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Health & Fitness

Govern locally recruit globally? Look Outside the U.S. for New City Manager?

We import cars and clothes , why not a city manager?

There have been problems for months now, finding a new city manager. I along with almost a half dozen other people attended the public meeting about progress which  included public input on the effort . The meeting at the library was hosted by Mayor Cassidy and Council member Souza.

To their credit they did do community outreach in both the local paper and over the Internet. I'm sure if you asked citizens who our last city manager was, ninety percent would not know, yet it is at least  as important as any elected position.

At the meeting I suggested we have a manager who took on usury (maybe through the police department) and go after the millions in commercial tax loopholes not collected by the city,and the billions statewide and also appoint an ambassador to Silicon Valley to recruit more businesses to our fair city.

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I admitted the last two ideas contradicted each other which the Mayor jokingly picked up on.

I have been reading Dean Baker's new book, "The End of Loser Liberalism: Making Markets Progressive." He makes many sound arguments for creating jobs and making the market more competitive and fairer.

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One idea is to expand our global competition not only for the less educated classes but to the professionals as well. We could actually give poorer people a break by reducing the overvalued dollar which would create more manufacturing jobs domestically. Many professionals would be quick to argue that it would dip into their travel expenses but it would be good for the country and the country's have nots.

If we don't want to adjust the dollar' Baker argues why not expose the professional classes to competition. Doctors make twice as much money in the U.S. as in Europe and corporate executives ten times as much.

Why not also think about recruiting a city manager from overseas as well. We pay the city manager over $250,000, more money than our Secratary of State Hillary Clinton as well as all the other cabinet members. Most cabinet members make just under $200,000 a year.

I'm sure there are many city planner PH.d.s from Europe , Asia, Africa and South America who would be more than happy to compete for the position and willing to work for a half of what the going salary is. 

Baker's book which is avalable free online, suggests that if we had an international Medicare system we could get surgeries done overseas for half the price which would strengthen Medicare and reduce the budget deficit.

We as a country have been quick to put our manufacturing workers up against foreign competition that make less than two dollars a day. We have been quick to pinch the poor and end welfare as we know it and point a finger at public sector workers who have pensions but we still pamper the executive class and professionals.

Journalism for that matter also faces stiff international competition.

Let's think outside the box and look for a manager from a well run city overseas. They may also bring some new ideas to local government  and about greening the city and doing it at a cost that saves the taxpayer money. Our city managers in the past have not even lived in San Leandro. I'm sure we could find a non American who would love to live here in San Leandro.

Conservatives and liberals are happy to see our poorer people compete in the fierce new global economy. Something like 470 out of our Fortune 500 companies have production in China.

Why should we think this is OK while we practice protectionism for our professionals. This is both uncompetitive and unfair.

The city should not only think outside the box but maybe outside the country! And if we got the word out that we were looking outside the country many Bay Area city managers might not keep looking down their noses at the $250,000 position.

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