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Tag: tourismBy Corinthian Scales, Section News
Consider this a double feature with CS, and Jarrett Skorup at Mac Center
The Disney blockbuster "Oz: The Great and Powerful" opens tonight. The film cost the studio about $200 million to make, but Michigan taxpayers chipped in substantially for the production through the state's generous film subsidy program. In fact, the state paid more per taxpayer than the average price of a movie ticket - Michigan residents should be seeing the film for free. What total crap. Lansing could only find a way to free up 29% of the monies for maintaining our waterways in comparison to what Hollywood ripped off on one movie filmed in a mismanaged broke-ass city with an EFM. You read that right. $11.5M, and STEALING $8.7M from projects already underway to pay for dredging. The Governerd's half billion dollar piggy bank? Hands off. Damn near $40M in our tax dollars sent to Disney with assets totaling $74.8 Billion? No problem. The Water Wonderland? Take a hike. This is why politicians are despised. (7 comments) Comments >> By JGillman, Section Multimedia
Given the previous article, I thought you all might enjoy this one.
Michigan State Senator Proos talks about dredging as it relates to water use tourism, and the dollars flowing in from it. Concerned about a boating traffic 'shutdown' he notes the economic costs of our great big bathtubs filling up with silt.
At the end, as always, our daddies in Washington are pleaded to, for consideration in getting some of our allowance money to pay for getting our toys into the harbor. By Corinthian Scales, Section News
For the premium paid, why are funds for dredging even an issue?
Detroit News The state Senate is considering taking $30 million from Michigan's rainy day fund for emergency dredging of harbors and waterways this year to relieve shallows that threaten the state's boating industry as a result of historic low levels in the Great Lakes. The article goes on to state that MDOT's budget may be tapped. Perhaps, that's not out of the question considering how many boats I see filling up at gas stations paying road tax. Well, at least the ones not using Rec Gas, and Off-road Diesel like I do, anyway. Better question is where in the Hell has all the registration fee monies gone? Has anyone actually sat down and looked at the Watercraft Fee Schedule? It's got-damn obscene. Add insult to injury, the article glosses over reviving a local tax grab scheme too.
"Everything is on the table," said state Sen. Geoff Hansen, R-Hart, who is taking the lead in the effort. No, Sen. Hansen. $630M rainy day fund? It's enough of the Bee esS. No new taxes - period. Dredge the damn waterways. (2 comments) Comments >> By Rougman, Section News
cross posted at a medicated Rougblog
I don't know about you, but I believe just about everything that either government or any politician tells me. Lock, stock, and barrel. The state House of Representatives recently passed a plan sponsored by [Gary] McDowell that will grow Michigan's tourism industry by re-investing in the highly successful "Pure Michigan" promotional campaign. Every dollar invested in out-of-state advertising generates more than $40 for Michigan businesses and nearly $3 in revenue, according to the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.If these claims are true, our government owes it to the Michigan taxpayers to jump on the Pure Michigan bandwagon, because all by itself it will solve our state's budget problem. (3 comments, 663 words in story) Full Story By Nick, Section News
Tax revenues in Lansing are currently coming in monthly at $100 million less than expenditures. I said monthly. As in, every month.
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.
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.
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. (1 comment) Comments >> |
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