Over the next couple of days, Glenn will be talking to some fascinating people who are looking to change the education landscape in the U.S. Tonight, former congressman Ron Paul joins the Glenn Beck Program to talk about his homeschooling initiative that hopes to see 25% of American children homeschooled. On Wednesday, Mike Rowe, host of Discovery Channel’s Dirty Jobs, visits the program to talk about his exciting new scholarship program aimed at getting high school seniors ready to enter the workforce with the skills they need to land the jobs that are available in the U.S. Both men are seeking to change the status quo, and, as Glenn explained on radio this morning, it is vital that we continue to teach our children the value of hard work.
Glenn explained his first foray with interns was not the least bit positive. While broadcasting in Philadelphia, Glenn had an intern assigned to his show that wasn’t interested in doing much of anything. That experience caused Glenn to swear off interns for a number of years. But recently Mercury Radio Arts and TheBlaze have found tremendous talent through its internship programs.
“We've got a lot of employees that have come from the intern pool,” Glenn explained. “And they are superstars.”
This morning, Glenn heard a story about one of TheBlaze’s current interns in Dallas that reaffirmed his belief in just how important it is to give hard working, driven people a chance.
“This morning, I'm in a meeting somebody gives me a letter and says, ‘Hey, I got this email. Do you know if this is true?’ It was about somebody here working as an intern. And she's walking four and a half miles to a bus stop. And gets on the bus and comes here and finishes her work, gets on a bus, and walks four and a half miles back to home,” Glenn explained. “I stopped the meeting this morning, and I went and tracked down her boss and said, ‘Is this true.’ And they said, ‘Yes, it is.’ And I said, ‘Well I want to shake her hand today.’”
“In today's world, somebody who will walk four and a half miles for an internship – that's just remarkable. That is exactly the kind of people that we need. These are the people,” he continued. “And I really truly believe, when you give people an opportunity and you say, ‘Look, you can do it. You can make it.’ That's what apprenticeships are all about. Do you know how much we can teach and how much we can learn from one another, if the government gets their big fat nose out of our space?”
When you consider the current cost of a 4-year college degree costs upwards of $200,000, Glenn explained the cost/benefit analysis of an apprenticeship program would be beneficial to both the apprentice and the company.
“Do you know how much money we can save? And I don't mean as a company. I mean how much money can we save people from the university nightmare. Let me see. I could teach you how to do business, and I won't charge you anything. Hmm. Or you could go and you could get a worthless piece of paper from a university, and it will cost you 50, 100, 150, 200, $250,000. And then you leave there with what,” Glenn asked. “Did you even find yourself because I know that's what you were trying to do? Or are you walking back and forth thinking, ‘How in the hell am I ever going to pay off this debt?”
“It’s a crazy world. And it's time for revolutionary thinking because those who created this, the people who created this problem, are not going to be able to solve this problem,” Glenn continued. “And the people who create this had problem are definitely not going to be able to fix this problem using the same tools and thinking that we created this problem with.”
A small-government, individual liberty minded individual would hear the story of the intern walking 9 miles everyday to get to her internship as a story that illustrates hard work and determination. A big-government minded individual hears that same story, however, and tries to come up with a way for the government to fix it.
“The left would use that story as a justification for $10 million in new busing money… this person is walking four and a half miles to the bus station so we need a billion dollars with new buses and rail system,” Stu explained. “Whereas you are using it as somebody overcoming their obstacles.”
“That shows me who is going to make it. That separates the sheep from the goats. That one action says something to me. There's something special about this individual,” Glenn concluded. “Let me use the President's own script: Don't give up. It's worth it. Just keep trying.”
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