WWW.ALOA.ORG DECEMBER 2022 KEYNOTES 53 “If done correctly, state licensing could have added or led to legitimacy of our beloved profession in many eyes and could have fought the scammer issues.” Locksmith License Repeal. This is on the bad list only be- cause, if done correctly, state licensing could have added or led to legitimacy of our beloved profession in many eyes and could have fought the scammer issues. Unfortunately, most evolved into a money grab for the state and had little to do with benefiting legitimate locksmiths. Politics. ’Nuff said. Weather. OK, as a son of the South, I am accustomed to waking up and wearing a jacket heading to work and be- ing in shorts or speedo by 2 p.m. (sorry for the visual), but let’s be real. This year of 2022, even back into 2021, has been one very weird weather event after another. Snow in Texas, sweltering in New York and Chicago … no wonder everyone was cranky. And the Winner Is: Absolutely no one. Members and in- dustry suffered heavily from the first three and all from the last two. The Ugly Travel. Gasoline was/was not/is again so high, makes us all look at electric vehicles. Wait, those are expensive, and the batteries alone cost a small mint (save the environment, lose your retirement). Airfare? For what some are charging for flights that stop 13 times and seating is on wing just outside of cabin, I should be allowed to fly the da*n thing. (See NASCAR Driving Programs.) Train? Only if you want to take 12 days to travel 200 miles. No wonder shows are losing some steam. Lodging. OK, so room rates at anything that does not charge hourly rates are out of control. It’s like the hotels are trying to make up for a crappy 2020 and 2021 off 2022 lodging. Roman- tic getaways became a trip to IHOP and locking yourselves in the master bedroom and sprinkling plastic flower petals (could not afford real ones) around the room. ALOA 2022/SAFETECH 2022. While both did “OK,” nei- ther met expectations, and that is ugly from the standpoint of keeping everything solvent and moving forward. ALOA Board and Staff. We went into ALOA 2022 asking for help and input on what could be done to help keep ALOA moving forward and viable and got less than 7% response from the membership. People love to complain, but no one seems to want to address issues when pressed. The perception of the ALOA Board and staff in recent years seems to be one of apathy toward member concerns or more focused on per- sonal agendas. It’s difficult to get an accurate pulse on what is needed when only 7 out of 100 respond to inquiries. While these surveys and questionnaires may have been ignored by the seated board at the time in bygone days, the only way to see that this is not the case today is to participate. And the Winner Is: Again, absolutely no one. Nothing can change and no one can change without input. Since the late 1950s until today, the mission of ALOA has never changed: provide the best education available to its mem- bers and the industry, provide a network of like-minded profes- sionals to bond together to advance the profession and to give members and non-members alike a voice in how to present the industry to the general public and make our business some- thing more than many perceive. None of this is even remotely possible without members and even non-member supporters pushing the issues and keeping ALOA on point. Finally, thank goodness I didn’t choose Two Mules for Sister Sara to use as the focal point! (The views expressed are those of the author and do not reflect those of ALOA, its Board nor staff.) Jim Hancock, CML, CMST, is ALOA’s education manager. You can reach him at [email protected] or (214) 819-9733.
