According to this editorial in SunThisweek, the Scott County Board of Commissioners is not happy with the way the Met Council handles transportation issues. Instead of allowing a body of commissioners who are appointed by the governor, instead of elected by the people, to make these decisions, one State Representative is suggesting the entire system be changed.

From the article:

There is a bill authored by Rep. Michael Beard, R-Shakopee, that would do away with the 33-member board and replace it with a 24-member regional transportation governance planning board, independent of the Metro Council.

Beard’s idea also is to have the transit system operations and planning removed from the Metropolitan Council and run by a new transportation commission. Transportation planning would be done by the new regional transportation governance board with two county commissioners from each of the seven counties, 16 elected township and city officials and some citizen members.

While this is nothing more than an idea at this point, Rep. Beard feels it is something that the legislature should seriously consider in order to reign in the power of the Met Council and hopefully allow for better representation from the counties and cities which feel that they do not receive fair benefit from the Council’s decisions. The editorial’s author then suggests this is not the time when the Met Council’s actions should be altered and/or modified and that maybe instead it should come in another year.

What do you think about dismantling the Met Council’s transit authority and replacing it mainly with elected members and interested citizens? Do you disagree with any of the Met Council’s decisions and do you think that a newly created, cross-functional group will be able to make better and more informed choices about transit than the Met Council has? Being that this is only in the planning stages, is this something that you believe will really come before the legislature in the future or is it simply an attempt to get the Met Council to shift their behaviors and better support Scott County and the constituents of Rep. Beard before their power is affected?

Whatever you have to say about this one, go ahead and comment on as I’d love to hear your thoughts.

According to this article in the Rosemount Town Pages, a 2008 graduate of Rosemount High School and an AA degree recipient from an online institution is using shared time on a video billboard on 35W to attempt to find a new job.

From the article:

“I was just kind of thinking of an idea of, how can I grab businesspeople’s attention,” Olson said. “I’m kind of an idea person, and taking a different approach to things. Sometimes that’s just the way you have to do it in business.”

He considered options like online advertising, but the billboard seemed like the most cost-effective way to get his name out. The billboard features Olson’s face on the left with a big message, “HIRE ME!” and the address of Olson’s website. It also features icons for Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin, in case potential employers want to track him down there.

While this is certainly bold and somewhat different, although definitely not unique, the real reason why this individual may be finding it difficult to land a job is probably not because he’s not trying but because he’s putting his money and effort into avenues which are much better spent elsewhere–such as working towards a degree from a more traditional university. Being that I have worked for and currently attend an online institution for my masters degree, I am quite aware of issues the public has with higher education as well as their perception of online institutions. Instead of spending $300 for a billboard, a bit more for a website, and a bunch of time submitting resumes with an AA degree and experience promoting a business which probably doesn’t need much promotion via social media, perhaps he should be heading back to school and working harder to land a job in a more traditional manner–such as applying to more than 10 jobs a week. And, just for comparison, I was recently looking for a new job while employed and I was sending out more than 10 resumes a week. Why is 10 a week for someone who is unemployed something we should be in awe over?

What do you think about this kid’s decision to promote himself via a billboard on 35W? Do you think that this project will land him a viable job more quickly than traditional routes or do you think it’s nothing more than a silly gimmick which has him out of $300–possibly funded by your tax dollars through unemployment? Do you agree that his AA isn’t enough to get him very far, especially one from an online institution and he should instead be working harder to further this education? Whatever you have to say about this one go ahead and comment on as I’d love to hear what you have to say.