EDITOR’S NOTE: This first appeared in our blog, OutieLookingIn.com on Monday, May 24th. I have “migrated” it over as part of our online redesign.

Like most of the country, Alabama is currently sweating underneath a hot blanket of political primaries. I heard an ad the other day on the radio for a state senate seat that began with a roll call of sorts asking if the senator who had, “outsourced our jobs to Mexico,” was in attendance.

Aside from the further ridiculousness the ad presented, the opening salvo got me thinking. Just what message is this guy trying to convey? That he is going to miraculously bring back all these “jobs” that went to “Mexico”? What jobs is he even talking about?

Here is what he failed to mention in his ad though:

• There are 11 major manufacturing or operation centers in a 15 mile stretch of Interstate 85 South which provide virtually all of the steady employment in our area
• Of those 11, 10 are “foreign” corporations or businesses with headquarters overseas
• Of the 1 remaining, it is a company headquartered in the mid-west who OUTSOURCED its manufacturing to Alabama because of the non-union, lower wage environment

So, would someone please ask this senator, if elected if he plans to close those 11 operations down and send the jobs back to the country or state that spawned them?

Outsourcing is an easy term to toss about during election season. Mexico is a popular target these days given all the immigration rhetoric. Put the two together, or somehow imply that all of our unemployment woes are due to sending jobs overseas ignores one major counter argument: Alabama is the recipient of a major chuck of labor outsourcing. Your state may be in a similar position.

I would invite this candidate, or any candidate, to detail his plans for improving high school dropout rates, overall quality of education, broadband initiatives, infrastructure improvements and in general providing a new state constitution which altogether will help keep the jobs currently outsourced to Alabama and probably even attract some new ones.

In closing, here is my own roll call, “Will the elected officials who have a real plan to move this state forward please stand up? Anyone? Bueller?”