Seems like it was right around the time I moved permanently onto the Planet Ann Arbor that people were first saying things like, “Will the last person to leave Michigan please turn out the lights?” I haven’t heard that phrase in quite a while but I have lived in this beautiful state all my life and I’ve seen two automobile industry meltdowns, the second one bailed out by our own taxpayer dollars. My bro’ was an auto engineer at GM and I think I know a bit about what his opinions were toward the enod end (enod?) of his life. Hint: He started buying Honda vee-hickles and steered me toward one too, ten years ago, four years before he died. That would be the Dogha, the 2001 Honda Accord EX-V6 that is sitting in my driveway right now, rock solid at 150K. Anyone want to buy it? [Hey bro’, hope you are seeing that the vee-hickle you recommended all those years ago is alive and kicking ass!]

Michigan. What’s next? I don’t know what I think. I grew up in the Upper Peninsula but The Commander is from the Detroit area of the Lower Peninsula. When I was a kid, the Fin Family was successful in the Upper and the Mac family was successful in the Lower. Not rich, just successful. And very hard-working. The GG’s fam was successful [in the lower] and we have both worked our you-know-whats off to be successful, even throughout the many years that I did volunteer work and did not hold a job “outside the home” (I hate that phrase, blech). We are not rich. We are not poor. We don’t want to see people get cash from our tax dollars if they are able but not willing to work (and some people are not). We also do not want to see people struggle to put food on the table or a roof over their heads (or even a reason to get up in the morning) if they cannot find jobs. I wish I had answers but I don’t.

I’m not happy with our new governor. I think our state needs to make some changes. But we are down now and we have been down for many years. The auto industry here may rebound a bit but I do not think it will ever return to what it was back when my grandaddy used to drive us around Detroit in his Cadillac in the 50s and 60s. And now? I’m not sure what to think about all of the changes that our governor is working on. Cutting unemployment? Okaaaayy. He seems to think that by next January (?) a lot of people won’t need unemployment benefits any more. Say what? Yes. He’s cutting the business tax. He thinks that will spur all kinds of businesses to create jobs. Jobs, jobs, jobs. Will it? Who knows? I can’t even think about the education cuts tonight…

More questions here than answers. Michigan is a large, beautiful, complicated state. I love the Great Lake State. I don’t have the answers…

Love y’all,
KW

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