[tasdad4701]

I have read your posts Aussiemale I hope others do also. You seem to be a
real nice guy I am sure Australia misses you lol !!!!!!!!!!!

[BacktoMichi]

I just wish people would READ what I posted.
Did I say people should not give a negative opinion? NO. I'm all for a mix of opinions. I spent 25 years in SE Michigan, and most of my extended family continues to live there. I am well aware of what's happening.

What I said was that I had read several posts from people who were moving to Michigan from other states/countries because of a job transfer/opportunity -- and they were looking for help finding a community to live or whatever.
What they got instead was a "why would you move to Michigan... it's a dump?", along with some incredible exaggerations or lies.

I won't even respond to the stuff about baby boomers, toney resort towns, etc... because I don't know what the heck that has to do with what I originally posted about.

My experience at this forum has been short-lived, but I think I've seen enough to say it's not for me.

[soyezheureux]

Can't we all just get along?! I definitely see what BackToMichi was saying in the original post, however I also see what Tasdad4701 was saying in the "baby boomers" post. I have lived in Michigan my whole life as well (which is 25 years, so far). And I have always loved what Michigan has to offer. I know a lot of people complain about the weather, but I think it is perfect. Summers feel like summer, winters feel like winter, and spring and fall are perfect as well. I like that it is so full of natural resources, and things to do in nature (from skiing in the winter, to jet skiing in the summer, to deer hunting, to visiting the beautiful tahquemenon (spelling?) falls, to seeing the cherry fest in TC or the tulip fest in Holland, or going up to frankenmuth. Honestly, all of these things made my 25 years here seem like "home."

But I also think it's fair to caution people about our economy. My fiancee and I both have our B.A.'s and - although we are lucky to have jobs at all - we are not making what we could in most other places, and both of our jobs have been declining pretty steadily since we got them, and who knows when one or both of them are going to close. A huge number of college grads are in the same situation as I am. Those who can't find jobs, and who are trying to start their career, or start a family, obviously are going to be better off looking elsewhere. Those who do have jobs, often do not have the job security where they would feel comfortable staring a family here.

If you are being transfered to Michigan for your job, there are many nice places to live (I wouldn't recommend the city of Detroit itself, but many of the suburbs are very nice), and there is enough to do to entertain yourself (unless of course you are looking for a large downtown area with a bustling nightlife...that is one thing that Detroit really doesn't have that most major cities do). However, I think it is also fair to at least tell those people to use caution when thinking about accepting a transfer to Michigan. Who knows how long that job will last. If it is a job that pertains to the Big 3, I wouldn't put an awful lot of stock into it, as far as the long term is concerned. These companies are losing a lot of money, cutting a lot of jobs, and it is going to continue to get worse for a while still. I highly doubt that any of the Big 3 will ever return to their former levels of prosperity. So even if it looks good right now having that job, it could still be a very risky move.

I definitely do not think, however, that people should be presenting their "opinions" in the way that some people are prone to doing (as BackToMichi noticed, people talking about the Great Lakes "catching on fire" and whatnot...it's a little crazy). If you move to Michigan, you will not instantly be killed by a crazed crackhead. Maybe you will be able to find some economic success here. You just probably have a better chance of that in most other places.

Believe me, I wish things were different. My family, nor my fiancee's family, neither of them are terribly thrilled that we are going to leave the state. And we're not so thrilled that we're leaving the place we've both called home for our entire lives, and leaving behind our families who we will probably only see a couple times a year from now on. But we have to think of our future. Of OUR family, our children (when we have them) and their future. I don't think we can be successful in Michigan. It makes me sad, but it's what many people have already done, and what many more are going to have to do as well.

[AussieMale]

Hi BacktoMichi

im sure you have noticed that once again people have leaped before they look.

i have never stated that i have moved from Australia ,i will be when the time is rite & everything is all sold up tasdad4701 , my wife must think im a nice guy cuz she married me....lol.

i guess until then i will see more negitive people come in here n bit.h on & if im lucky by the time i move there they will have moved out.

