America's economic health hasn't hit here

Unemployment in America is now at an all time low.

I was speaking at to a small group of seniors at a high school in southern West Virginia back in early June, just before graduation. I had been invited to take part in a small career seminar for the senior, entitled "What will you do with the rest of your life?"

In fact, I said, much of American business today is worried about where they're going to get the people they need to fill their new job openings.

Blank stares. I was getting blank stares from most of these kids. But I read the USA Today regularly. I knew how great things were, what promise these kids could look to for the future. I felt like I was preaching a revival at a pentacostal church.

In fact, I was pacing a little in front of this group of about a dozen kids, anybody in America who wants to work now, can in the current job market.

I had their attention, at least.

If you aren't working in today's economy, I took a deep breathe, it's because you don't want to!

A hand went up.

Yes? I asked. The boy was kind of stocky and had on old jeans and a t-shirt.

You mean, my Dad can work if he wants to?

In America today: yes, I said firmly.

So, you're saying my old man just don't wanna work...

Well, ah, I don't really know your father. I tried to figure out how I could back out of this without giving up my point.

We'll leave the conversation at that with a simple acknowledgement that (if it hadn't been purely fictional for the sake of this article) it would have gone down hill quickly.

America's economy really is as good as it has perhaps ever been. We have Bill Clinton to thank for that. Or maybe not. Maybe we have six years of Republicans in Congress to thank for tempering the economic disasters Clinton would have given us if he'd been allowed. Or maybe it's all Alan Greenspans fault; blame Greenspan for the marvelous state of America's economy. Or (my favorite theory) it just could be that government is over rated; maybe the private sector deserves the credit for the strength of America's economy. We'll probably never know...

But the economy is marvelous. And what does Appalachia get out of that?

Nothing.

Let me rephrase that. The benefits of American urban prosperity on Central Appalachia can be described and measured with a variety of terms: nada, zip, zero, squat.

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