by Curt Kovener
Size does indeed matter. But bigger is sometimes a detriment.
At 6’7” I have difficulty finding clothes. With a size 14 foot, there is also difficulty finding shoes. And I don’t fit in just any vehicle comfortably.
But enough about me.
The State Chamber of Commerce wants schools smaller than 2,000 enrollment to merge to improve test scores and student performance. I am not so sure of that correlation. If I can’t swim so well in my backyard pool will I swim better in the crowded larger municipal pool? Read two stories on our front page this week for differing views on that topic.
The State Chamber of Commerce is a legislative lobbying organization for its members who own & run businesses. They lobby for things like decreased taxes, decreased regulation, and improved government infrastructure to benefit business. Their members pay them dues annually to do this. And some of those dues are more than four figures each year. So you have to factor in a cost/benefit.
It should go without saying that a one-man newspaper in a one-stoplight town can’t afford their membership dues and wouldn’t get much benefit from the organization. But they would take my money if offered and send me a nice window decal to display to prove I am in business.
Now look up and down the main business district of Crothersville and ask yourself “I wonder how many of the few businesses left in town are members of the state chamber?”
That answer would be none.
If a lobbying firm does what it’s dues paying members want, and few to none of their members are from small communities, interests of small communities, business or otherwise, are left in the lurch. The small town voices get drowned out by the big city boys & girls.
Bigger is better? Methinks the fix is in.
