Jason

Government Incompetence, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion

The Nessel Doctrine

by  •  • 3 Comments

Dana Nessel doesn’t like the title of the pipeline law.

So much so, that she is using that as a reason to stop the Enbridge tunnel construction from happening.  From the state’s official propaganda service:

LANSING – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel issued her first formal legal opinion today, finding Public Act 359 of 2018 unconstitutional because its provisions go beyond the scope of what was disclosed in its title.   Governor Gretchen Whitmer had sought the Attorney General’s opinion on the constitutionality of Act 359 in a request submitted on January 1.

In her opinion, the Attorney General concludes that certain provisions of Act 359 – including those transferring all authorities related to a utility tunnel from the Mackinac Bridge Authority to the Straits Corridor Authority and requiring the Corridor Authority to enter into an agreement for the construction of a tunnel if a proposed agreement was presented by a specific date and met listed criteria – are unconstitutional because they violate Article 4, Section 24 of the Michigan Constitution, referred to as the Title-Object Clause.

READ MORE ►

You Betcha! (10)Nuh Uh.(0)

Michigan

Trump In Grand Rapids Michigan Thursday

by  •  • 3 Comments

Michigan For Trump in 2020!

Apparently you can still register, However, good luck getting in now that he has officially won the 2016 election.

 Thu, March 28, 2019
Grand Rapids, MI

07:00 pm (EDT)

DOORS OPEN AT 4:00PM EDT
Van Andel Arena
130 West Fulton
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

REGISTER HERE

 

You Betcha! (10)Nuh Uh.(0)

Government Incompetence, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Philosophy

Clown Bigotry – The Greatest Show On Earth.

by  •  • 2 Comments

Nolan Finley puts his head in a lioness' maw.

The reality over the years is that when we disagree with the clown from the Detroit News, its based on a reasonable difference of opinion over the facts.

We don’t hate clowns.  We are just don’t take em so seriously very often.. We call out clownish pranks and goofiness as such.  And truth be told, I once had a (sort-of) clown as a good friend. So there is ..that.

But the bottom line is that once in a while, a clown makes a point.  And today The News’ big top car stuffer is spot on.

Combating hate crimes is a worthy endeavor. But the new campaign announced by Attorney General Dana Nessel has the real potential to morph into thought policing.

Nessel, in partnership with Agustin Arbulu, director of the Michigan Department of Civil rights, say they will create a process to document incidents of hate and bias that don’t rise to the level of criminal or civil infractions.

That could translate to speech or expressions of opinion that some may find offensive, but are protected by the First Amendment. Bias is protected by the Constitution until it infringes on the rights and freedoms of others, and hate is often in the eye of the beholder.

If what Nessel and Arbulu are targeting are words, thoughts and opinions, this could easily become a weapon to shut down groups they find abhorrent, but are operating within the law.

Its true. 

READ MORE ►

You Betcha! (10)Nuh Uh.(0)

Michigan

2 DAYS TO FILE

by  •  • 0 Comments

Michigan Treasury form 5076 must be filed by February 20

If you own a business and are subject to Michigan’s PPT AND have less than 80K in fixtures etc., get this done ASAP.

You have two days from this posting to file this with your local taxing authority.  The upside is that this year may be the last year you have to file this annually.

Grab it HERE (or click on the image)

You Betcha! (3)Nuh Uh.(0)

Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion

So You Want To lower Insurance Costs?

by  •  • 2 Comments

Is Michigan's Catastrophic Claims Mandate the problem?

Start with a sense of agreement that our GOP controlled legislature has with the new leader of the smurfs.

Insurance costs too much.  And since Lansing is already aglow in the possibility of adding more taxes on top of the 40% increase in plate fees and added gas taxes, we need a break right?

Who better to underwrite such ‘breaks’ than insurance carriers, right? Government always finds ways to shunt higher costs on to taxpayers OR those in an industry that they have manipulated for so many years.  So what is the message when we see this?

After Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s State of the State address on Tuesday, state Rep. Michele Hoitenga, R-Manton, said that insurance reform will be one of the GOP’s top priorities this session. Speaker of the House Lee Chatfield, R-Levering, established a separate committee to devise a way past obstacles to bringing down rates.

In a tweet, Chatfield said citizens need a bipartisan solution.

“It’s time we cut through politics and deliver real reform to our rigged car insurance system,” Chatfield’s tweet says. “Families and seniors are paying too much, and they deserve relief. I’ve created a special committee to reform car insurance and have asked [Rep. Jason] Wentworth to chair it. Let’s get it done!”

We deserve relief.

Whew!  Glad we got that settled.  So let me make it real easy.

First start off with that part of the process that enjoys a failing google grade.  It adds $hundreds a year to each vehicle we own, and holds onto $20,000,000,000.00 of Michigan ratepayers money.  Yeah, that’s $20 Billion.

Its a tax.  Don’t forget that.

And actually.. just start and end with that and then watch for a while.

You Betcha! (8)Nuh Uh.(0)

All the Other Stuff, Liberty, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion

A Question To Ask

by  •  • 3 Comments

Who is really in charge here?

Can the Federal Government own land?

Apparently so, if one reads the constitution.  “The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to prejudice any claims of the United States, or of any particular state..” Stated in Article IV reads fairly clear.

