[UKUKUK]

I do say legalize gay marriage. Homosexuals moving into an area is usually a good sign. It tends to bring a market for more small and large business and typically means more well-educated folk.

Prostitution and marijuana though? Never. This is one of the last strongholds of moral good-ol America left.

Rebranding the state I support. Turning the focus away from Detroit (would only HURT Detroit)... NEVER!

[Bhaalspawn]

Turning the focus away from Detroit might be the best way to help Detroit. If Grand Rapids were to become a large, prosperous, modern city, much of the tax revenue it would generate could be used to help the Detroit area. It might also reduce the demands on the state's social services, saving the state money which could be used to help renovate Detroit.

[darstar]

The best thing that can happen to Detroit is to downsize, not try to be what it is not....anymore.
Note: I am talking about the City proper.

[YAZ]

Ted Nugent for Guv'na!

[Bhaalspawn]

We have our winners! Bernero (D) v. Snyder (R). In other news, Buttcheeks Kilpatrick lost her primary!

Bernero is pro-choice and Snyder is either pro-choice himself or isn't emphasizing the abortion issue. Where does this leave devout Christians in the main election? Will they even come out to vote for the lesser of two seemingly pro-choice candidates?

Which one has a better plan for fixing the state's economy and moving forward? Here's a Detroit News interview with both candidates. I think I prefer Snyder over Bernero, but I'm very skeptical about anyone who identifies himself as a Republican.

http://www.detnews.com/article/20100...ION01/7290338/

http://www.detnews.com/article/20100721/OPINION01/7210318/ (broken link)

[Bhaalspawn]

Originally Posted by danielj72

Sick just plain sick. Michigan should never be turned into a home for sin and decadence.

It's not about sin and decadence, it's about offering people the freedom to make their own choices in life while decreasing the scope of government dictatorship.

If two men or two women want to marry one another, how does that impact your life? Who are you to say they shouldn't be able to get married?

If someone wants to smoke pot in the privacy of their own home, what's the harm in that?

If a man and a woman agree on a price for sex privately, what's the harm in that? It doesn't affect your life at all. It's not as though men and women don't already exchange money for sex indirectly in the dating and courtship process.

This vision of Michigan is a nightmare scenario. If it ever happens I will leave the state immediately and never return. However Im not worried about having to do that, as there is no way these things will ever fly here. This is not Massachusets or Californication land.

It's part of a vision of Michigan as a forward-thinking, more fiscally responsible state that would be more attractive to innovators. By reducing the large amount of money that's wasted policing these activities, the money can be spent elsewhere or used to reduce taxes. Besides, do you think highly-educated people want to live under a police-state dictatorship? There's a reason why Silicon Valley is in California and not Kansas. What if we could market Michigan as "The Personal Freedoms State"? "Come to Michigan to live without government intrusion into your personal life."

[Bhaalspawn]

Originally Posted by UKUKUK

Rebranding the state I support. Turning the focus away from Detroit (would only HURT Detroit)... NEVER!

What is a focus on Detroit doing for the state? The vast majority of Americans have a preconceived notion of Detroit which reflects on the rest of the state, and it's not good. They think that Detroit is a laughable joke of a city and that the entire state is that backwards and derelict.

I think it's time that we give the state a new image--Grand Rapids and the state's West Coast. Let's do what we can to provide an image of up-and-coming progressive cities and beautiful lake shore.

[tecpatl]

Originally Posted by danielj72

Sick just plain sick. Michigan should never be turned into a home for sin and decadence. This vision of Michigan is a nightmare scenario. If it ever happens I will leave the state immediately and never return. However Im not worried about having to do that, as there is no way these things will ever fly here. This is not Massachusets or Californication land.

Sick?? You don't have to agree with the proposed agenda, but sick it's not.
This is MICHIGAN, not Utah...if you need pure "sin"-free living (but still with hot & cold running multiple wives) then head West daniel, and say hello to Brigham Young.
Most of the issues you condemn are personal choices, not a scourge on society or culture. If you are suggesting your religious beliefs should rule my world I'll file you away with Shari'a advocates and other religious extremists who have no business telling me or anyone else how to live .
As Ann Landers used to say: MYOB
And have a nice day!

[tecpatl]

Originally Posted by Bhaalspawn

What is a focus on Detroit doing for the state? The vast majority of Americans have a preconceived notion of Detroit which reflects on the rest of the state, and it's not good. They think that Detroit is a laughable joke of a city and that the entire state is that backwards and derelict.

I think it's time that we give the state a new image--Grand Rapids and the state's West Coast. Let's do what we can to provide an image of up-and-coming progressive cities and beautiful lake shore.

I hate saying and thinking this, but using Detroit to judge Michigan is a tragic mistake for everyone concerned.
Just look at the state of Detroit public schools and the pathetic excuse for attempts to fix them...the city council again refused to let Detroiters decide who should run the school system. This after the school board proved itself not only inept but criminal. Amazing and sad. I don't even need to get into other stuff...everyone knows already.
Detroit is a failed and dysfunctional city, though I think it's on it's way back. Mayor Bing is trying hard, as are many, many others...but the city seems to be it's own worst enemy.
I hope for the best for Detroit and Detroiters...every single one of them...but I'd hate for anyone to look at that city and judge our state. It should be the driving engine of culture and commerce, as Chicago is to Illinois and the entire Midwest, but any thought of that is a distant hope.
All that being said, I'm less than enthusiastic about certain aspects of Grand Rapids, particularly the "if you're not Dutch, you're not much" subculture, but there is an undeniable and exciting energy to that city and it's people. I see it turning into a crypto-Calvinist version of Minneapolis someday.

[canudigit]

There is a new momentum in Detroit Metro, and it's good news for the whole state if things do turn around there. Businesses are moving into downtown again. Yeah, they're relocating from the Detroit 'burbs and not from out of state at this point, but the idea of building downtown up again and making the city core a desirable place to live and work will revitalize the entire area, just as the downfall of Detroit proper was a detriment to the entire metro area. I do believe that Mayor Bing is doing his best to be a decent, honest leader who wants to see his city thrive, and other things are starting to happen too that make me excited for the future of Detroit and hence, Michigan. You can try to remove the rest of Michigan from Detroit, but in reality, as Michigan's largest city Detroit has always been and probably always will be the heart of the body that is Michigan, and when the heart is sick, the entire body is affected. Detroit has many, many assets that if marketed correctly, along with gradually doing away with the things that have worked to bring Detroit down, will bring new life and new business to Detroit.

Electing another union-endorsed Democrat as governor will show the rest of the country that Michigan is a business as usual state that refuses to make the drastic changes that are needed, even though the current status quo is antiquated and clearly not working. Electing a businessman who has never been in politics before but has a strong record of building businesses and creating jobs will draw national attention and show the rest of the country that Michigan is serious about redrawing the blueprint and reinventing itself as a state. Those of us who live here know what a great state this is, but as long as we carry the burden of being known as a union heavy manufacturing-based state that revolves only around the automotive industry and the organized labor that controls it, no one will sit up and take notice or believe that we sincerely want to change and become a place that people flock to, not run away from.