Yeah I know, most folks are very familiar with my contempt for the state of Michigan as well as the greater Midwest region of the United States of America so why would I give a personal shit about the political races currently taking place in any of those areas? Because of something called the "trickle down effect" which I will explain later in this piece. I also realize that some folks may think "Well, why should we listen to him, he's not even a resident of our state?" Because like many other people here in America the majority of us who do not live in Michigan are very well aware of how rotten things are in your state - unemployment, crime rates, you name it, your woes are not an elusive mystery to any of us outside of your state borders.
Here's the skinny - there is a Republican candidate by the name of Rick Snyder who is running in Michigan's mayoral race this election and I am here to tell you voters in Michigan this - do NOT vote for that man. Politicians are like hookers, they all got their good points and their bad points but when it comes to Mr. Snyder, one of his worst points is the role he played in the demise of the Gateway Computer Corporation, not just the thousands of jobs that were lost every single year he was in command of that company, but also his role in selling it to the Chinese. You people in Michigan are extremely foolhardy if you choose to place your trust in someone who will make unemployment in your state even worse should he be elected mayor. As if y'all back there don't have it hard enough as it is. Mr. Snyder will not bring jobs back to Michigan, nor will he reinvent the state and make it more prosperous. The state''s automotive industry is already doing that for the 1st time in decades and throwing Mr. Snyder's hollow promises into that mix could prove dentrimental to the regrowth that the industry leaders of your state are trying so damn hard to nurture and expand. Those of you who live back there know first-hand how rough things are in Michigan, why on God's green earth would you make a decision that would further impair your state's chances of full and total recovery from this awful economic depression that is plaguing all of us?
As a resident of the state of Massachusetts I know firsthand what Mr. Snyder's economic stimulus policies are capable of producing. Thus enters the "trickle down effect." Imagine my disgust several years ago while shopping at the Barnes & Noble store in the Shopper's World area of Natick, MA and looking up at the giant Gateway Computer store located 2 doors down from it, as workers were hauling the inventory, the shelves and everything else out of the store. That evening a few shoppers walking next to me stopped and asked one of the Gateway employees what was going on and you wouldn't believe the response I heard "Some asshole in Michigan sold us out to the Chinese!" Let me tell you, my mouth dropped!! And instantly in my mind I thought "My God, I'm almost a thousand miles away from that nasty place and STILL the evil, nasty little claws of some Midwest monster still reach out clutching for anything they can get their hands on!!" Oh I was livid, just livid!
But less than a minute later I laughed when I heard one of the shoppers say to two of her fellow shoppers "Michigan? Isn't that some hick place west of New York??" And ohhhhhh I wanted to say soooooooo badly "Hick place? You dont know the half of it children! Step out any backyard there and look in any direction and not only do you see nothing but mile after mile of flat farmlands and near-bare landscapes everywhere, but dont be surprised if you see a opossum or skunk roller-blading down the middle of the road, flipping you off the entire time!" All that night, all the way back home I was cursing and saying "Those goddamn sonnsabitches need to keep their shit in their own backyard and keep it away from my beloved Boston! Hmmmph!"
This all happened years ago but I still feel the same exact way now as I did then, if not moreso. The majority of the people in Michigan have no concept of how much more expensive it is to live and survive here on the East coast than back there. For the thousands of Gateway employees who lost their jobs from 2005 onward it was a giant blow to Massachusetts and naturally every single Gateway location in the Boston area and it's MetroWest suburbs closed. Even worse yet, there were no businesses that moved into those locations - those jobs were not only lost for good, there weren't any to replace them. But I'm more than certain that this did not concern Mr. Snyder, he probaly sat back in his home office - most likely on a Gateway brand computer no less - and thought to himself "Well, I'm rich, I belong to a certain class of people, I don't need to worry about those things." There were families here in Masschusetts that went hungry because of self-serving business decisions that you made Mr. Snyder and that didnt concern you? Yep, that's exactly what you voters in Michigan need right about now - a smooth-talking politician who will wine-n-dine you now but then purposely forget to leave his money on the dresser when he's done screwing the living daylights out of you. As the charcter Miss Julia Sugarbakker of the television series "Designing Women" would say - "Mr. Snyder? For Mayor?? I don't think so."
By the same token, am I suggesting to all of you Michigan voters to march yourselves down to the polls and vote for Democrat candidate Virg Bernero instead of Rick Snyder? Hell no. As devoted as a Democrat that I am, I won't tell you that and you wanna know why? Because even though I have researched Mr. Bernero's stances on various economic policies, I don't think he's the best candidate to govern the state of Michigan either. Granted, for me, living in a big city as I do now, he's extremely impressive because after all, he was the mayor of Lansing, Michigan, the state capitol, so chances are very very good that he know's what he's doing and he knows how to do it well - taking care of the people who vote for him. Now I realize that no politician is perfect but I think it's a pretty safe bet that Mr. Bernero will not take badly needed (as well as longly awaited) jobs away from the state of Michigan. He's not gonna stir up a mess that will impede GM or any other of Michigan's industries from making a long awaited comeback this year and in the next few years to come. Think about it - do you want to elect someone who could build up the power to sell-out even more of Michigan's industries or someone who's gonna putta stop to that kinda bullshit and in turn do his best to save the state of Michigan?
All I'm saying is this - when it comes to politics and voting, you need to do two things. First, use common sense. Yeah, it's really that simple. Second, if you yourself as a concerned, educated individual feel that neither of the candidates who are running for the mayoral office in Michigan this year are worthy of sucha post, then you need to realize the following - when you have two evils in front of you, always, ALWAYS choose the lesser of the two. As I said earlier, as proud as I am to be a staunch and loyal member of the Democratic party, I can't tell you that Virg Bernero is the right person to head the state of Michigan but when you look at Rick Snyder's political track record, well, I think it's pretty obvious.
Look, voters of Michigan, I wont lie to you, things are tough all over right now, not just in your state, not just in my state, but everywhere. It's quite obvious that the majority of political campaigns taking place all over America this year mainly center around economic stimulus packages and the neverending soaring unemployment rates. As sad as this situation is, it is the truth to face and deal with. I truly wish there was an easy answer or an easy suggestion to tell you which road to choose to travel down but since there isn't, allow me to at least say this to you - make the choice that is going to best benefit your lives and the lives of your children. Nowadays we are talking about survival, both the protection and preservation of it, so please make a careful, well-informed choice. Don't do it last minute, research each candidate's stances on every issue first and then make your decision. And whatever you do, don't refuse to vote because every voice makes a difference. Now more than ever, trust me on that one. Thank you for reading.
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