Lots of depressing news comes out about New Mexico’s economy and educational systems. We’ve certainly publicized the bad data ourselves. But we don’t do this to perform penance or because we love wallowing in despair, we do it because we want New Mexico to do better and we believe that policy reforms will create positive results. And, while we will wait for national data confirming the success of our A-F grading system’s positive results at the high school level, we do believe that properly-targeted reforms will work.
Unfortunately, according to a poll (albeit unscientific) conducted by Albuquerque Business First, 47 percent believe that “NM simply cannot make meaningful improvements to its economic standing.” Being 50th is bad, but this is downright depressing.
Needless to say, I’ve dedicated my life to proving that 47 percent wrong. I believe that the right combination of policies and incentives will inevitably work to improve New Mexico’s economic and education situations and I’ve dedicated my life’s work to that proposition. I just don’t think New Mexico’s adopted sound free market policies for much of its 100 years as a state and that gives the impression that reform can’t happen. All I can say is that I’m not going anywhere and I’m not going to stop working to prove the fatalists wrong.
Do away with State Tax, provide incentives to encourage productive corporations (energy producers, information technologies, science and engineering companies) to move their headquarters here. Allow timber companies to come back in and set up wood mills in our forested areas — will add jobs and leads to effective forest management and manicuring ..which also reduces forest fires!