Clarkson's paramedic program should be duplicated
Glens Falls blows out Beekmantown to advance to regional finals at HVCC
Rep. Elise Stefanik has become an expert at pointing out problems. Her solution has always been the same no matter the problem - Vote for Republicans.
That is no more a solution than voting for Democrats is a solution.
We all know that.
She has become the worst of creatures - a politician.
Just once I would like to hear our congresswoman thoughtfully address a significant local problem with a way to fix it in a way that will improve of the local citizens she was elected to serve.
She can't fix inflation, or the immigration crisis or the war in Ukraine, but maybe she could help address the shortage of EMTs in the North Country or the need for more health care workers to help those who need it.
It's not a sexy subject.
It won't get Elise on Fox News or another interview on Meet the Press, but it sure might go a long way toward making the lives of her constituents better.
Here are a couple of stories you may have missed in recent weeks that address significant problems in Elise Stefanik's district.
It's a problem here in Warren County, too.
Feireisel reported there are just 25 paramedics working in St. Lawrence County responding to some 17,000 calls.
You don't need a calculator to know that isn't enough.
But there is good news. Clarkson University just started a new nine-month long Paramedic Program after receiving a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. I'm not sure what the USDA is doing funding a paramedic program, but considering the beneficiary might possibly be farmers, that is a possibility.
The first class of 17 students started in December and will graduate in August. If that entire class stays in St. Lawrence County - and there is a good chance it will - it will almost double the number of paramedics in less than a year.
The reality is there are very few places in the North Country where training is conducted for paramedics.
Other paramedic programs often take 12 to 18 months to complete. The Clarkson program is more concentrated with the intent of getting students in the back of ambulances quicker.
So this is where Elise, and maybe state representatives like Dan Stec and Matt Simpson can ask important questions about why more schools aren't offering these services. Maybe local counties or the state could contribute seed money to establish more of these programs throughout the region.
Sure, it's going to take away time from their social media, but it could make our communities better.
The other story was also something we have heard before.
The Memory Care Center at The Glen at Hiland Meadows has not been able to fill the available units for people with dementia, Alzheimer's and other memory conditions due to staff shortage.
We heard about an issue similar to this earlier this year at SUNY Adirondack regarding home health care workers.
After conducting a need assessment, the Glen added 30 units for memory care but has been unable to hire the staff to provide the care according to the story in The Post-Star.
“We are definitely seeing the demand," the Glen's Executive Director Andrea Herbert told The Post-Star. "(Getting) the staff to provide the care is what is the challenge. We are increasing our occupancy as we increase our staff. In the first four months, we could have filled every room if we had the staff.”
The Post-Star story was important because it pointed out that there is a demand for all kinds of health care workers.
This would be a great time for Elise to put her Harvard education to the test and come up with a plan to fill those positions at the Glen while also establishing more paramedic programs in her district.
I'm sure Mr. Stec and Mr. Simpson would be willing to help as well.
Most leaders get into public service to help people.
But what we hear from them is what is wrong instead of how to fix it.
Glens Falls wins again
Glens Falls' unbeaten boys basketball team (24-0) advanced to the regional finals Tuesday night with a 50-point win over Section VII champion Beekmantown, 92-42.
Glens Falls went out to an 11-0 lead on its way to a 51-11 halftime advantage. Beekmantown was never in the game.
Glens Falls will play the winner of the game between Westhill (22-2) and Massena (14-8) on Saturday at Hudson Valley Community College.
Senior Night for Girard
Joe Girard III got to participate in Senior Night for the second year in a row, this time at Clemson.
Girard went out with a flourish in his final home game at Clemson with a 21-point effort against his former Syracuse teammates.
It is looking like Girard will get his chance to return to the NCAA Tournament this year.
Life and death
Historian and author Heather Cox Richardson reported in her Substack column last week that 23 nations have written to Speaker of the House Mike Johnson urging him to help Ukraine, saying the Russian invasion has “challenged the entire democratic world, jeopardizing the security in the whole European and Euro-Atlantic area,” and “the world is rapidly moving towards the destruction of the sustainable world order.”
Apparently Johnson does not care about the suffering he is seeing in Ukraine.
Richardson also reported last week that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban will be visiting Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago this week.
Orban's claim to fame? He has derailed democracy in Hungary.
“We cannot interfere in other countries’ elections,” Orbán said last week, “but we would very much like to see President Donald Trump return to the White House.”
Nothing like being endorsed by a dictator whose latest claim to fame is making the spread of "misinformation" by the media a crime punishable for up to five years in prison.
Trump's economy
When it comes to Donald Trump, voters seem shortsighted about his arrests, the fraud in his business - the Trump Organization - and that the roots of inflation actually took hold during the Trump administration.
In an analysis of Trump's economic policy this week, I was reminded that Trump imposed tariffs on steel and washing machines. That led to high consumer prices and cost America jobs as other countries retaliated.
Trump has said he would do the same thing if elected again.
In a world where millionaires are commonplace and the YouTube influencers make a fortune, celebrities, CEOs, and athletes make more than they could ever spend, we are left with a world that can't pay the people that work in memory care units or nursing homes a solid living wage. I guess I sound like a socialist but truly wonder why the basic most important components of our society, are under paid, under appreciated and overworked. Of course a lot of this won't be corrected because the rich can afford anything and don't have to worry about these issues. Stefanik is concerned with the wealthy and powerful, not real people. We are so backwards.
The reason we have a labor shortage is a demographic one — we have an aging population. More workers are retiring than are being replaced by younger people entering the labor force. While a focus on expanding training and education is necessary, I’m not sure they can address the basic demographic fact that our country simply has too few working-age people.
The obvious solution is to rationalize our immigration policies so we can increase, in a relatively short period of time, the number of people in our labor force. If we fail to do this, we'll be living with labor shortages for several generations or longer.