But where are the limits?  If one were to go with that part as it has been interpreted, the congress then has power to declare all land to be under it’s jurisdiction, and subject no longer to the respective states, right?  Obviously not if practice is our guide. At some point there is a limit where the states retain control over their respective borders.  A further restraint on the ability of the federal government and Congress to simply take over land.

Yes, it is ALSO in the constitution.  And YES, it has been ignored. Article 1 Section 8 clearly sets forth a manner under which the federal government may acquire and control property.

“To exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular states, and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of the government of the United States, and to exercise like authority over all places purchased by the consent of the legislature of the state in which the same shall be, for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dockyards, and other needful buildings; ..”

Emboldened parts being relevant.

READ MORE ►

You Betcha! (11)Nuh Uh.(0)

Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion

Gridlock Is Good.

by  •  • 7 Comments

Whitmer attempt to lay new tax on Michiganians slowed by opposition. For now.

Something we could have used after 2012 was a little disagreement by the legislature and the governor.

After 2012, the state lost control of the insurer of last resort, Obamacare was adopted, and gas taxes skyrocketed.  Snyder failed on the Flint fiasco, both on public perception of the problem and with the team sent to fix the problem when he knew it was happening.

Democrats, and Gretchen Whitmer in particular, are not going to let that particular crisis go to waste, and attempted a rewrite of the DEQ under the auspices of clean water.  The GOP controlled house says “:wait just a minute there GRRRL power:“

Rep. Jim Lower, the resolution’s sponsor, said he considered the executive order an overreach that “constituted a direct attack” on legislative powers. He also defended the panels’ merits and said they provided a needed layer over oversight.

“We shouldn’t be silencing the voices of people with on the ground, commonsense experience,” said Lower, R-Cedar Lake.

Jim Lower is correct, but there is more.

What Whitmer was attempting stinks of former state house member Dan Scripps’ scurrilous attempt at controlling underground water resources. The cost of such efforts is too high, and a price Michiganians ought not bear.

While clean drinking water should be expected by those who live in cities like Flint, we should remember that it was a failure of government, and the underlying accountability of the executive branch to manage such a disaster.  Granholm Whitmer has the ability to deal with such things as they arise without additional tools that threaten personal use and add cost.

Fact:  Regulation is a tax and this is a big one if allowed to go forward.

You Betcha! (11)Nuh Uh.(0)

2020 Presidential Election, All the Other Stuff, Michigan, Philosophy

Encore

by  •  • 5 Comments

Give that speech writer a medal.

Truth be told, I had been anticipating the President’s State of The Union a bit.

Pelosi opened the people’s house to the speech, and I was not sure if she understood that Trump has no limit switch. He was not likely to roll over and behave in a way that made her or the (currently) Democrat controlled house look very good.

Donald J Trump did not disappoint. He was persuasive, challenged the non-stop efforts to make his job difficult, and showed the country that all that the white suited (cult like) XX congress critters wanted was Grrrl Power. His words drew them out, revealing that the heroes on the president’s guest list weren’t worthy of their praise or approval, including holocaust, cancer, and extreme violence survivors.

He exposed them.

He brought out socialism, and forced those in attendance to face the demon in the room.  Bernie Sanders may have had to change his shorts soon after the speech, as the redness of his face on Trump’s declaration that “America Will Never Be A Socialist Country” indicated he (Sanders) was likely baking a cookie.

The President then closed out with one of the best examples of a sincere conviction that our best is yet to come, but only if we come together.  The epilogue finding itself as probably the best DJT speech on achievement and aspiration I have witnessed.

Truly worth a second look.

You Betcha! (16)Nuh Uh.(0)

Government Incompetence, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Philosophy

A State Of Emergency

by  •  • 9 Comments

Unbound utilities, unchecked environmentalism, and short-sighted planning responsible for when/if the lights go out.

Years ago I wrote on the EPA regulations that essentially write off the future of coal for electrical generation.

Shortly after that that I wrote another piece which described the layers of problems facing the folks in rural areas, and specifically the Upper peninsula with the failure to support our coal burning electrical platform.  However, the meat of the piece better describes the way in which natural gas providers have also played a a part in defeating coal.

Coming amidst an impending decision by the EPA on the Utility MACT (maximum achievable control technology)  rule that is expected to lead to job loses, plant shutdowns, and rolling blackouts across the country, this strange partnership raises a question.  What does Chesapeake stand to gain, by pouring money into a seemingly disparate organization with extremely different objectives and priorities? Politico writes:

The ads come as the coal industry is at war with the Obama administration over new rules to curb pollution from coal-fired power plants. The EPA is expected to issue new rules on Friday to curb air toxics from power plants, which are estimated to cost industry about $10.9 billion each year.Stricter rules for power plants are expected to offer a competitive advantage to the cleaner-burning natural gas industry.

Oh, so its an end-justifies-the-means kind of thing.  Rent seeking.  But when questioned, Chesapeake officials have stated that the flood of cash to ALA is merely business as usual for the company, which donates to “a wide variety and number of health and medical-related organizations.  Well that’s very responsible of them, bravo for being so charitable.

Of course we all know better.

READ MORE ►

You Betcha! (18)Nuh Uh.(1)