« Phils Win, Mets Lose, Life Goes On
Good Riddance to Bad Rubbish »



The Michigan Squeeze

October 1st, 2007
By T-STEEL, Site Administrator

Print Print

Ed Morrissey rips the words right out of my brain concerning Michigan’s new budget/what in the…/disaster:

The economic woes of Michigan appear ready to worsen, thanks to a budget agreement reached this morning as the state government began shutting down. Michigan residents will see their taxes increase by over a billion dollars, further burdening the decreasing purchasing power of its residents, as the legislature only sliced less than a third of that from their spending plans…

I’ve been a Michigan resident my entire life. Among the Michiganians, there is an aura of despair (especially here in southeast Michigan) that can be sliced and served with a steaming cup of asphalt. The guts of the Michigan economy (the Big 3 automakers) are basically gone. All the businesses that supported the Big 3, from suppliers to the 24-hour restaurants serving three shifts of proud, hard-working automakers are gone or suffering. And the Michigan Legislature (led by the Democrats) decides to squeeze the citizens even more. Shameful and sickening. More from Ed Morrissey:

Note, too, that the Michigan government solved the problem by a 3:1 ratio of sacrifice. They increased taxes by over $1.4 billion, thanks to increases in both income and sales taxes that go into effect immediately. They only managed to shave $440 million off of their own budget. Given that the state budget planned for $42.6 billion in spending for FY2007, this represents a whopping 1% decrease in state spending. It hardly seems as though Michigan lawmakers even cracked the books of their budget to look for other opportunities for savings.

Once again, Michigan lawmakers see the citizens as the way to overcome their excesses. In my previous post here titled “Is a state bail-out feasible?” a TMV reader (DLS) made some comments that hit home:

There should be no federal bailout of Michigan nor any of the other states that would be led to follow Michigan promptly if Michigan were to receive a bailout. There also is no need for any new, grand redistribution scheme (”equalization payments” in Canada). The solution has already been alluded to, namely that Michigan needs to transform itself, shed the repellent Blue (Cyanide) Nation legacy that is killing it. Long-term movement of the US population is to the south and west, and Michigan with its winters faces a climatic disadvantage; it must be more friendly to business and to households — including in the tax and regulation realms — to encourage people to remain in Michigan, or (surprising as it may seem to nearly everybody in this country, and outside it) even to relocate to Michigan and subject the state to economic and population growth. The state has natural amenities that can be enjoyed year-round by residents who can tolerate winter weather, more than many other Snow and Rust Belt states; what matters is the economic and political problems and the need to correct them.

While I disagree with not having any federal funds made available for that blast crater in the place of Michigan’s economy and the “Blue (Cyanide) Nation legacy” comment (I have equal disdain for Michigan Democrats and Republicans), the other points are rock-solid on-point. Trying to start and maintain a small business in Michigan is difficult at best. If the taxes don’t kill you, the regulations will. And our largest city, Detroit, is just a bastion of cronyism, terrible management, and bad attitude. Michigan lawmakers’ decision to squeeze we Michiganians will just cause many of us, including myself, to leave in revolt and out of necessity.



This entry was posted on Monday, October 1st, 2007 at 7:56 am and is filed under USA, North America, State Politics, Economy, Domestic Programs, Politics. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

 
close Reblog this comment
Powered by Disqus · Learn more
blog comments powered by Disqus

« Phils Win, Mets Lose, Life Goes On
Good Riddance to Bad Rubbish »


By posting comments on The Moderate Voice you are acknowledging and agreeing to the following general comments policy:

(1) The Moderate Voice's comments are hosted by Disqus (http://disqus.com). If your comment doesn't appear immediately, please be patient since it is an off-site system.

(2) All e-mail received from readers by The Moderate Voice is considered intended for publication unless otherwise indicated in the initial message from the writer. Please do not send us attachments unless you contact us and we agree to it.

(3)The Moderate Voice reserves the right to edit all e-mail and posted comments for content, clarity, and length.

(4) Our comment space is reserved for comments that relate to a post's topic. You should not reprint lengthy text from your own works or those of others, including news articles. You MAY link to them.

(5) Comments that are abusive, offensive, contain profane or racist material or violate the terms of service for this blog's host provider will be removed and the author(s) banned from future comments. Such comments also violate the very SPIRIT of this site -- which was created to encourage thoughtful and vigorous discussion among readers who may share differing viewpoints.

(6) All points of view are welcome on The Moderate Voice, with the following exceptions:

(a) Comments posted several times a day with the intent of dominating, re-directing or hijacking the thread by turning a discussion into the equivalent of a bitter shouting match.

(b) Comments posted several times a day that insult or call other commenters or blog writers names or repeatedly make the same point with the effect of or clear intent to annoy other commenters or blog writers.

(7) Name-calling, personal attacks, racist comments or use of profanity by any commenter, whether they are by persons who agree or disagree with the views expressed by The Moderate Voice will NOT be tolerated and will result in the deletion of the comment and the banning of the commenter's ISP address, without notice. In some cases a comment may be deleted and the writer will be given another chance. Commenters who virtually ASK The Moderate Voice to ban them by ignoring any warnings or daring TMV to ban them will quickly get their wish.

(8) Anonymous commenters should identify themselves with the same moniker, so readers know their comments are coming from a single individual. If they don't, they are subject to a banning.

(9)If we have problems with inappropriate or inflammatory comments from a commenter who it turns out gave a fake email address that person is subject to immediate banning.

(10) Quotes from material appearing on The Moderate Voice with attribution are allowed. Reprints are allowed only by permission from The Moderate Voice. You may request permission by e-mail.

(11) The Moderate Voice is a personal site. It is not the Government. It is NOT aligned with any political party. It is NOT promoting any specific candidate for office. It is not a public institution or a media organization. It is not a neutral site. It is intended to express and disseminate the authors' varying points of views. Writers on this weblog WILL take positions. It reserves the right to limit comments to those that, in its view, comport with its stated comment policy. Comments that do not comply are subject to deletion and banning of the author's ISP.

Disclaimer:

--Reading and posting comments at The Moderate Voice constitutes acknowledgment of and agreement to the terms outlined in this comment policy. This comment policy may be revised in part or in full at any time.

--All comments must comport with applicable state and federal laws. The Moderate Voice has no obigation to monitor, edit, censor, or take responsibility for comments. It may or may not act upon a violation of its comment policy once a suspected violation has been brought to its attention. Therefore, commenters are solely responsible for the content of their comments and should ensure that that their comments are lawful and fall within the stated guidelines of both The Moderate Voice and its hosting company.

--The Moderate Voice is not be responsible for injury or liability to any reader or commenter resulting from its own communications or those of commenters, that may be offensive, misleading, inaccurate, illegal, or otherwise unsuitable in the view of the reader. Readers and commenters further agree to indemnify and hold harmless The Moderate Voice from claims resulting from the use of any material appearing on The Moderate Voice which damages the reader, commenter or any other party.

--The Moderate Voice is not responsible for and might disagree with material posted in the comments section. While we strive for accuracy in our posts and DO correct errors, material posted by The Moderate Voice in its posts -- or those left by others in the comments section -- may or may not be accurate.

Read and Post at your own risk.