Florida Governor Scott:"Florida doesn't need more anthropology majors."

[Au_Dreamers]

Could private sector salvage have a friend in Gov Scott?

Spending money on science and math degrees can help Floridians find work and provide a return on taxpayers' investments, Gov. Rick Scott said today in an interview on "The Marc Bernier Show" on WNDB-AM in Daytona Beach.

Scott said Florida doesn't need "a lot more anthropologists in this state."

"It's a great degree if people want to get it. But we don't need them here," Scott said.

http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-bu...opology-majors

The American Anthropological Association this afternoon released a letter is has sent to Gov. Rick Scott over comments he made Monday that Florida "doesn't need a lot more anthropologists in this state." "We don't need them here," he told a Daytona Beach radio host.

Scott's larger point was that Florida students would have an easier time finding jobs and help fulfill his campaign promise if they studied science, technology, engineering or math. In a move universities will oppose, Scott wants to move state money from liberal arts programs to other degrees he says will give students a better chance of finding work.

"We're spending a lot of money on education. You look at the results and they're not great. A lot of kids dropping out of school. They’re getting degrees that there is no job," Scott said today during a speech to the North East Business Association in Tallahassee.

"I got accused of not liking anthropology in the paper the other day. But let’s think about it," Scott continued. "How many more jobs you think there is for anthropology in this state? You want to use your tax dollars to educate more people that can’t get jobs in anthropology? I don’t."

http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-bu...-aim-gov-scott

[Au_Dreamers]

Maybe the Gov should be aware of this information...

From: Taffi Fisher Abt, President
Mel Fisher Center, Inc.
RE: “Oceans Act of 2000”

“Economically speaking, there is a domino effect that touches many industries not usually associated with salvage such as cultural tourism (including airlines, hotels, museums, rental car agencies, advertising, etc.) and the literary and film production fields and in turn many smaller industries are also affected. In the last decade, in the Sebastian, Florida area alone, my company has engaged employment for at least 1,500 people in fieldwork, systematically excavating the wrecks more than 8,000 days, recovering in excess of 38,500 artifacts with a monetary value in excess of $12,000,000 .00. From these artifacts, we donated more than 1,500 (most of the best) to the "People of the State of Florida" for their museums and collections valued in excess of $2,500,000. Tallahassee has a wonderful exhibit and the State sends exhibits all over the nation. We also have a traveling exhibition. Tens of thousands of school children and youth groups attend our exhibitions. We have also had hundreds documentaries, books, periodical articles, and even school texts written with this venture as their main subject. This in turn has generated substantial income to the industries of writers, news crews, TV and movie production companies, advertising agencies, moving companies, exhibit designers, etc. Copies of these books and videos such as Discovery Channel, National Geographic, A&E, etc. then get sold in bookstores, video stores, spreading not only economic gain but also knowledge and education of the general public.

In the last 8 years, we have enjoyed an attendance in excess of 105,000 visitors to our Sebastian museum alone (which showed demographically as an unsuccessful area for tourism) since opening in Dec. of 1992. More than $500,000.00 in attendance was generated back into commerce for expenses, employing another 80 people. Our museum/gift store has generated sales in excess of $2,600,000 over the last decade, and again, that money went back into the general mainstream of commerce. On this expedition alone in the past 8 years, our corporation has spent more than $2,600,000.00 in expenses at dive shops, marinas, fuel docks and grocery stores, welders, diesel engine mechanics, etc….again money that went back into the general mainstream of commerce.
Remember, ALL of the above facts are solely related to eleven shipwrecks in one small 60 square mile patch of earth.

Many major industries, in addition to the general economics industries mentioned above, may feel strong adverse economic impacts because, "In other words, dock builders, recreational divers and fisherman, charter boat operators, commercial fisherman, sub
marine cable layers, pipeline layers, Oil exploration corporations, Mineral Exploration corporations, etc.. will have to be educated, trained, and billions of dollars spent on changes, prevention techniques and measures.”

Sure looks like private sector salvage creates jobs and enhances Gov. Scott's jobs plan.

[baywalker]

I guess it all boils down to if we want FLA. to be A tourist area or look like Detroit .

[Bum Luck]

Anthropology majors mostly end up as public employees, telling taxpayers that we can't metal detect.

[ivan salis]

quite clearly what he means is we need more private sector jobs vs on the govt dole jobs -- jobs that actually produce items or services that are not tax payor funded jobs * but rather tax generating jobs --as a general rule archie type jobs cost tax payors money (ie they are govt funded positions) -- we need more private sector tax money making jobs (tax money producing jobs) --not tax payor funded "on the govt dole" jobs ( more tax money going out than coming in ) -- plus how much "demand" is there for archie majors here in florida , really who is hiring archie majors in florida at this time? state funding of college education needs to be focused on where the demand for workers is actually at --so the kids that the state is helping to fund will actually be gainfully employed once they actually graduate -(and thru the taxes that they will generate from their work they will help "put back into" the system that helped them get a education and thus a better job) -- there is a demand for science and other high tech job type folks as well as skilled laborers --we need more science and other high tech grads to help draw industry to florida by providing a quality workforce for industry .

