Same Old, Same Old

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Comparing Apples and Oranges on 'Pure Michigan'

Would anyone compare the purchasing power of General Motors to that of a local diner or the local gas station?

Of course not. They're not the same. Yet that's what the Livingston Press and Argus did in its story on an imagined "debate" over the merits of the Pure Michigan ad campaign.

The story features no real debate at all in terms of the campaign. How could it? The program is a winner for the state, returning $2.33 in sales tax revenue for each $1 spent in advertising Michigan as a tourism attraction nationwide. The only debate is in the reporter's mind, who tries to create controversy by encouraging readers to be "outraged" over non-existent state advertising for General Motors products after failing to find anyone to make that statement for him.

At its heart, the story shows a basic inability or refusal to understand the nature of the tourism industry. Michigan's tourism industry is not made up of two or three huge companies fully capable of financing national advertising. It's made up of thousands of small enterprises that benefit whenever people from outside the local community come and spend money -- local restaurants, gas stations, campgrounds, motels, golf courses, gift shops, local museums, and so on. Individually, they simply cannot afford to advertise nationally the way General Motors and Ford can. Yet they all pay taxes to the state of Michigan in one way or another and provide jobs. The state benefits from their existence. It seems entirely reasonable that the state would help them thrive by doing something they cannot possibly do on their own -- advertising on their behalf nationally. Especially when it doesn't cost the state in the long run to do this.

The comparison to the beef industry check-off program also is misguided. That's a national program -- cattle raisers all over the nation contribute to that, not just those from one state. And of course, the beef check-off program is a government program, overseen by the USDA, even though the money comes from $1 a head from the producers. You can read about it here. Another off-the-mark comparison.

Instead of manufacturing outrage over non-existent state advertising for GM, the newspaper out to be reflecting disgust for the job-killing Republican State Senate.

Careful What You Wish For

You have to wonder if the Press & Argus is regretting its endorsement of Joe Hune for State Senate and Cindy Denby for State House.

Denby, whose P&A endorsement was lukewarm at best (to paraphrase, "Well, she hasn't done much but at least we don't think she'll raise taxes"), has been busy working to give her fellow politicians some wiggle room on term limits. She's also "picking up the torch" for Nancy Cassis on the issue of film credits, a crusade which elicits yawns from a majority of the state Legislature.

Hune actually got a wrist slap from the P&A on his recent claim that eliminating welfare benefits for undocumented immigrants is a "top priority":

Problem is, there are no figures that indicate that there are such payments going to undocumented aliens. Further, laws in this area already exist.

Michigan League for Human Services spokeswoman Judy Putnam said Hune's proposal sounds like "a solution in search of a problem."

Actually, it's a sound bite in search of a constituency. It's unnecessary because Hune already owns the state Senate seat and is a lock to keep it for the next eight years. He should use this position not to make cheap points, but to show that conservative Republicans can govern effectively.

To put all this hot air into context:

• Over 2,000 Livingston residents will exhaust their unemployment benefits this month
• Michigan has lost over 860,000 jobs since 2000.
• The state's 2012 budget is facing a deficit of at least $1.6 billion

It's clear that our elected officials are focusing on the things that matter... to them.

Congressional Profiling

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They Beg to Differ

Republicans can tell us that everything is perfect in Livingston County all they want. But anybody who drives a car knows that's not true. And people are starting to get the message that the Livingston County Commission has something to say about that.

Two letters to the editor this week from people pointing out that our roads are in poor condition and that the Livingston County Commission could do something about it and in fact is responsible for doing something about it.

Asks one letter writer, where is the accountability?

With the all-Republican county commission.

Short-term Memory Loss?

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