Jobs in the Gulf of Mexico

Dear Mr. President,
I know you don't have so much time to read my blog (maybe only once a week, right?), but, when you get the chance, I have a story and an idea for you.

While traveling around Rwanda over the last month, I've seen a curious sight.  Hundreds of workers digging ditches, taking work breaks midday, and holding cables that look like red, gold and green ribbons along the side of the road. 

Why do these workers and ribbon-cables flank my rides to and from Kigali, you ask?  These workers are laying fiber-optic cables with the purpose of bettering Rwanda's internet connectivity.  This big investment may reap big rewards if it encourages more businesses to work in Rwanda, but I'm more excited about the immediate rewards.  Hundreds and hundreds are being employed to lay these cables, so this investment is improving lives in the short-term. 

This leads me to our own country.  I am, like so many others, worried about the long-term effects of the oil spill on our Gulf's ecosystem and the surrounding environment.  But I'm even more worried about the people who've lost jobs that depended on the Gulf's healthy waters.  After Katrina and the recession, another setback was the last thing the Gulf Coast economy needed.

While many fishermen and others no longer have livlihoods due to the spill, they do have something else quite unique.  They have a deep understanding of the waters the oil is currently polluting. While oil spill clean-up and tracking may not be their original training, they are particularly well suited for this task.  They know their way around the Gulf and its wildlife.

I see that in your proposed legislation you provide for funding for further inspections and environmental studies, as well as unemployment benefits and training for those who have lost jobs.  Can we instruct the employment training centers to train workers with the skills needed to address, track and ameliorate the spill's environmental impact?  Can we get these former fishing experts jobs in clean up, environmental tracking and seafood inspections? New skills are needed in the Gulf, and the recently unemployed men and women who once sailed and fished those seas are well-prepared for the job. 

One more step, to turn this short-term job solution into a long-term community strengthening plan.  How about getting these workers together to start to plan long-term development for their area?  We don't know how long it will be before the Gulf can have a fishing economy again, but something innovative can replace this economy.  Let's let these guys begin to work on it.

Thanks for your time.  Let me know how I can help.
Micaela

PS-Also, thanks for honoring Paul McCartney. Watching the White House rock out to the Beatles was too awesome!