55 search results for "15-1"

80th District Special Election (2015), Cronyism, Democrats, Detroit, Elections, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Philosophy, Proposal 15-1, Republicans, Taxes

RightMi.com 2015 Year In Review

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RightMi.com top stories for 2015

Year in reviewWe’ve reached the end of 2015.

Running the gamut from man eating roads to bald face lies, Michigan politics is a ‘special’ place. RightMi.com highlights certain aspects of our system by bringing certain aspects not typically examined by the mainstream to the forefront.   With writing from folks in all parts of the state, we have been able to add perspective not found elsewhere.  Please enjoy, be active, and keep coming back!

STOP-167Coming out of 2014, that session’s legislative knuckleheads carved out a wonderful political battle extending right up to a special vote May 5, which was soundly defeated 80 to 20.  Add to this the cost of the special election that could be as high as $10,000,000, and the resources necessary on both sides to fight it.

In RightMi.com’s opening salvo for 2015, KG One says

“But, I’ve also heard that very same sales pitch before (going back at least several decades, in fact), and have been very disappointed by the outcome each and every time.”

And he was hardly wrong in hedging his optimism as disappointment has once again begat the theme with the political class we have learned to trust so implicitly. <sarc=off>

The ‘safe roads’ nonsense was replete with payoffs to just about every single constituency, and the majority GOP legislature made sure that those ‘po folk’ would get their due if the tax hikes would pass.

The PowWow happened, and we promoted, then reported on it.  The Mackinac Center made an unexpected decision to withdraw from the opportunity to reach 400 or so Michigan activists.  Apparently, Dave Agema, a white haired old veteran ‘racist’ (seen on the right with one of his ‘mortal enemies,’ Pastor Phil Smith) was too overwhelming and politically incorrect that he might rub off in some way.  We gave them a “bad doggie” award and moved on. (I still love you guys..  just don’t do that again, OK?)

A shame they didn’t show up.  One guy who did however, was Lt. General William G Boykin.

Now that guy was the real deal. He offered an inspirational speech (click the link above), and was later used as an example of concern about the lack of will by a couple of ‘tea soldiers’ to fight in Michigan’s legislature.  Though with a couple of highlights, the powwow takeaway in the end, was less than stellar from the perspectives of attendees and some organizers.

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Elections, Michigan, Opinion, Republicans

Presstitutes and Cuckservatives Going Nuclear in The Mitten

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The latest drivel from The Detroit News Digital First Media A/K/A Alden Global Capital LLC hedge fund’s *pragmatic* shitlib, Nolan Finkley.

I spoke with several of the largest GOP donors in Michigan last week, people who contribute millions of dollars to Republican-supporting Super PACS, and raise millions more. To a person, they said the same thing: “We won’t write checks for Trump.”

As if they’ve been asked for their money? Nope. The movement is bigger than their checks. Here’s another clue… the vapid dunce from the Magic Underpants family likes to bray about how relevant she thinks she is, however, the truth is the front-runner has yet to establish a presence in the state – only once. The 31st cuck suckfest on the island? Nope. A waste of valuable time.

“I will never vote for the guy, and I will certainly never give him a penny,” says a Metro Detroit businessman who was one of George W. Bush’s biggest fundraisers in Michigan. “In fact, as hard as it would be, if the choice is between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, I’ll vote for Clinton.”

More ‘splodey head hilarity here

That should tell you everything one needs to know about today’s Republican ‘Big Tent‘.

So, who’s bought your candidate?

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Cronyism, Democrats, Fees, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Rent Seeking, Republicans, Taxes

Another Deceitful Michigan Tax Scam Exposed

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Desperate Local Politicians Seek to Preserve Surreptitious Business Activities Tax

Tax Image 1Less noticed during this year’s roads tax furore, a roiling commercial property tax dispute has exposed a widespread, sub rosa business activities tax hidden in commercial real property taxes. A hidden tax you have been paying with every purchase at big box chain retailers who occupy stores they themselves own. Big box retailers have been exposing and successfully challenging this corrupt assessing practice through the Michigan Tax Tribunal and local units of government are howling over the loss of their ill gotten revenue.  Michael B. Shapiro of Honigman, Miller has been leading the charge against these bloated assessments.

