal leaning person you might know, to apply for a work ethic scholarship from mikeroweWORKS.org. This month, we have $2.5 million dollars set aside to help train the next generation of skilled workers. I wish we had ten times the amount, because as of today, we have ten times the number of applicants we did a year ago. Anyway, that’s why I went to CPAC. To let them know that we’re moving the needle, and to invite them to help us move it further still. The stakes are very high. In my view, closing the skills gap is now a matter of national security, and something ambitious needs to be done to reinvigorate the trades. We're doing what we can at mikeroweWORKS, and I welcome all the help I can get.

@Sen_Alsobrooks As far as I could tell, you didn’t stop cutting him off so he actually could give an answer. Seems to be the theme through this whole hearing.

"We should not be giving Black people the same vaccine schedule that's given to Whites, because their immune system is better than ours." ---RFK Jr. So what vaccine schedule should I have received? His answer was dangerous. I will be voting no.

@MattWallace888 Oh c’mon. The days of posting snapshots of videos are over. Anyone with any critical thinking skills can watch the video for themselves and see she did have her eyes closed and opened them momentarily-perhaps she felt vulnerable w/ eyes closed? Stop the fear/hate mongering

What do you notice about J.D. Vance’s wife during the Franklin Graham prayer?

@KamalaHarris Don’t you mean address the gun crisis deepened by the trauma of mental health?

Ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Strengthen background checks. Enact safe storage and red flag laws. Repeal the immunity that protects gun manufacturers from liability. Address the mental health crisis deepened by the trauma of gun violence. Let’s get it done.

@FBranchiaux I just made my first candle purchase. What a wonderful story. Wishing you continued success in your business!

@metadatachick Wow. As if I didn’t admire you enough already! Thank you for sharing ❤️

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and today is World Maternal Mental Health Day. Sharing my very personal journey with the hope that it will help others. biopage.com/post/the-happi… Help is available! wmmhday.postpartum.net #MaternalMHMatters

@Garden_City_HS Congratulations Mandi. Well deserved! We are lucky to have you.

#GCHS has a third Assistant Principal! Congratulations to Mandi Stefankiewicz on her appointment this evening!