Recording artist Kanye West was wrong when he said something to the effect, ‘George Bush doesn’t like black people.?
George Bush doesn’t like people of any color if they come from Michigan. It seems clear to me the future of Michigan (near term) is murky at best — and we can thank, in part, United States President George W. Bush. As a lifelong Michiganian (We are not Michiganders — that was a term thems in Ohio coined for us. History buffs will remember, as we were becoming a state, we wanted the Federal government to make our southern border down-round Toledo, Ohio. The Feds didn’t give us that, instead we got what would become the Upper Peninsula. Since we squawked like geese, Ohiahooligans gave us the Michigander label. But, enough of history . . . ) I see a trend that is scary.
I guess I am squawking.
I’m just calling it like I see it, and I see this administration does not like Michigan. I don’t know why. Maybe the prez, a graduate of the real, one and only Harvard, is whizzed off because the University of Michigan thinks of itself as the ‘Harvard of the West.? Maybe he doesn’t like fresh water, which we are surrounded by. Maybe he simply prefers gloves to mittens. Like I said, I don’t know why. I do know every time this damn-depressioned state looks for a boost from ‘W?, we get one in the form of a Texas-sized boot, applied directly to our posterior.
In August, Michigan (the most economically straped state in the US) applied for a Fire Management Assistance grant to help cover the costs of fighting the UP Sleeper Lake fire. Costs are estimated to be about $6 million. The state was turned down for the grant by FEMA on August 9th. Criteria for funding includes whether or not the fire was threatening lives, a large amount of personal property, and critical infrastructure. Apparently FEMA considered the Sleeper Lake fire to be a remote, wilderness fire that didn’t meet these criteria.
When folks in charge of protecting the Great Lakes told the administration it needed $8 billion to protect and clean the world’s largest surface freshwater system, $34 million was budgeted — that was in 2003. For 2007, $70 million was budgeted, a mere drop in the proverbial bucket, when you consider 30 million Americans depend on the Great Lakes for fresh water.
This past year, when the president wanted to talk about fuel efficiency and ‘green? vehicles, who did he schedule his first press conference with? Foreign automakers, that’s who. Weeks later, crumbs were throw this way and Bush lauded U.S. auto makers on their similar efforts.
Last month, the U.S. Health and Human Services opined in its quarterly newsletter, e-mailed to 67,000 Federal bureaucrats (with American-taxpayer funded wages), should buy eco-friendly vehicles. A noble cause, if left at that.
Unfortunately, the brainiacks under George Bush’s leadership umbrella, listed 12 vehicles our workers should consider. Not one American car was listed — Hondas, Nissans and Toyotas are the beltway favorites. Now, I know it is a free country and you can say what you want, but come on, shouldn’t there be a little love shown to those who at least pay taxes here (read: American auto companies and Americans who work for the American auto companies).
You would hope a Federal employee would at least say, test and compare with our American brothers. You would hope this, when you consider Generous Motors has 23 models that get over 30 miles per gallon — the most of any automaker. The 2008 Ford Escape hybrid gets 32 mpg.
Can you imagine a Japanese bureaucrat telling 67,000 other Japanese bureaucrats to buy American cars? Somebody’s head would roll. There would be a nationally televised Hari Kari ritual. It wouldn’t happen. And, it should not have happened here.
Our state is now the weak-link in the Union and we can’t get any help from the Feds. Why? The way I see it, either George Bush doesn’t like people from Michigan or he doesn’t like the Canadian leading the people from Michigan. In either case, it ain’t pretty here.
Which leads me to a joke I received.
Four doctors were golfing one day, discussing their countries? medical advancements.
The Japanese doctor said, ‘Medicine in my country is so advanced that we can take a kidney out of one man, put it in another and have him out looking for work in six weeks.
The German doctor said, ‘That is nothing. We can take a lung out of one person, put it in another and have him out looking for work in four weeks.?
The British doctor said, ‘In my country medicine is so advanced that we can take half a heart out of one person, put it in another, and have them both out looking for work in two weeks.?
The Canadian doctor, not to be outdone interjected, ‘You guys are way behind. We took a woman with no brains, sent her to Michigan where she became governor, and now half the state is out looking for work.?