Tag: Pure Michigan

St. Paddy's Day in Detroit!

At almost 1 million acres, the Huron-Manistee National Forests in Michigan's northern Lower Peninsula would seem to have enough room for everyone to play to their hearts' content.

But a challenge to the U.S. Forest Service's land management plan is forcing officials to consider prohibiting popular activities such as firearms hunting and snowmobiling from certain areas -- all because of concerns over noise and how some recreational activities can affect others.

Today's post over, is about whether our state Republican electees are prepared to examine their principled beliefs, or if they pander to the will of the entrenched ideology of progressivism within the Michigan GOP.  An entrenched ideology I might add, that attempts to shame true conservatives for being too far right.

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Dead Ponies.  Re-posted from Michigan Taxes Too Much

One of the toughest things for Republicans elected to positions that have, as a matter of course the spending of taxpayer money, is the `supporting business' angle. Perhaps it could even be called a `supporting the economy' paradigm. Business is everything right? So why wouldn't an elected official do everything to get business going, and create those jobs? And why shouldn't Republicans support any measure that enhances business activities, promotes job growth, and expands business in general?

Define "any" first, and we may have the appropriate answer.

And any legislator who wants to do what is best for his or her constituents might be at risk.

A taxpayer funded advertising campaign originally created to attract tourists to our fair state is now going to be expanded to attract permanent residents to Michigan.

Michigan has a lot to offer, that is, if you don't count a lack of jobs, a business environment unlikely to create them, and a population of such low self esteem that it intentionally elected Jennifer Granholm as its governor...twice.

Michigan is having a difficult time hanging on to the residents it already has. It has difficulty employing them, keeping them safe, or educating their children. It habitually raises their taxes and provides them with fewer services for those ever higher taxes.

Why wouldn't the vibrant family of today want to move here?

Well perhaps not even trivial, but at the very least simply non freedom stealing in an outright way.

PURE MICHIGAN

Exhibit A (literally): Grand Rapids

Rick DeVos this morning unveiled ArtPrize at a giant press conference on Lyon Square in front of the old Civic Theatre downtown.

ArtPrize is a two-and-a-half week annual festival, kicking off this fall that will effectively turn the entire downtown area into an art gallery as artists from around the world create and showcase new works of art while competing for a $250,000 grand prize, the largest art prize in the world.

Better yet, the winner will be selected by the public.  You, me, anyone.  

This sort of event does not exist anywhere else in the world.  This is a first-of-its-kind event and it is happening right here in GR.  And I don't mind telling you, I'm geeked!

Artists of all kinds from around the world converge on Grand Rapids.  Think paintings, sculptures, performance art, abstract, pop, photography... you name it.

Artists team with business owners and developers downtown through ArtPrize.org to host and showcase their work.  Whether it is in the lobby of an office complex, on the top of a hotel, the patio of a restaurant, a bridge, projecting something onto the side of a building... the possibilities seem pretty much endless.

Then regular folks see the work and vote for their favorites via text message or on the internet.  And not just Grand Rapidians.  Anyone and everyone... provided they've actually made the trip to Grand Rapids and registered to participate at one of the exhibits.  This has all the makings of a mammoth tourism draw.

The competition will be whittled down to the Top 10 after the first week.  Each of the finalists will be guaranteed thousands of dollars in cash but the big prizes are for first, second and third place.  $250,000, $100,000 and $50,000 respectively.

Former gubernatorial candidate Dick DeVos and his wife Betsy (Rick's parents) were on hand for the announcement and have made a multi-year pledge to cover the prize money through the Dick and Betsy DeVos Foundation.  

No Grand Rapids tax dollars will be used to fund this program.  No state tax dollars or "Pure Michigan" spending will be needed to prop it up artificially.  

"The call is going to go out to thousands and thousands of artists (today) to kick this off," Rick DeVos told the Grand Rapids Press.

The event will help harness and show off the creative energy and "cultural capital" Grand Rapids has developed over the years, said Joseph Becherer, director of exhibitions and curator of sculpture at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park.

"This kind of gift tied to this kind of ingenuity can only mean something positive for Grand Rapids as it is now, but also helping to imagine Grand Rapids as it will be tomorrow," Becherer said.

The competition begins September 23rd and the winner will be announced on October 8.

