Sports has been an all time favorite past time in America. The south takes it to another height. Colleges are becoming more focused on sports rather than education. There are some cons and pros for this problem. The south has a long trail of racial problems, but sports bring people together and eliminate differences. Fans will join hands and cheer for same team side by side. You can go the deepest parts of Mississippi and Alabama and find fans that are willing to put race aside for sports. Sports also can greatly develop a small city and economy. Let me briefly talk about some schools that benefit from this. The first school is Ole Miss. I know Oxford is developing, but it is still in Mississippi. Mississippi is ranked number 50 on ACT scores, but has produced a host of great athletes. Ole Miss brings in a great deal of money from football. Their games are sold out and people pay top dollar to watch them play. Their basketball team has up and down years, but never gets close to football. You rarely hear about their educational achievements. Oxford is booming during football season locals enjoy the money they make, and the school enjoys donations.

            The second school I want to talk about is the University of Kentucky. The school is located in Lexington, Ky. Unlike Ole Miss, basketball is the money maker here. Kentucky has a long history for basketball, but with today’s technology it receives attention on a large scale. Social media exposes the institutions to other areas of the world and their fan base grows. Basketball is similar to a religion in Kentucky. They are lead by John Calipari, who was the former coach of the University of Memphis basketball team. Calipari is an excellent recruiter and signs the best high school players to play for him. The players he brings in are for the most part future NBA players. Fans enjoy it because you can attend a game and watch a good selection of future NBA players play for a cheaper price then going to an actual NBA game.

            The last school I want to talk about is Sweet Home Alabama. Legendary Tuscaloosa, Al is home to roll tide football. The University of Alabama loves and adores their football team. They invest so much money in the program. Their football stadium is state of art, and better than some NFL stadiums. Roll Tide football is big business. They have fans all over America with their winning attitudes. The football program brings in over 82 million dollars a year. This is large number, but the state’s education ranking does not reflect any investment from the college. Nick Saban is the head coach of this team and is the highest paid coach in college football. Saban makes 5.5 million dollars a year to coach football to players who are doing it for free.

            These schools are well known for their sports, but why is education not advertized and invested in as much. Education will last longer than any athletic ability. Boosters have got involved and now make money off sports for their own interest. We all have to realize that these players we watch and enjoy are still students, not dollar signs.

During the 1950s northern factory owners faced a problem. They were loosing money and workers. Unions, taxes, and education had started to eat away at their pockets. They were forces to move, but where to? As the owner of a major factory one has to always try to maximize profits. There are a host of things to consider when expanding your business. Factors such as location, worker skill, amount of labor, and unions. We have to find a place that can fulfill these factors. The American South sounds like a winner to me. Their is a abundance of rural land that can be developed into a powerful factory. We can do two options with the location. We can build the factory in the center of the land and make the rest of the land into a small town that we provide everything. We can build a grocery store, drug store, and maybe a bowling alley to give the workers something to do. We will also build housing that we will provide “free” of charge. We can send their most of their “checks” directly to the stores we provide so that they can get the things they need. This potentially can keep crime right low because people will not carry around a lot of cash. Option two is to build the factory near a city and have people drive to the job. We will have to pay them more because of the commute.

The South has a work force that is a owner’s dream. Everyone is desperate to work so we can offer low wages and they will accept. Their is a large population so placement will not be a issue. Many workers are illiterate so production will be slow in the beginning because of job training. The positive side of this is that we can turn these people into specialize for the company limiting their skills so they can depend on us. When we limit their skills to just fit our job requirements we also decrease the risk of strikes. Factory owners have a huge advantage over the workers. The workers in this area are not use to these type of labor. The South’s main labor was agriculture. The factory environment is a totally different from fielding the lands. The work conditions was horrible and dangerous, but southerners did not know the difference. They were not given benefits and children were also sought out to work.

Unions are the biggest factor when running a factory. We do not like Unions! I repeat we do not like Unions! Unions are a deal breaker. They have so many demands and try to turn workers against owners. Unions ask for too many benefits and try to add rules to the factory. If we can not agree to terms they organize strikes costing the company money. The factory can not function well with a union in place.

The South is a paradise for opening and running a productive factory. The rural area offers acres of room to build and develop factory. If the factory is built in the center factory owners can create small towns for its workers to reside. If the factory is built near a town the jobs will pay more to get you to travel to and from work. The workforce is huge and has low education, owners can mold them in the way they want. No Unions they are deal busters! They cause to many problems.