Local units of government are demanding the Michigan Legislature overturn long standing real estate valuation principles and the Michigan court rulings which hold that assessed true cash value (i.e. fair market value) for tax purposes be based upon what a property would be sold for at arm’s length. They want true cash value to effectively incorporate the retail success of current owner-occupants. This artificially jacks up the property’s true cash value, its taxes, and the prices you pay at the store. Remember that businesses don’t pay taxes, customers of those businesses – in this case you – do.

Michigan’s nitwit media have deceitfully relabeled traditional true cash value assessment the ‘Dark Stores Loophole’. Local government organizations are screaming about lost revenues.  Even MoveOn.org is right in there with a petition to support their favorite spenders.  This is a devious effort to stampede our state’s legislators into codifying creative assessment methods solely intended to extract surreptitious revenues from shoppers. A follow on to the more blatant ‘Amazon Tax’ campaign of 2014. The State of Michigan got into your pocket last year, now it is your local government’s turn.

The term ‘Dark Stores Loophole’ was created to suggest that vacant big box stores have lower, fire sale values when compared to occupied stores. True enough, but we are discussing assessments used to determine real estate, i.e. property, taxes. Not taxes on business activity. The two creative assessment methods used most often to loot shoppers are ‘construction cost‘ and ‘imputed lease‘ calculations. Each might be valid under some very limited circumstances, but both are entirely invalid when assessing big box retailers.

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Conservative News, Cronyism, Elections, Fees, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Part Time Legislature, Philosophy, Proposal 15-1, Rent Seeking, Republicans, Taxes

More weasel words from Gov. Rick Snyder

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It’s all about the roads!

Remember: It’s about the roads.

Say it with me again so there’s no forgetting: It’s about the roads.

No, it’s not. And I’ve got it straight from the horse’s mouth on why this actually isn’t.

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80th District Special Election (2015), Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Philosophy

Apparently We Need More Popcorn

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Shakespearean tragedy, or phoenix rising from the ashes? At least now the voters will get the final say.

Clearly, she was serious about giving the voters in her district the final say in the matter. Just in case you’ve spent the past six days or so completely incommunicado, according to the Detroit News, WKZO-AM 590, WOOD-TV8, WXMI-TV17, the Lansing News, WWMT-TV3, the Detroit Free Press, WDIV-TV4, WXYZ-TV7, the Holland Sentinel, WZZM-TV13, and the Chicago Tribune, around 2:30 Thursday afternoon last, Cindy A. Gamrat has filed to run in the special election for the seat she was expelled from a week ago, as confirmed by the Allegan County Clerk’s Office. (Ironically, Chad Livengood got to be the one to break this story as well.) The joint opinion of the Grand Rapids Press and Kalamazoo Gazette editorial boards, whose newspaper coverage areas include the 80th District, was short and on point, but not necessarily shared by all of their readers.

Popcorn, anyone?

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All the Other Stuff, Cronyism, Democrats, Flint Water Fiasco, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Part Time Legislature, Philosophy, Republicans

Who’s Missing?

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Governor Snyder's New Pipeline Safety Advisory Board: Long on Bureaucrats & Special Interests, Short on Technical Talent

Ruptured Section of Enbridge Pipeline 6B Recovered from Calhoun County, MI. NTSB Image

Ruptured Section of Enbridge Pipeline 6B Recovered from Calhoun County, MI. NTSB Image

Governor Snyder filed Executive Order 2015-12 with the Secretary of State yesterday to create a Michigan Pipeline Safety Advisory Board under the aegis of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. A response to the disastrous 2010 Enbridge Pipeline 6B rupture in Calhoun County and the agitation against Enbridge Pipeline 5, which transects the Straits of Mackinac.

