Marcus zings JCDC (5/13/04)

An annual opportunity to thank the businesses and industries of Jay County also featured more than a few good-natured insults and frank advice from a well-known Indiana economist.

It’s been several years since recently-retired Indiana University professor Morton Marcus has been to Jay County for Jay County Development Corporation’s annual industrial appreciation dinner. Despite Marcus’ claim of “mellowing,” his talk to a diverse group gathered Wednesday at the Portland Country Club was anything but mellow.

Marcus, whose weekly column Eye On The Pie appears in The Commercial Review each Monday, railed against what he called the “stupidity” of the management of most Indiana industries, argued for the “reinstatement” of tax cuts passed in the past five years by the Indiana General Assembly, and told state leaders to stop blaming the educational system for many of Indiana’s problems.

He also lobbied for efficiency in both government and the private sector, saying Indiana’s multi-layer system of government — a system that includes elected officials at the township level — is wasteful.

During brief remarks prior to Marcus’ talk, JCDC executive director Robert Quadrozzi and board president Chuck Huffman thanked those in attendance, saying that the county’s businesses and industries are an essential ingredient to the community.

“There are so many people who contribute to making my job easier,” Quadrozzi said. “We’ve got a good cooperative effort going here in Jay County.”

One of the most serious economic problems facing the Hoosier state, Marcus said, is a persistent lag in personal income. Indiana residents make 12 percent less than the average U.S. wage.

“It’s necessary to have people who are willing to make noise ... to wake up the barnyard,” Marcus said. “We have to see to it that Hoosiers have more money,” he added with a rising voice.

Hoosiers, who by nature are conservative and comfortable, says Marcus, need to bring flexibility and innovation to the workplace.

“Companies need to think in such a flexible fashion that the Indiana Department of Commerce is overwhelmed with requests for assistance,” Marcus said. “Most of the problems we have (in industry in Indiana) ... are with management.”

Marcus, the director emeritus of the Indiana Business Research Center at the Kelley School of Business, Indiana University, feels state leaders have taken the wrong approach to the “brain drain” in Indiana that sees a net loss of college graduates to other states.

Noting that Lilly Endowment has allocated $40 million to keeping more Indiana students at home, Marcus said “I want to see $40 million spent to bring people from other places here.”

Marcus said he would like our college graduates to move away and not return until they have gained experience in other parts of the world.

Other targets of verbal jabs thrown Wednesday by Marcus:

•Purdue University, the alma mater of many in attendance — “Naturally if you have Purdue people, you don’t get flexibility of mind.”

•State legislators. Despite a promise that he wouldn’t be too hard on the Indiana General Assembly because District 33 State Rep. Ron Liggett and GOP nominee Bill Davis were both there Wednesday, he was, saying that generally nice and capable people lose those qualities when they become legislators.

•One of the Big Four automakers (“You know what GM stands for? Gross Mismanagement.”)

•Quadrozzi. “You ever notice how much help Bob has? Maybe he needs a cut in pay.”[[In-content Ad]]