Memphis has long had a negative reputation of violence and being behind other urban cities.  Over time we have spent large amounts of money developing our city. Things in Memphis have greatly improved and has gained positive recognition. Many college graduates have chose Memphis as their new home. Memphis has a variety of post bachelor school options. The University of Tennessee medical school has a campus located in the downtown area. The school is walking distance to two of the regions finest hospitals. Being close to hospitals is a plus for prospective students.  This has brought a heavy flow of students from all over the country. The University of Memphis Law School is also located in downtown Memphis. The school was formally a post office. The location is close to the court systems downtown and many law firms. The law school has a high ranking as a best value law school and its approved by the American Bar Association. These factors have brought many people who plan on having a career in the legal field to Memphis.

Memphis is also a chose for chose who recent college graduates with a bachelors degree looking to start their career. This wonderful city has good weather, cheap cost of living, good food choices, and access to a major river. The weather is warm most of the year we rarely get snow. Warm weather is a plus for people not to comfortable with the cold. Though we are warm most of the time, it does not get as hot as Texas. The cost of living is a major plus for prospective people wanting to relocate. This is the most important factor, because you want to live comfortable within your budget. The cost of living in other major cities is very high so saving people a lot of money brings residents to town. One can easily rent a nice one bedroom apartment downtown for eight hundred to one thousand dollars a month depending on its amenities. This is a far cry from San Francisco where the same apartment goes for two thousand and five hundred dollars and up. If downtown is not your scene Memphis has a variety of nice apartment complexes around the city starting at five hundred a month for a one bedroom.

The city has a variety of excellent food choices. Bar-B-Que is the most famous food of the city. The style particular style Memphis makes it Bar-B-Que is different from other regions around the country. Memphis style of Bar-B-Que is “wet” which is a sauce based flavor applied to the meat. Many people love the different, but flavorful meat. Fried Chicken has also become a staple of Memphis. One of the restaurants that has brought many tourists in from around the world is Gus’s fried chicken. Memphis also has a host of comfort food diners which is a major attraction to people moving into the city. River Access is also determining factor when considering relocating. Rivers bring jobs, trade, and travel opportunities. Jobs are provided by the river by working on boats such as barges or studying the water life. Trade is a major economic benefit of easy access to river merchants and swap goods fast and easy. Traveling to other cities among the river’s trail is easy with the direct connection from Memphis. Memphis is a excellent place for college students to start their career in. The city has a great variety of schools, excellent weather, and a low cost of living. Make Memphis your new home we welcome you!

It has been a long road from birth to my current position as a college senior. I grew up poor in Orange Mound and saw a lot of things. I seen people with prominent futures go from living large to dead broke. I just took notes and applied them to my mind moving forward. I always felt Memphis was a very poor city and a death trap for those who had a chance to become very successful. The schools I went to from grades K-8 were in poor communities. I was accepted in a optional program at Overton High School for drama. The first day of class was a complete inter city culture shock. My fellow classmates had different views on things. They all listened different types of music. Their career goals were different from the kids from my previous schools. I was in for a life changing experience.

Most of the kids at my high school came from middle and upper-middle class families. They were not to familiar with the poor parts of Memphis. As time passed I befriended my classmates. I hung out their house and they hung out at mine. We swapped inter Memphis cultures. My house they enjoyed pizza and rotel. While at their house I enjoyed crab legs and shrimp. I think I came out the winner. Their parents had successful careers and were in a strong network. While hanging out I learn a lot about my city that was unknown in my community. I met and interacted with blacks who made six figures a year. This was unheard of I was completely shocked. I went to high end restaurants and attended formal events that surprised my expectations. I quickly learned that Memphis had a lot to offer.

Memphis was not as far behind as I thought. We have a host of things to be proud of. The corporate atmosphere is very competitive with other southern cities. FedEx, AutoZone, and other large companies have a strong effect on employment here. Memphis and its surrounding areas has a host of golf courses which has a positive effect on businessmen. I did not think a lot of people played golf, but I learned otherwise. Many of the upper-middle class would play golf together. This was a similarity to big cities. I was the caddy for a doctor for a summer and he exposed me to Memphis’s business world. I witnessed myself the strong networking of the elite. Many high dollar deals were made on the peaceful course. The city has slowly developed around me, and its having a positive effect on the college students. Students are now considering not to relocate. The downtown area made a excellent turn around. It has many things to do and some nice places to live. Streets have developed and security cameras have made the area safer. Memphis has shown me that it is not a death trap. People have become very successful in the city. I know now from going outside of my environment. My advice for tourists and fellow residents of Memphis is to go outside your comfort zone. You fear what you do not know. Get to know Memphis as a city and a thriving business center.