[robertbisard]

I think Aussiemale is right we should stick to the topic at hand but I also think tasdad 4701 is right as well this is a sort of blog that people can vent their frustrations on. and lets face right now there is a lot to vent about Michigan the economy is bad, I will be losing my third job this June because of it. so take for face value or not. there are people in Michigan that just can not look at this state right now in a good light. I am one of them

[mike jones]

Michigan is not a dump
Excluding Detroit which looks like a war zone, this has been a great state to live.

To anyone wanting to relocate here, it is a good choice.
Thats if you have a secure job, like in the medical field.
If that is the case, do not be scared.

If you are in the automotive or manfacturing field...then you are living dangerously.

We have great places and towns to live in and raise a family.


Why does everyone get so defensive when we talk about how bad the economy in this state is???

[tasdad4701]

I feel your pain, it comes down what you want in life. You can just get by
or have the things that you deserve. My wife has her BA and I know how
much hard work it is to obtain a degree. Good luck and god bless Michigan
and all the people who are sticking it out. Go Tigers and Go Michigan!!!!!!

[begorra]

As a non USA person there is certainly a considerable amout of negativity on this site regarding MI.
However, as someone considering an offer to work in MI, it did give me some "food for thought", plus enabled me to highlight concerns over the economic problems to my potential MI employer last week.
Which they accepted as just and fair; so for my part the constructive nature on the threads identifying the troubled economy in MI was helpful.
I think you just have to apply common sense when the negativity gets obviously "out of hand"
Thanks for the insight.

[Kingsnkali]

I remember moving to California in the early 1990's. The place was an economic wasteland. Post Cold War military base closures all over the place. The huge military industrial complex factories closing down for good. Millions of jobs removed from the economy. Unemployment off the charts. Some counties had 25% unemployment. Real estate tanking with rusty For Sale signs swinging in the wind on every other house. Foreclosures. Repos. Rampant crime. Beggars and even whole families holding signs at the intersections. It was BAD.

Falling Down...BAD.

The attitude of those Californians who lived through that was very much like Michigan today. They were bitter. Hurt. Fearful. Lost. And some of them facing economic ruin. We recovered via high technology and the resulting spin offs in the expanding service economy.

It's a bitter pill and I don't know if Michigan can recover. I say that because of the experience of the rest of the northern industrial Rust Belt. Those areas have never recovered. I think a major portion of the problem is the perception (by business) of a population raised on Unions. And I don't want this to turn into a debate on the pros and cons of Unions. There are indeed pros and cons. I just think that manufacturers (foreign or domestic) are afraid to open up shop in a place like Michigan. The legacy of the huge auto unions has probably stamped much of Michigan as a place NOT to set up a business. Those jobs and factories are going to areas that never had a strong Union legacy like the south or west. It is a WORLD ECONOMY now. Business must be able to change quickly, adapt and modernize to COMPETE. If they can't make a profit, they go bye bye. And employees have to realize that. It is a partnership like marriage. To succeed you must work together.

That's at least my take on it.

On the plus side, I think Michigan has the potential of being a solid technology producer in the future. Plenty of brain power in the state with quality higher learning centers to feed new industries of the future. Real estate costs are now very competitive. Great recreational opportunities. Beautiful lakes. Michigan has advantages over the other high-cost states like California in that regard. Will they use it or tax business into the stone age because "profits are evil"? Will the Michigan government spend money on endless welfare or target new jobs and industries? I don't know the internal politics of the state. There certainly is a crisis when a state is losing its hard-working, tax-paying middle class to other states while a large welfare underclass remains. Not good.

[mike jones]

I like the post comparing Michigan to California in the 90's

Maybe we can harness our brain power for other things rather than factory work. Why couldnt be done here??

Once the unions have been effectively destroyed I think then and only then will we as a state see an economic turn-around.