Posted by
One Silver Sage on Monday, February 19, 2007 4:34:58 PM
As Michigan's economy spirals further out of control and Michigan families worry they may have to do more with less, Governor Jennifer Granholm feels it appropriate to ask the taxpayers of Michigan to pay more in increased taxes and those cute little fees she comes up with when folks tire of the term "taxes". At the same time, her husband--a non-office holder and private citizen--is enjoying several highly compensated ($80,000-100,000/yr), publicly-funded staffers. (Think Tyco's Dennis Kowlowski's $2M toga birthday party for his wife.) We shouldn't be surprised. State workers have long told about being required to attend work-place training given by Daniel Granholm Mulhern and/or his company for which we, the citizens, have also been paying.
Amazingly, the audacity doesn't stop there.
Now the Governor is planning to slash Michigan's state trooper level while simultaneously releasing convicted criminals from prison and providing them with assistance as they re-enter already vulnerable communities and an already crowded job market.
Folks, I've come to believe Michigan is experiencing battered spouse syndrome. No matter how much insult to injury this incompetent Governor seems to thrust upon Michigan's struggling families, with her November re-election, it appears they are glutton for more.
In my own life, as a retired person, I find it irksome and irresponsible that the Governor would now like to raise the fishing license fees for senior citizens 3-4 times the present rate. So much for taking my grandson fishing. Her advisory committee recently said that raising the state tax will only mean an additional $60-70 burden per person. That might not sound like a lot to the ex-Governors on that committee, or to the college President, but when senior citizens receive a social security increase of only 3-4 per cent per year while their other expenses continue to climb, the poor will be getting poorer and that newly acquired revenue will soon be eaten up by an increase in the number of individuals relying upon government assistance.
Finally, as yet further proof of her audacity, Governor Granholm and her colleagues on the lunatic fringe, want to "help" Michigan's young families by taxing, of all things, coin operated laundry services, diaper services, debt counseling, and employment agencies.
Maybe in the fairy tale land of Berkeley, or in the elite and hallowed halls of Harvard (where 25% of students can't even recall when Lincoln served as President) that makes sense, but in the real world--not so much.
Like actual battered spouses, Michiganders need to face the reality of life--things aren't changing no matter what promises you are hearing. It's time to say enough is enough--I want to live in sanity. Establish your boundaries, call your elected representatives, regain control of your own future and vote out of office those who abuse your generous spirit and seek to control your financial well being.
Tomorrow we will be talking about the apparel industry, steel workers, and of course, Michigan's autos. You won't want to miss this look into the future as we consider lessons from the past.