Gun Control and The States

GUN CONTROL AND STATES: Governing.com reports the following:

"Court: Citizens Can Challenge State, Local Gun LawsSan Francisco ChronicleA federal appeals court in San Francisco ruled that private citizens can challenge state and local gun laws—the first such ruling in the nation—while upholding a ban on firearms at gun shows at the Alameda County, Calif., fairgrounds. The ruling followed last year's landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to possess guns for self-defense.--end of news story.

"Well this should cause alot of action in state courts and reintensify the control control and anti gun control folks at the local and state level. Obama folks do not seem incline to take on the issue of gun control at this time and that is proably a wise political decision. Not sure that this is an issue that will be a good use of local political capital--at this time of budget problems and revenue crisis.

Michigan's Revenue and Expenditure Woes

Michigan has revenue today to support a population of about 7.5 million people.

The problem is we have over 10 million people in our state.

So we either need more revenue--higher taxes--or we need to continue to make drastic cuts in our state budget and state services. Another answer might be different types of taxes that tax different people and businesses in different ways and produces more tax revenue than we get now.

Michigan Problems--Moving families

A recent newspaper report said that a family moves out of Michigan every 12 minutes.

That is not a "brain drain" but rather a huge population drain--with brains and without much brains. Or maybe it is a "smart" idea to get out of Michigan before things get worse. What is worse?

According to the Detroit News Michigan has had over 465,000 people leave since 2001.

Some more facts:

• 18,000 adults with a bachelor's degree or higher left in 2007 alone.
• Of the 465,000 Michigan residents leaving Michigan, they took with them almost $1.2 billion in paychecks than the paychecks of those moving in. That is a 45% increase in lost wages in one year.
• "Those leaving Michigan had incomes 20% higher than those who moved in to Michigan".
• Michigan lost 12,000 school age children in 2007 and that cost school districts approximately $84 million in state aid.
• There are 36,000 emply houses and apartments in Michigan.
• Michigan lost over $100 million in personal income tax revenue in 2007 from those people who left Michigan that year.
• Based on these losses in population we will lose Congressional clout and federal money. We will lose one or two Congressmen after the reapportionment in 2011.
• Detroit News reports that based on analysis of US Census Bureau and IRS data Michigan get less populated, less educated and poorer because of outmigration.

So what do we do? When? How?

Michigan's Constitutional Convention

Once every 16 years Michigan voters get to decide in the voting booth if they want a constitutional convention to amend their constitution.

In 2010 voters get to vote on this issue--the question will be on the ballot. It is called Proposal 10-1.

The newsletter Inside Michigan Politics (www.insidemichiganpolitics.com) commissioned a poll by Marketing Resource Group, Inc. to see if the voters would support a constituional convention. It was conducted in early March. 600 registered voters were polled. The statistical margin of error was 4+/4-%.

Inside Michigan Politics newsletter found in the poll that 41% of the people said yes they would vote for the convention; 40% said no and 19% were undecided.

They then asked those polled that would they still support the convention if they knew that the constitutional convention would cost $45 million. Only 18% said they would vote yes for the convention and 75% said no and 7% were undecided.

Constitutional Conventions elect delegates in general elections and then operate like the legislature for a termed period of time. They hire staff and support personnal. Thus the $45 million.

So, Michigan voters really want an amended constitution and think it is important to do so--but not at a cost of $45 million.

President's Success in Europe

The key to Presidential success in international visits is to convince the world's leaders where he is visiting to understand and support the American foreign policy agenda. It is not to lecture or to try to force adoption of the American agenda using hard power, but rather to use soft power.

One has to ask was President Ombama successful in convincing the European leaders that America had a new foreign policy and that they should endorse and support it? Or did he make a few points and then adopt in his language the "European foreign policy agenda"?

Or was President Obama using soft power to convince European leaders that there was a "new" American foreign policy agenda and that he was there to explain and to ask for their support. Was it to first show that he could listen, explain and then slowly seek European leadership support? Is that too slow a system in this new world economy and global agenda?

Canadian Comparisons

The World Economic Forum in 2008 ranked Canada's banking system the healthiest in the world. Our is 40th on the list and Britian's is 44th. Our northern neighbors have not had one bank failure while ours are collapsing all over the place this year.

Its banks are leveraged at 18 to 1 and ours at 26 to one.

It has 12 years of budget surpluses.

Penison system completely revamped and strong.

Canada's health care costs 9.7% of its GDP versus ours at 15.2%

Canada's citizen life expectancy is 81 and ours is 78.

Its healthy life expenctancy is 72 versus ours at 69.

Hmmm, which way is north? Maybe we should look there.

Post Racial Society

With the election of President Obama many observers say we live in a post racial society.

I am not sure yet about that assertion and do have my doubts, but I do hope it is true.

However, how do we explain then that 40 percent, yes, 40 percent of black kids under 5 live in poverty.

Hmmmm.