Meanwhile, Attorney General Schuette completed a binding legal agreement with Enbridge to prevent Enbridge Pipeline 5 from being used to transport ‘heavy crude oil’ under the Straits of Mackinac. This agreement formally implements the first recommendation of the Michigan DEQ Petroleum Pipeline Task Force Report released in July to ban heavy crude oil in Line 5. Sounds good, but Enbridge Pipeline 5 does not now have the pumping horsepower for heavy crude transmission, and the weight of the crude has very little to do with pipeline integrity. Corrosive constituents in the crude, biofouling, and a host of other technical issues are far more important determinants of pipeline integrity. This agreement has great optics, but little consequence.

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Michigan Politics

2014 ACU Michigan Legislature Ratings

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The American Conservative Union has long been the premier organization rating members of Congress on how conservative their voting records are.  Recently, ACU began rating state legislators on their voting records, and it just released its third ratings of the Michigan state legislature.  I will summarize the relevant information here.

ACU State Ratings 2014–MI

ACU rated 12 house votes and 13 senate votes from 2013 and 2014.  Ten of the bills are the same for both halves of the legislature. The most common topics for the state house votes were taxes (3 votes), spending (3), and regulation (3).  The most common topic for the state senate votes were taxes (4 votes) and spending (4).

ACU Michigan state senate ratings 2013/2014:
100%: Pavlov, Emmons, Moolenaar
92%: Colbeck, Brandenberg, Rocca, Robertson, Proos, Jones, Schuitmaker, Green, Booher
85%: Marleau, Hune, Jansen, Hildenbrand, Meekhof
77%: Pappageorge, Kowall, Caswell, Richardville, Nofs, Kahn, Hansen, Walker, Casperson
62%: Hunter
31-33%: Hopgood, Andersen, Ananich
23%: Bieda
15-17%: Young, Johnson, Gregory, Warren, Whitmer
8-9%: Hood, Smith

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Michigan, Michigan Politics

Feed Me!

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Feed Me!

 

I'm hungry! What's THAT in your wallet?

I’m hungry! What’s THAT in your wallet?

Thank Goodness that we have the Republican Party doing such an exceptional job overseeing the way our road taxes are being spent.

I’d hate to find out what would ever happen if they didn’t follow through with their fiduciary responsibilities of making sure that everything was spent properly.

{Continued below.}

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All the Other Stuff, Cronyism, Democrats, Fees, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Proposal 15-1, Rent Seeking, Republicans, Taxes

$ 3 Gas Across Michigan: Warming You Up For A Gas Tax Ratchet?

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House Road Funding Package Puts Gas Tax Increases on Autopilot --- Tax on B5 Diesel for Heavy Trucks Cut 20%

Southfield, MI Gas Prices 12 June 2015

Southfield, MI Gas Prices 12 June 2015

Michiganders woke up this morning to discover that regular unleaded gasoline prices are now $ 3 per gallon, a $ .25 increase, or more, from yesterday. Refinery problems, summer driving season, and SE MI’s special fuel blend are blamed in the press, but really this price shock is an intended consequence the Federal Reserve’s zero interest policy and their determination to boost stock prices. Oil derivatives are cheaper than dirt when there is no cost to money.

Wall Street wasn’t happy early this year when plunging oil prices drove down stock averages. So someone is furiously selling off Treasury paper and buying oil & gasoline futures contracts. Treasury interest rates have been rising in lockstep with oil & gas prices, on the same days, even the same hours. Officially, no one knows who is behind these trades, but the Federal Reserve is sitting on $ 4 trillion in Treasury paper and is fighting any effort to audit their holdings. A coincidence? Not likely.

Your government extracting more money from your wallet.

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Detroit, Michigan

Tuesday Divertere – Detroit Is The Graveyard Of Socialism

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Begging the question: "Why have Michigan taxpayers not been screaming bloody murder during the last bailout?"

Reality check.

Proposal 15-1 was likely cover for Snyder to get certain debts paid down so more of our resources could be poured into the failure that is Detroit. If it passed, it would have covered a lot of his issues including transportation (trains) infrastructure, existing bonds, and even a few more bucks for those schools that only know how to employ ‘effective teachers’

When will we stop tossing money into an open grave that seems to have unlimited capacity? From a few years back:

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