Develop education in Montana, not just coal

Minerals and timber, agriculture and oil are all important for Montana’s economy, but their value is constrained by market forces often beyond our control. Montana certainly relies on its resource economy, and we should be proud of the food and power we’ve provided the nation and world, but that’s not all we can be. Far too many of our state’s political leaders are more concerned about resource extraction than resource development.

We need to commit ourselves to developing the resource potential of our poorest students, who need stronger pre-school programs to prepare themselves for school, we need to develop the talent on our reservations so that a new generation of leaders can ensure the future of Montana’s first people, and we need to make sure that students in rural and high-poverty schools have access to the kind of technology that will ensure the kind of quality jobs that will let them stay in Montana. In short, we need to focus our energy on the one resource that is limitless, inexhaustible and not bound by market forces: human potential.

By DON POGREBA

Full Opinion: http://missoulian.com/articles/2008/05/09/opinion/guest/guest37.txt