As bad news goes, that's pretty rotten... for taxpayers.  It means that in spite of 2007's record-shattering $1.5 billion Democratic tax hike, state spending is still so bat-crap crazy that the government can't pay its bills.

According to the Associated Press its only going to get worse, too.

Republicans, who said the 2009 and 2010 pay raises should be frozen, said there must be more urgency in dealing with a shortfall that could reach $1 billion in the budget year that started in October if revenues continue coming in $100 million a month less than anticipated. The state also is facing a potential $1.4 billion deficit in the next budget year.

Granholm plans to use $313 million of federal stimulus money to balance this year's budget.

Thank goodness for the House Republican minority.  Seriously.  They were at the state Capitol yesterday making a radical suggestion... cut costs!  On top of suggesting a 5% across the board spending cut in each state department, the conservatives are suggesting that while elected officials look to give back 10% of their own salaries next year, its time to ask the rest of the bureaucrats to do the right thing and give back 5% of theirs, too.

There are currently 52,000 state employees and according to Lansing insider publication MIRS, 72 of them actually make more money than any member of the legislature.  We're talking six figures.

I can't speak for every state employee.  Heaven knows there are probably thousands who work hard and are dramatically under-compensated for their time, skills and efforts.  I am saying, though, that in all of my years in and around the Capitol dome I've only met a few of them.  

Now, raise your hand if you've lost a job completely or had to give back part of your salary in the private sector.  (Why are so many of you raising BOTH hands?  You don't get extra credit for that extra hand.)

And, lets be honest, when the choice is between lay offs and a 5% pay cut, giving back a little bit of that bureaucratic cash suddenly looks a little more inviting.  Don't' believe me?  Ask our friend at the Ann Arbor News.  They learned yesterday that their paper is going "buh-bye" while the Saginaw News, Flint Journal and Bay City Times dramatically scale back their own operations.

Folks at papers in Muskegon, Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids got off relatively "easy" with pay cuts.

More and more readers are turning to the internet, blogs and the new media to get their news and information.  Its no wonder after the partisan sham that was Election 2008.  All but the staunchest far-left whacko will admit that the mainstream media was and continues to be solidly in the tank for Democrats at just about all levels and they're starting to pay a steep price for their political hackery... they've lost the public's trust.

Just so happens you can find exhibit 8,304,284,111 in this morning's Ivory Tower.  

Everyone understands that the FREEP is the state's "liberal newspaper."  (As if any of them aren't.)  But wow.  

If reporter Ellen Creager and the editor responsible for her headlines try to carry any more water for the Granholm - Cherry administration ahead of the 2010 elections they're going to throw out their backs and give themselves a hernia.

Check this out... Ellen's headline this morning reads: "State tourism outlook: Thumbs-up?"

Really?  Awesome!  Maybe I was wrong about Jeff Daniels all this time. Except, no, I made a mistake and I actually read Ellen's column.

Michigan tourism is likely to drop slightly this year, but travel experts say they are seeing promising signs that things are starting to look up for the state's third-largest industry.

A new analysis by Michigan State University, released Monday, said tourism is expected to drop 3% to 4% this year after sinking 6% last year. But one of the authors, Donald Holecek, warned against "irrational pessimism," saying that even if business travel stays in the doldrums, leisure travel should hold up well.

OK, let me get this straight.... Tourism was down 6% last year despite "Pure Michigan's" incessant advertisements here IN-STATE.  Tourism is expected to be down 4% THIS year.  It is MARCH.  There are still more than 9 months and a week ahead of us.  There are ZERO estimates for when or even if tourism will actually pick up again but based on the numbers we do have we know it won't be any time in the near future.

I'm missing the "thumbs-up."

Is it where one member of the panel... one... says we shouldn't be pessimistic? What did all of the other members say?  They didn't make the report.  Nothing they uttered was printed.

That couldn't possibly be because their statements didn't fit the pro-Granholm-Cherry media template at the Ivory Tower, could it?

Nah.

And then these guys wonder why no one reads them anymore.

Reminds me of the classic Cold War account of an experimental car race in the Soviet Union.  The morning after the race the headlines in Moscow told readers:  "Russian car finishes second; Americans second to last"

Yeah, sure, only two automobiles competed in the race, but for some reason that part of the story was never printed.