Under the Paperweight, June 7-13, 2009 1


Under the Sunroom Desk paperweight this week is an essay with secessionist tones, exploring the idea of breaking the United States into autonomous regional republics. Traction for extreme ideas like this increases as the federal government gains more control over business sectors, regional economies, and citizens’ personal lives.

Glendale’s options in this recession show the amount of control cities (and their citizens) have effectively ceded to higher levels of government.

Glendale rushed to apply for, and received, federal stimulus grants for several public works projects as the recent downturn hit city revenues.

Plans to bring jobs and revenues to Glendale revolve around use of redeveloment funds and tax credits which come from the federal and state government. Most leaders in this country (with exceptions now forced to reconsider) work within the system, competing for funds that come with strings attached.

American business innovators have often started small, but learned to work the system, whatever it might be. Financial sector reform, energy independence policies, and universal health care, each of them massive projects with correspondingly massive implications for local economies, are all being shaped by debate right now as top down directives for the country. Meanwhile, the impetus for future economic growth is likely to come from the bottom up, and local governments like Glendale should do all they can to foster it (stopping short of secession).


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