[signumops]

Ivan got it right. Scott is not interested in pouring money into the student loans of people who would turn up in some faux science like anthropology or archaeology, subsequently becoming unemployable debtors who would not be able to pay back their loans to Florida's academic institutions.

So much for Indiana Jones. No wonder the archaeologists despise treasure hunters... here we are running amuck, no degree required, and we actually expect to dig in the dirt to MAKE money. We can declare bankruptcy, incorporate, publicize ourselves, make just about any claim we like, and generally avoid all of the masochistic clap-trap philosophy hanging around the neck of the quasi-scientific socialists.

[Alexandre]

(...) We can (...) make just about any claim we like

That's the trouble with treasure hunters.. they can claim they have found the Flor de la Mar or Drake's coffin and get away with it, without presenting any evidence...

[signumops]

On the contrary, it's no trouble at all! And, by the way, I think that archaeologists should be annointed by their peers, not academic institutions. To wit: Peter Throckmorton, who vehemently despised 'treasure hunters', never had a degree, ergo, was not an archaeologist. No matter that he got George Bass started in the Med. Throckmorton ended up selling frozen lobsters out of an ice chest at the side of the road in Fort Lauderdale. Couldn't get a job. That certainly makes no sense.

So the real rub for archaeologists is that they are perceived as a variety of 'treasure hunter' by the public at large and would, as a group, commit some sort of genocidal assault on 'treasure hunters' if possible so that the genus of 'archaeologist' would achieve some respectability in the public eye. Too bad: you would have to kill everybody else who disagreed with you because, at heart, everybody is a treasure hunter to one degree or another.

[Bum Luck]

On the contrary, it's no trouble at all! And, by the way, I think that archaeologists should be annointed by their peers, not academic institutions. To wit: Peter Throckmorton, who vehemently despised 'treasure hunters', never had a degree, ergo, was not an archaeologist. No matter that he got George Bass started in the Med. Throckmorton ended up selling frozen lobsters out of an ice chest at the side of the road in Fort Lauderdale. Couldn't get a job. That certainly makes no sense.

So the real rub for archaeologists is that they are perceived as a variety of 'treasure hunter' by the public at large and would, as a group, commit some sort of genocidal assault on 'treasure hunters' if possible so that the genus of 'archaeologist' would achieve some respectability in the public eye. Too bad: you would have to kill everybody else who disagreed with you because, at heart, everybody is a treasure hunter to one degree or another.

That doesn't even address the academic incest, dogma, and jealousies that pervade archeological academia. Ugh!

Let's face it: the British have a much more rational system, one in which a metal detectorist is reasonably rewarded and praised for his finds.

[ivan salis]

treasure hunters can make any "claim" they want -- THEY JUST HAVE TO HAVE THE "STUFF" TO SHOW FOLKS WHAT THEY FOUND * -- ARCHIES CAN CLAIM FINDS AND STILL LEAVE IT IN THE OCEAN WHERE NO ONE BUT THEM OR OTHER DIVING ARCHIES CAN EVER SEE IT ( IE SCREW THE PUBLIC AT LARGE -THE VERY FOLKS WHO PAIDED FOR THE FINDING OF SAID ITEMS)-- TREASURE HUNTERS HAVE TO "PRODUCE THE GOODS" FOR INSPECTION OR GET LAUGHED AT AND CALLED LAIRS.

[signumops]

Hey Bum Luck:
We HAD a similar system here at one time... government called it "the incidental finds program". Even that has been torched.

Some fine goodies there ... Carumba!

[Bum Luck]

(...) We can (...) make just about any claim we like

That's the trouble with treasure hunters.. they can claim they have found the Flor de la Mar or Drake's coffin and get away with it, without presenting any evidence...

That's the trouble with Archeologists; they can take a quote completely out of context.

Here's the original post:

Ivan got it right. Scott is not interested in pouring money into the student loans of people who would turn up in some faux science like anthropology or archaeology, subsequently becoming unemployable debtors who would not be able to pay back their loans to Florida's academic institutions.

So much for Indiana Jones. No wonder the archaeologists despise treasure hunters... here we are running amuck, no degree required, and we actually expect to dig in the dirt to MAKE money. We can declare bankruptcy, incorporate, publicize ourselves, make just about any claim we like, and generally avoid all of the masochistic clap-trap philosophy hanging around the neck of the quasi-scientific socialists.

[Alexandre]

To wit: Peter Throckmorton, who vehemently despised 'treasure hunters', never had a degree, ergo, was not an archaeologist. No matter that he got George Bass started in the Med.

I always say to my students: a degree in archaeology doesn't make you an archaeologist. And vice-versa.

[FISHEYE]

Gov scott iis right.when i found a petrified part of a index fiinger bone on vero beach i called several Anthropologists around vero and central florida.Every single one of them said to turn it over to the police dept that maybe it was a from a murder victim.I said what?A victim from 10,000 years ago,I told them it was petrified meaning it has turned to stone.They are all idiots.I dont know what they teach them in college.

[GatorFrog]

Being new to MD, I have a few questions:
1) Is there a national metal detector(ist) association to protect and promote metal detecting rights?
2) How about for the state of Florida?
3) If no such association exists, how is metal detecting being promoted in political circles?