** Caution – Highly intense partisanship.. you HAVE been warned **
Anyone who voted for and passed tax increases in 2007 as happened in Lansing should be ashamed, whether they are Republican or Democrat. The LAST thing the state needed was more burden on business.
Results of that increase didn’t take long to materialize, and we see where we are heading already. Contrary to the liars in the left wing media, and the Democrats themselves, this economy in Michigan is not a BUSH caused issue, but one that encompasses Liberal thought and decision making processes both on a national level and state wide. Unrealistic restrictions placed on business and producers of product and energy results in less activity and less product and energy.
Michigan, and frankly Detroit, needs Energy, and LOTS OF IT. The energy cost increases created by lack of a sound energy policy by do nothing legislative (liberal) hacks set up the slow down, and while the Unions were busting ass to find a solution which didn’t “appear” to be concessions for the workers, the manufacturers closed anyhow. But hey, what the heck, the Liberals (even the ones in the unions.. go figure) don’t like cars or industrial business anyway, even though a strong supporting constituency which has given them power, needs Detroit making cars and hard goods so they have jobs.
Sooo.. Once the Jobs and taxes being paid were reduced, the number crunchers behind the faces we hire to do our work in Lansing said “OK, we have a choice.. we rid ourselves of social programs, become more efficient, or we find new and untapped areas to start collecting more taxes.” Naturally, the burden was shifted by legislation, the new MBT was born without consideration of effect, and many manufacturing businesses which traditionally had a smaller tax role with the SBT (which by many measures was already unfair) found themselves facing a tax that would eliminate employees, because of that increased and shifted burden.
The problem, as most Liberal thought processes miss, is that people and businesses will respond and change behaviorally to situations they might find themselves in. The basic tenets of economics are conveniently ignored, as laws are passed assuming the money will be extracted from the businesses with no adjusting measures from those businesses in the process. So instead of revenues increasing, Businesses leave the higher taxed environments, close the doors, or reduce their number of employees. Also, benefit reductions happen, and even worse, more sourcing from overseas to control costs becomes more inevitable, which leads to other domestic operations to suffer.
Yeah.. Bush caused Michigan to suffer. Think about this.. Many of the parts used by the assembly plant in Mishawaka, Indiana which makes Hummers and the nearby Humvee plant are parts crafted and made in Michigan. Who has been a really good customer of those particular vehicles? Frankly, IMO any union worker who has lost his job over the last two years should look at which party it was that took control during that time. If they are happy with where they are in life, then Voting Democrat/Liberal/Marxist must agree with them.
Bottom line is that “O-Who” is going to push for higher taxes on Business. He is the COG that needs to be in place for the socialist agenda controlling the two houses and the pen to finally “equalize” all the workers, not by increasing opportunity, but by taking cutting the legs out from under those who excel. At the same time, to ensure we are all kept equal, there will be a SELECT FEW who retain power to enforce the social equalization he would place upon us in an unholy Oligarchy. Michigan will continue to suffer, and our leaders will continue to miss the point, further burdening us and providing “relief” where they see fit.
You have been warned.