14 March 2009

A Tale of Two States

A man who I greatly respect (and will remain nameless at this point in time) saw the writing on the wall. His state was going down. Unsustainable governmental fiscal policy, racial strife, a growing government bureaucracy-- these are the kinds of wounds and burdens a state can’t easily shrug off. Unlike most men in this world, this man had the principles to act on his thoughts. He took his family and moved to Colorado.

But why not stick it out and try and change things, I asked him once. Surely a man of your mind and instincts would be vital to the recovery of your beloved home?

His response? He didn’t think anyone in government “got it”. Namely, he wanted to see someone in government admit that there had to be big changes in the way the government would work in the future. He wanted to see an effort to return to first principles, to fundamental values. He wanted to see a Dave Ramsey in office: someone who basically said:

“Guys, I know we’ve had a lot of really nice programs and policies over the past 20 years. But we can’t afford it. Government is no different from your household: we simply can’t keep spending money that we don’t have. You can’t be making $40,000 a year and have $16,000 credit card bills. If you were in debt, you’d have to sell the new Jetta and buy a used Honda. You’d have to stop going to concerts and movies. You’d buy bulk food and mainly eat in rather than eat out. Again, we’re no different. So here’s what we’ll do. We’ll cut out 50% of our unemployment funds and 75% of our farm subsidies. We’ll fire 15% of our teachers. We’ll cut a quarter of our health-care obligations. We’ll cut a percentage of our sales tax too. I know it hurts. Those are important programs and people. They do a lot for our world*, but we simply cannot afford them. I wish we could keep them. Hell, I wish every one of you could have a new F-250 truck, a lake house, and money for private colleges. I’d want that life. But guess what-- you and I can’t afford that life. The only way you can afford it is if you MAKE A LOT OF MONEY. You want that life? Go produce something of value (here’s an idea), sell it, and buy all that dream stuff with the profits. Otherwise, suck it up and make do with what you got. And trust me when I say that our state government will do the same.”

He saw none of that. What he saw instead was partisan bickering over meaninglessly small debates when the tsunami-wave was bending over the city skyline. He saw the current leadership whinging about how the prior administration was really at fault, so none of the blame really resides with the avowed leader. He saw the eventual collapse, something that surprised many people but was quite obvious in retrospect.

I’ve delayed revealing where this man was, but I’m afraid its become obvious. This man moved his family out of the suburbs of Detroit in 1991. Over the past few years, passing in conversation, we’ve both noted how the attitudes and views of the Mitten State have broken past the state’s borders and bleed to the rest of America.

Welcome to the Michiganization of America. As residents of the state will tell you, it’s depressing and deadening and awful and lonely and wistful.

But it’s home, right?

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*Debatable, but it fits with the rhetoric of a politician, no?

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