Mort Zuckerman: 5 Sure-Fire Ways to Create More Jobs

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There is an inherent contradiction in
a. "Educate Americans" to create more white collar higher-paying jobs
b. give more H1-B visas to invite the Educated from other countries to join the workforce to innovate
c. AND then create muscle jobs with infrastructure investments.

Ameesh of CA 6:14PM February 03, 2012

With the unemployment so high we have to wonder how this generation is going to retire when they have almost nothing going into Social Security, savings and 401K type investments. The Social Security System, is a lot like if not a Ponzi
scheme. As long as more people enroll, and are paying into the system, there will be money to pay the retirees, or the ones who are drawing out of the system. With the baby boomers the demographics have changed and there are more collecting and fewer paying. This trend is going to continue and with a recession since the would be Social Security payers are laid off and NOT paying.
The answer is to get the people back to work. One way is to have our government make a level playing field for businesses, finance, and labor with the countries we trade with. We need tough Yankee bargaining on all fronts and stop the exploitation of our country, resources and people in the global markets.

Lee Hansen of MI 7:01PM January 31, 2012

The reversal of the educational levels in this country, especially in higher education, is the result of greedy higher educational institutions increasing the tuition of the schools at an exponential rate, and then going to the governments with hat in hand for more and holding the governments for ransom. When the salaries of graduates from these schools decays each year, the price of the degree goes UP disqualifying a lot of students who cannot afford the fees. This has a deleterious effect because people from other countries can get the same degree for a fraction of the price and take our jobs for much less in salary since they don't have the $100,000 student loan hanging over their heads! When are the leaders of these schools going to set an example and acknowledge there is a recession and back off on their greed for higher tuition, become more frugal with the tuition endowments donations and government hand outs, so they can REDUCE the price of a degree? Like a lot of the politicians, when it come to other peoples money they live in their own little dream world and turn a myopic eye to the misery they are causing all around them.

Lee Hansen of MI 5:54PM January 31, 2012

Zuckerman has grown myopic in his dotage. Obama has tried all of those things with no help from his friends in Congress or Wall street. I have not heard his voice in touting the Jobs plan that Obama took to the Country. All I have heard is carping from him. Where was he when the economy tanked by his pals at Lehman, Goldman Sachs.All of these efforts cost money and HIS congress is not supplying any,

Rueben Scott of TX 2:41PM December 29, 2011

The reason that investment is considered a dirty word is that the progressives have called spending money on existing teachers "investment", bullet trains that will require $100 a passenger operating subsidy an investment, or to call a college education where the student majors in useless fields like sociology, political science, etc., an investment. Given that the return on these investments are minuscule in economic terms, it is no wonder that investment is now a bad word. Show me a one or two year payback, with high value added, and I will show you an investment. To get out of this recession, we need one year paybacks. This law of value added, short term payback is what is needed.
I would also support investment if we paid back the investment -- however, we NEVER pay it back in times of flush. Therefore, folks like me refuse to support investment with no payback because those who support this kind of investment are not truthful; they are redistributionists misusing the language of business for their nefarious purposes.

TLJ of VA 9:55PM December 26, 2011

Tarrifs on China, we can't complete with them stealing our intelectual property, we can't compete with slave labor. Put a 25% tariff on all their goods, with the revenue, earmark it to pay down the debt and infrastucture jobs.

Dr. William RIchter of MI 6:29PM December 26, 2011

Absurdly asinine, like usual. Clearly none of these as 'sure fire' ways to create jobs.
1.) & 2.) The first point is undermined by the second point - if companies can import cheap H1B labor they certainly will continue to not support educating an American workforce, and certainly will not contribute to a nickel on improving our education infrastructure, because it can't be fixed by defunding and layoffs like Republicans like Mort want to do.
3.) Extending patents only discourages new innovations, as the main patent reform Mort supports is letting drug companies extend their patents indefinitely so the can keep overcharging people for drugs and keep buying ad space for Mort.
4.) The only uncertainty in our economy is how much the Republicans will obstruct and hold the economy hostage.
5.) Again as long as Republicans continue to obstruct the government, forget about infrastructure. A long as millionaires like Mort are unwilling to pay any taxes, forget about it. The only infrastructure improvements Americans can look forward to are toll roads on any road that needs improvement, that is as long as the corruption and greed continues that is being perpetrated by the GOP and sleazy media like this.

Ron of LA 4:35PM December 15, 2011

Anyone who has ever filed a patent can tell you that there are thousands of overlapping ones already there making patents nothing more than the entry fee for court litigation. Furthermore, many important inventions are not visible so unless companies publish their designs (never), the patent violation can go on indefinitely without detection. A solution is difficult to conceive, but simply spending more on the current system isn't it.
Regarding H1B visas, it is simple supply and demand. If you increase the supply of workers, you lower the cost. To assume the benefits of having more foreign workers is greater than the value of investing in more domestic ones has yet to be demonstrated.
On education, the current system has many, many flaws starting with the fact that it is largely outside the flow of working life. Education must be integrated into careers to improve productivity continuously. Right now, we have a "stop by and pick some up" philosophy that doesn't work.
Finally, when people say infrastructure, they always think bridges and roads: definitely important if you want to preserve our societal structure. The question is whether a low density housing model with the high cost of delivering goods and services will keep the US from being competitive in the future? Before we spend massive amounts preserving what we have, we had better ask if it is what we need.

DG Reid of TX 9:15AM December 13, 2011

Predictably Zuckerman left out the serious problem of chain migration-low skill immigrants allowed to bring in unlimited distant relatives.

JP of MD 8:18PM December 12, 2011

D. Romm of NY
Maybe in your State “In the area of education, we should reconsider the "one size fits all" approach to curriculum that has been imposed”. Not where I live.
There are two year programs in college and Vocational technology schools. Some open to high school students. Night classes available to those who work 8 to 5:00 pm.. 4 year degree not required...

Bill Hedges of MO 4:38AM December 12, 2011