Last Sunday, a friend and I were driving through Frayser and North
Memphis, on our way back to Midtown. We’d paddled around a lake in
Shelby Forest and caught a few fish, but mostly the day was about
getting out and enjoying the first sunshine in two weeks.
On North Watkins, we began noticing trash along the roadside. It was
everywhere — cans, bottles, Styrofoam cups, plastic bags, you
name it. My friend speculated that the trash had been deposited by the
Wolf River during the recent high water. A good theory, I agreed, but
somebody had to toss all this crap out at some point. The river and its
adjacent lakes were just hiding it from view.
So here’s an idea for the new mayor: Put a bounty on trash. Yes, I
know a “bottle bill” is bouncing around the legislature, and if it
passes it should help get recyclables off the street. But why not take
the next step and allow civic groups, schools, churches, etc. the
option of raising money by cleaning up Memphis? Call it the “Buck a
Bag” program. Heck, a local school could make a thousand bucks in an
afternoon by picking up the junk piled along Watkins. Each kid and
teacher would only have to pick up a few bags. Separating recyclables
would bring in even more money.
The largest determinant of whether or not a person will commit a
criminal act is poverty. That is, statistically, the poorer someone is,
the more likely they are to commit a criminal act. This city’s biggest
problem is poverty, which leads to crime — which most people
think is the city’s biggest problem. But it’s all intertwined, a
vicious cycle of poverty, poor education, drugs and alcohol, and crime.
We either drastically reduce the number of people caught in that cycle,
or we become the Detroit of the South.
For years, we’ve granted businesses tax relief, given developers
sweetheart deals, and tossed millions at downtown development. Let’s
take some of that jack and inject it into the bottom of the economic
food chain instead of throwing it at the top and hoping it trickles
down.
We can’t eliminate poverty overnight. But maybe a “trash into cash”
plan might help. Maybe those of us who live here can create the real
Best of Memphis. Honestly, I’m not sure of anything, except that there
are probably lots of other ideas out there. If you’ve got one, e-mail
me.
Let’s turn this ship.
