Several people got right to work upon being asked this question: How can we create jobs?
The Modesto Bee invited readers to share their ideas on how we can beat a recession that has pushed the jobless rate into double digits.
Their responses -- by e-mail, letter and phone -- ranged far and wide, and from big to small.
One reader suggested boosting exports, while another envisioned people working at art and music gatherings in Graceada Park.
Some talked of solar energy, software and other technical fields. Others urged free trade or import barriers.
Here are their responses -- glimmers of hope amid the gloomy economic news of late:
The Modesto area could provide software development and support for Bay Area companies, said Mark Dulle of Oakdale, who works in information technology.
This effort, aided by federal stimulus money, would be an alternative to the growing outsourcing of such services to foreign countries.
Dulle said such jobs would appeal to valley technology workers who are unemployed or commute to Bay Area jobs.
"The pay would be less than the Bay Area but higher than offshore rates dependent on the amount of government subsidization," he said.
Dulle added that Bay Area companies "could get some positive press from an onshore arrangement."
Federal stimulus money could expand the use of drip irrigation on farms, said Kathy Hughes of Riverbank, who is well-known for volunteer work with Community Hospice.
A growing number of farmers have adopted drip, which applies water close to plant roots, but many still use sprinkler or flood irrigation.
"Since 80 percent of our water is used for farming, why not use the funds to help farmers conserve water?" Hughes said.
"Putting the systems in place is very labor-intensive, utilizes local materials and will save water. We can live without better roads, but we cannot live without water."
Government can aid the creation of jobs by getting out of the way of entrepreneurs, said Al Kessler of Atwater.
He recalled running up against that city's home-business rules when he opened an accounting practice in the 1970s.
He also mentioned a Merced dress shop owner who was told to install a wheelchair- accessible restroom -- even though the building housing the shop already had one convenient to customers.
"Generally, government is the cause of the problem because their whole attitude is telling you what you can't do instead of what you can do," said Kessler, who has counseled business people through SCORE, formerly the Service Corps of Retired Executives.
Jobs in solar electricity would grow if the Modesto Irrigation District did more to encourage the technology, said Steve Hay of Modesto, who has worked in civil engineering design but now aims to be a science teacher.
Hay said the district could install solar panels along its canals and reverse a policy under which it does not buy surplus power from residential systems. He also said homeowners, not the MID, should receive renewable energy credits, which are traded in a national market aimed at boosting these sources.
"How many good jobs would be created by getting seriously into sustainable energy in a way that would incentivize even small energy users to invest in solar -- even if put on their neighbor's open field?" Hay said.
Creating jobs means using the natural resources around us, said George Cardoza of Turlock, who is retired from teaching welding and other skills at Modesto Junior College.
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