When America Recovers, Where Will The Signs Go?

If you have driven on a highway in the past year, you've probably seen one of the obnoxious signs as you've driven along advertising that the miserable traffic and construction you are limping through is brought to you by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The ARRA is the wonderfully creative name for President Obama's 787 billion dollar stimulus package that was signed into law on February 17, 2009. The ARRA was brought to you by President Obama and the Democratic Super Majority in Congress who thought it necessary to help jumpstart the economy and put people back to work after well…George W. Bush. So in the past 10 months, $787 billion has been distributed throughout this great land to in order to infuse cash into all aspects of our struggling economy. Much of this cash, $80.9 billion, was put under the purview of Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood for the purposes of investing in infrastructure. So the highway workers of America went out and began “shovel-ready” highway and roadway construction projects. Begin the traffic jams.

Now while you’ve been driving down the highway, stuck in traffic due to an off-ramp expansion or lane expansion, you seen these wonderful signs that say “This project funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.” I think it’s great that the government has decided to spend good money on repairing and rebuilding roads and highways especially in New Hampshire (where road repair is pretty low on the totem pole). The funding puts people back to work whose work is usually seasonal and it keeps motorists safe. However I do have one problem with the project, what about the signs? Wherever there is a project taking place with the help of ARRA money, there must be a sign. How much do these bad boys cost? Well the answer is sure to have you join the Tea Partiers down in D.C. My friends those signs are reported to have cost $2,000 bucks a pop.1 Yes that’s right, $2,000! I don’t know about you but I could think of a lot of things to help stimulate me for $2,000. Not only that but there is never just one sign, there is at least two (one on each side of the highway). Multiply that by the other side of the highway and the project costs $8,000 just in “advertising”. Dear Federal Government, we know you are doing construction, WE’RE STUCK IN IT.

Now the cost of the signs isn’t even what really upsets me. It’s what will happen to the signs when the ARRA has run out of money. Now knowing the Federal government, I don’t suspect that they will be in a position to “re-use”. So what will happen to the signs? Well I have a proposition that will avoid me having to direct my grandchildren to this post when we drive on a crappy highway to see one of these signs in a museum that I have to pay $12.50 to get into 50 years from now. They should give the signs back. After the ARRA runs out of money it should be open season on these signs and I can take one at my leisure. I’ve got a dorm room with some empty wall space. Just please, I can’t bear to think about the thousands of dollars of signage that will sit in a warehouse. Or even make money off the signs. Put ad space on it. I can see it now, “This project brought to by the American Recovery and Re-investment Act and by Budweiser, drinking and driving FOR YOU!”



1. http://sweetness-light.com/archive/stimulus-road-signs-in-pennsylvania-cost-60000-themorningcall-com

RLCs: What have you done for us lately?

This article, co-written with Eric Ricci'10, appeared in the December 11th, 2009 issue of the Saint Anselm Crier. The opinions expressed in the article are opinions and not meant to be a personal attack on those people involved with the program in which the article critiques. It was meant to be a constructive criticism. I, and Mr. Ricci, welcome any and all comments.

Since becoming students at Saint Anselm College over three years ago, we have seen the Office of Residential Life and Education attempt to find new ways of engaging students. One program that they have instituted this year is the beginning of Residential Learning Communities. What that means is that three apartments in Father Bernard Court have been taken over so that twelve people (less than ¼ of 1% of the student population) can further a common interest by living together. In return for not having to participate in that God-awful Housing Lottery, these “RLCs” are supposed to provide significant programming and opportunities for the larger campus community. The idea of putting students in an apartment in order to foster a worthy interest and then to promote it to the student body is an admirable endeavor. In our experience, it only looks good on paper. Thus, we would like to pose a question to “Think BIG Think Green,” “The Art House,” and “The Un-Armed Allies”; what have you done for us lately?

A couple of years ago, the college began a Greening Initiative. We applaud this effort and want to do our part to help; in fact, we have. As members of the Knights of Columbus, we established the first effective recycling program on campus. Every Saturday, we borrow one of the physical plant trucks, collect recyclables from students in the Uppers, and then from the Goffstown Women’s Prison, finally bringing all of it to the Goffstown Transfer Station. Last year we recycled over 2,000 pounds of material receiving no assistance from any of the college’s three greening programs. Since the beginning of the semester, we have not seen anyone from Think Big Think Green, the Green Team and “Greening the College” at our weekly pick-ups. Frankly, this is an embarrassment. After Think Big Think Green sent a school wide email, simply with directions to the transfer station, the Knights decided to take it to the next level by offering to pick up the recyclables. Think Big Think Green is in its second year of existence and their actions have been non-existent. Where do the funds from the $3 Christmas cards go? If the money that is raised is used to provide recycling bins for each apartment, your mission would be realized. Where are the weekly greening tips we were promised? Guess they stopped after we were told to pick, not buy, flowers for Valentine’s Day only to realize that there was three feet of snow on the ground. What have you done for us lately? Where is the accountability? As for The Art House and The Un-Armed Allies, we’re not even sure of your purpose. Un-Armed Allies, we just figured out what your name was three days ago, let alone what you do. Art House, kudos on the Art Competition you are holding, that’s what you’re supposed to do. We would like to see more of both of your houses promoting events on campus and further integrating yourselves. However, now, we believe that you programs are draining funds from the college (a.k.a our tuition dollars) for not much return on our investment.

This is by no means meant to be a personal attack on the twelve people who want to further the missions of their houses. Again, the RLC programs sound good on paper; they simply need to be explored further. We hope that this article will help you realize that you not only have a programming, but a public relations problem as well. You could be doing many quality things; we just don’t know that they are happening. So please RLCs, we think you could do something great, so be like Nike, and just do it! In the meantime, we will continue to ask, what have you done for us lately?