No apologies need be made, nor any further action taken. That one moviemaker in a profession to which many of Ball State's undergraduate programs educate future leaders got more than the university bargained for in an isolated incident is no cause for alarm.
Of more concern is that Gregory hopes to make Muncie a Midwestern center for producing "adult entertainment," something that economic development officials probably won't quickly sign on to.
Gregory said he is proud to be affiliated with his tawdry trade, though we note that five students recruited for bit parts in the film (nothing revealing) requested their names not be released. They must not be so proud, and perhaps they learned in their years at Ball State how degrading pornography can be to women
Today had this letter about the future of Muncie and I think it is so very applicable to us here in Anderson (and Marion and places in between):
WHEN I WATCHED Armed & Famous on CBS, I noticed one major problem. Many of our citizens are apparently drug users, specifically, crack-cocaine addicts. And that concerns me. It concerns me because many of these addicts are poor. Now, we could blame it on their lifestyle, and much of that is true, they do choose to use that drug every day. However, I believe it stems from a much larger problem.
Muncie has lost her pride. People in this town have little to be happy about. Yes, we have two Wal-Marts and a fabulous mall, and you can pig out at a large variety of restaurants, but that is not enough. Without good-paying jobs, it will eventually affect our retailers and restaurants. Many youths in high school know that Muncie has nothing to offer. From about their freshman year on, they decide on which college they can attend to get as far away as they can from Muncie. And they never return. Pride in a town can make a difference.
This kind of pride has to be seen in our leaders and it cannot be false because people who live without hope can see through false pride. So, here is a letter to the future mayor of Muncie. You are going to have to become a great sales person. You need to take this position because you believe in Muncie, you believe in the potential of her citizens and you believe that Muncie can be much better than what we see today. You are going to have to forget about what Muncie use to be, and start focusing on what Muncie can be. You need to be able to rally us.
MORE THAN THAT, you better plan on selling Muncie to business tycoons and leaders who are looking for real estate and about 5,000 new employees. Not some little $10 an hour job, but jobs that pay real life income.
All that does apply to Anderson. What does not have an easy application for Anderson is this: Muncie's manufacturing industry declines as jobs in live sciences continue to grow.
A survey of life science jobs throughout the country shows that Muncie ranked fourth in the nation among small cities for research, testing and laboratory employment.
The rankings -- which showed Indianapolis was ninth in the nation among large cities for biosciences employment -- is the kind of rating that local officials enjoy, because it portrays a community as technologically progressive.
But the jobs are also high-paying and secure because they are not dependent on potentially volatile industries like automaking.
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