Dear Bubba,
Thanks again for your latest invitation to return to Alabama. I know
you've
been a good friend for many years, and I appreciate that very much.
Throughout our friend****p we have discussed Alabama and its various
political and social situations many times. Even though my family and I
are
Alabama-born, we cannot consider returning to our home state.
The political situation is one thing. I see where a former governor is
under
indictment. And then there's the state legislature. Do you remember the
time
some years back when one legislator was assaulted by another in a
Montgomery
bar in an argument over a woman? As we have returned to the state from
time
to time, we notice that most people we talk with about the lottery are in
favor of the idea, but are so distrustful of the legislature that such a
proposal will probably never be passed.
The state just doesn't seem to be capable of raising some ethical person
like Zell Miller who could lead the state into a decent future.
And I cannot overlook the job climate. You are very fortunate to have so
many well-placed relatives in good jobs in both government and industry.
I'm
thinking in particular of your Uncle Charlie. I don't have such a
benefactor
who would be willing and able to offer at least a beginning position when
one opened. As you know, I've visited the state many times in the past and
have applied over and over at many places. You would think a native son
and
college graduate with years of experience from living and working in the
state would help. Apparently such a detail makes no difference to
employers.
And the politics of just getting on. why, it's incredible. The cost of
living in Alabama seems to be as high or higher than the surrounding
states.
The cost of houses, cars and groceries are too high for the social
environment that has to be endured. And that's in the face of the old
axiom
of it's not what you know but who you know. In Alabama that is more than
an
axiom, it's a way of life.
I was talking with Joe Ray the other day on the phone, and he said that
you
would not believe what it took for him to get a job as a school custodian.
Think of it. having to jump through political hoops just to get a job
cleaning commodes in a thirty-year-old school. Until we talked, I had
thought about trying to work in the Alabama public school sector. What Joe
told me caused me to back up a bit in my thinking. And even though Joe has
such talent as a mechanic and repair person, they would not place him in
any
job other than custodian. He applied for several maintenance jobs, but the
custodial job was all they would offer. All because he was a stranger
coming
into the system and had no benefactor inside.
I heard or somewhere that someone had described Birmingham as being a
cultural wasteland. My family and I would have to agree with that. How
many
murders in the city every day now, two or three? Yeah, I would say that's
beginning to look pretty barren as far as a place to live. And I see where
the whites are taking their urban sprawl to the little towns of Chelsea
and
Calera. That's too bad. Those used to be such quiet little places to live.
Well, I better close for now. Bubba, I want to tell you again how much I
appreciate your friend****p. It would be great to return to Alabama and for
our families to live closer again. Maybe one day. maybe.
Your friend,
Lee
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