Tag: media bias (page 2)

This sais it for me:
This is another unbelievable story coming out of academia. Being of academia, I see kookiness now and again, but nothing like this. Moreover, there hasn't been a boo or a peep about this in the local MSM. Gee - I wonder why? Maybe the MSM is busy trying to paint the entire populace as a bunch of homophobes? (Media Homophobic Entrapment Fails (Epically)) I had to find this story at the WND: University to student: Endorse being 'gay' or leave. Talk about an offer you can't refuse, ala The Godfather. What happened to that whole "tolerance" thing? Diversity? Anyway, here's the gist:

With west Michigan manufacturing giant Herman Miller now expected to post eight-figure losses this quarter and 6,000 additional GM workers losing their jobs via a new "buyout" effort, we're a good stretch from the bottom yet, too.

Somebody get on the phone and tell the number thirteen we're on our way... because we just arrived at the number twelve's house and he hasn't got nearly enough space.

That's right.  Twelve percent.  12.  Doce in Spanish and twaalf in Dutch.  

According to the Detroit News:

"This would be the highest rate the state's had since January 1984, when the rate was 12.1 percent," said Bruce Weaver, an economic analyst with the state.

Dana Johnson, chief economist for Comerica Bank, called the jobless figure released Wednesday "grim, quite simply."

We have the highest unemployment rate now in Michigan in 25 years, roughly 4 percentage points above the national average," he said.

The national rate for February was a (relatively) paltry 8.1 percent.  And here in Michigan back in February of 2008?  We were only at 7.6 percent.  Yeah, sure, 7.6 was the worst in the nation then the same way 12 is the worst in the nation now, but ouch.

The News crunched the numbers and they show a 58 percent rise in the number of jobless  Michiganders in the last YEAR of the Granholm - Cherry administration alone.  29,000 fewer jobs in this state in the last month alone.  

How about that leadership!

Meanwhile, the Associated Press continues carrying the Governor's water via a new "analysis" piece that sounds the alarm about how similar the current budget climate in Lansing feels to the climate that produced a government shutdown and a record-shattering $1.5 billion Democratic tax hike in 2007.

Yeah, fine, sure, the AP can't be bothered to mention the biggest tax hike in the history of the state anywhere in the piece and pretends a few hours with the lights out was all that came of the budgetary stalemate, but that's not even the worst of their omissions.

Read on...

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.

Republicans, who said the 2009 and 2010 pay raises should be frozen, said there must be more urgency in dealing with a shortfall that could reach $1 billion in the budget year that started in October if revenues continue coming in $100 million a month less than anticipated. The state also is facing a potential $1.4 billion deficit in the next budget year.

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.

Michigan tourism is likely to drop slightly this year, but travel experts say they are seeing promising signs that things are starting to look up for the state's third-largest industry.

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.

Yesterday, the Republican-controlled MI Senate fell short by 2 votes to push through a constitutional amendment, which would have to be voted on by Michigan residents in November, to prevent property taxes from increasing while home values are decreasing. Makes sense to me, but the Democrats sure don't like it. From the DetNews today: Mich. Senate comes up short in property tax relief vote. (The AP has a shorter report over at MLive)

The vote was 23-11 in favor of the resolution with three Senate members absent. It takes approval by two-thirds of the members in each chamber of the Legislature to put a proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot, meaning 25 Senate votes would be needed to move the resolution over to the House for a vote.

Matt Marsden, spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, R-Rochester, said there probably will be another vote on the resolution Wednesday.