Jobs

By John P. MacMurray

Good careers

Not all that long ago, Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors all had assembly plants in Southern California. Firestone, Goodyear, and Uniroyal all built car and truck tires here. Rheem and Western-Holly made stoves and other household appliances.

Douglas and Lockheed built airliners and cargo planes. Autonetics built the Apollo spacecraft. These were good paying jobs, mostly union jobs, with companies who offered careers to their employees. And, they supported a large network of smaller, mostly family owned businesses that provided parts and services. And they're gone and not likely to return.

So let's look in new directions like the projected $200+ billion green energy generation industry, using a tailored mix of solar, wind, and tidal energy to power our homes and industries. And create good new jobs while we clean our air.