Progress Michigan blog posts.
Michigan’s budget crisis shows no signs of being resolved anytime soon. In the meantime, Michigan’s students face devastation because of sharp cuts in school funding. Our students are not getting the education they need to compete for good paying jobs because Michigan’s budget cuts have taken away vital resources. Worse, it has led to teachers…
Michiganders Hold Vigils to Protest Extreme Arizona Immigration Law Legislation opposed by law enforcement, mandates racial profiling Detroit Saturday, April 24, 1:00 PM Western High School, 1500 Scotten State Representatives Tlaib and Young UNITE-HERE Local 24 Political Director Dia Pearce Ann Arbor Saturday, April 24, 1:00 PM Federal Building, 200 E. Liberty In response to…
I’m a little late getting to this, but with yesterday’s launch of a petition drive to block health care reform in Michigan – by a group of right-wing backed Tea Partiers and extreme conservatives like state Representative Tom McMillin – it’s pretty pertinent. First, let’s not forget that the Michigan Citizens for Healthcare Freedom launched…
So while Michigan’s right-wing flank in the state Senate is voting to rescind a slight wage increase for state workers (who have already taken concessions on benefits and unpaid furlough days), they’re conveniently forgetting about the tens of billions of dollars in corporate tax loopholes that flood out of Michigan’s coffers every year. How much?…
In three pages, Governor Granholm (a former Attorney General herself) schools Attorney General Mike Cox, explaining the constitutional limits of his authority and the position of the State of Michigan. Sign our petition telling Attorney General Mike Cox “Not in our name!” Letter to AG Cox
Confession: I am not one of those people who believes the answer to every question is “let the free market decide.” I don’t believe that the market does what’s in the best interests of the people, either short or long term. See: the dominance of sport utility vehicles in the United States, effects on the…
The health reform vote is coming in the House. Representative Gary Peters (MI-09) needs to keep listening to us, not the insurance companies. In Peters’ district, the House’s improvements to the Senate health reform bill will [pdf]: Improve coverage for 482,000 residents with health insurance. Give tax credits and other assistance to up to 112,000…
You can’t read this story in the Detroit News about Kirk Miller, a twenty-something who can’t afford his health insurance, and tell me big insurance companies are managing our health care system just fine on their own. He’s also suffering from a chronic blood disorder, making the emergency room his only viable treatment option. After…
The climactic moment in the best non-Pixar children’s film I’ve ever seen, The Iron Giant, comes when little Hogarth Hughes teaches his new pal, the Iron Giant, about what it means to be alive. “You are who you choose to be,” he says. “You choose.” Contrast that with the childish, oft-repeated statement made by the…
Alright, first, let me just say that one of my pet peeves is the misuse of the word, ironic. So let’s just review quickly. It is not, as Alanis Morissette would have us believe, "like rain on your wedding day." That’s just bad luck, and probably poor planning. It’s also not "a free ride" when…