Bill Gates, Education, Contradiction and Irony

[Bussardre@aol.com]

Am I the only one who sees a contradiction here in what Bill Gates is  
saying.  On one hand he joins in school reform efforts that treat kids like  so many 
widgets off an assembly line and then he says he wants to hire  intelligent 
workers who "do a lot on their own"--in other words, independent  thinkers and 
self-starters, not regimented robots. 
He said: 
"K-12 and university education trump all  others in attracting new business," 
Gates insisted. The technology and biological industries are far  more 
sensitive to locating near brains than to tax policies, Gates  said. 
then adds..... 
"It's amazingly ironic," Gates conceded,  that he wants employees with 
four-year degrees who do a lot on their own  and embrace technology. The key  
limitation on expanding business is not money, Gates says. It is finding people  who 
meet the right criteria.
--billee
_http://www.sptimes.com/2005/08/20/Columns/Gates_says_to_stress_.shtml_ 
(http://www.sptimes.com/2005/08/20/Columns/Gates_says_to_stress_.shtml) 
Gates says to stress education
 (http://www.sptimes.com/columns/morgan.shtml) 
MORGAN   
____________________________________
 E-mail:
_Click  here_ (mailto:morgan@sptimes.com) By LUCY MORGAN, Times Tallahassee  
Bureau Chief
Published August 20, 2005
 
____________________________________
SEATTLE - It's not tax incentives that attract bright minds and tech savvy  
businesses to a state, Microsoft founder Bill Gates told state legislators this 
 week.  
"K-12 and university education trump all others in attracting new business,"  
Gates insisted. 
The technology and biological industries are far more sensitive to locating  
near brains than to tax policies, Gates said. 
"You can go overboard on those things," he added. 
When an area comes up with a breakthrough in medicine or some other important 
 field, it doesn't depend on taxes. 
"It's a positive R and D (research and development) environment and a state  
where the talent enjoys coming and working there and raising kids in that  
location." 
Perhaps Florida didn't have to spend more than $350-million in taxpayer money 
 to lure the Scripps Foundation to the state? 
Perhaps it should have been invested in education, said Rep. Curtis  
Richardson, D-Tallahassee after hearing Gates. 
Richardson and about 55 other Florida lawmakers and some legislative staffers 
 are among the 7,000 people gathered in Seattle for the National Conference 
of  State Legislatures. It's a chance for legislators to catch up with events 
in  other states and attend sessions on many important issues affecting us all. 
Seattle has attracted almost twice as many lawmakers as Salt Lake City did  
last year - a credit to its location in the far northwestern corner of the  
United States and cool August weather. 
Like anything that attracts lawmakers, the conference has attracted its share 
 of lobbyists. Twenty-four of Florida's big businesses sent lobbyists to 
sponsor  a dinner at the Waterfront Grill, a pricey restaurant on the banks of 
Puget  Sound. Lobbyists Keyna and Jack Cory put the dinner together and greeted 
about  125 members of the Florida delegation Wednesday night. 
Lawmakers also got a chance to see the Mariners take on the Kansas City  
Royals at Safeco Field and spent another night at the Space Needle, the  
distinctive spire built for the 1962 World's Fair. 
Nighttime events played out under a full moon with the snow-covered peaks of  
Mount Rainier in the background and ferry boats making their regular runs to  
Bremerton and Vashon Island. Not a bad backdrop for any conference. 
Yes, it's a trip made primarily at taxpayer expense, but most of those  
attending seem to be spending lots of time at the Seattle Convention & Trade  
Center listening to folks like Gates talk about ways to solve problems. 
More than 2,000 jammed the auditorium to hear Gates, described by University  
of Washington president Mark Emmert as "the world's most famous college  
dropout." 
Gates dropped out of Harvard to start Microsoft and never looked back, but  
nowadays he hires college graduates and spends a lot of time urging young 
people  to stay in college. 
"It's amazingly ironic," Gates conceded, that he wants employees with  
four-year degrees who do a lot on their own and embrace technology. 
The key limitation on expanding business is not money, Gates says. It is  
finding people who meet the right criteria. 
Gates got into computers when he was 13. With the help of Microsoft  
co-founder Paul Allen, Gates got access to computers at the University of  Washington 
in the early morning hours when they were not in use. 
"So if you think the resources at universities aren't being used enough, you  
are wrong," Gates joked. "And if there is a 13-year-old out wandering across 
the  campus at 3 a.m., leave him alone." 
Immigration restrictions imposed by the United States since 9/11 are  
affecting the flow of great minds into the country, Gates complained. We need to  
keep a balance between the need for national security and the flow of brain  
power to great universities. 
Gates also thanked the state legislators for getting involved in laws that  
attempt to stop spam. Even Gates gets spam. 
"I was offered a college degree on the Internet, and another one offered to  
pay all my legal costs for a few dollars a month," Gates joked.[Last modified 
August 20, 2005,  01:14:08]