Michigan’s Broken…NOT!

“Michigan’s broken,” or so everyone says. One state recession, tops in unemployment, economic basket case, is there any insult we haven’t heard in the last few years? Everybody knows there’s something fundamentally broken in Michigan, a deep defect in our character that has to be repaired before we can move on.

            Or is it? Broken, I mean. Looking at Michigan’s recent history, it’s hard to believe we suddenly turned into idiots about..uhhh..2002. In the 1990s Michigan led the nation in job creation. We were considered a powerhouse and a wealthy one at that. We had lakes, water, resources, and cities full of productive people, colleges and universities that envy of America. To be sure, we had problems; poor old Detroit City has been a sad case since 1967, but that’s hardly a recent issue. Michigan hummed for decades, until we got suddenly came down with some sort of “malaise?”

Stupid...or Stymied?

            Or did we? What if we didn’t? What if the underlying potential of Michigan is still dynamic and powerful?  What if Michigan isn’t stupid, but stymied? If we’re every bit as smart, and productive, and energetic as we ever were, what’s blocked the movement, thwarted the energy, and sapped the strength? That leads to two interlocked questions: what’s stymied Michigan and how do we get rid of it?

            The first thing you have to understand is a basic rule: people aren’t stupid. To repeat:

PEOPLE AREN’T STUPID

            Got it? People generally do what they perceive is in their own best interests. They try to achieve their own goals, which are personal to each individual. They look around at the world and respond to the facts and conditions they find. People respond to things that help them get what they want—we call them “incentives.” People do not respond, and avoid—things that block their way to getting what they want—call them “disincentives.

            Now some people are irrational, and others are blindly naïve. But the vast majority of folks are pretty good at telling the different between facts and…well, the technical term is “bullshit” or BS. You can fool them once or twice, but then they wise up and they won’t even buy the  truth—not from you, anyway. One more time: people aren’t stupid.

So You Have An Idea...Your Troubles Begin!

            Now let’s get back to Michigan. Let’s say you have an idea: now what? First off, there are a million Old Lady Fussypants rules, regulations, and bureaucrats to stop you. If you do get going, you have laws that add to your overhead if you want to hire someone and create a job. The legal system and the courts have historically been made out of rubber, so any slick lawyer can sue you and shake you down. If you do make a go of your dream and succeed, the good old taxman is coming by, to get the “revenue” to keep public employees in better benefits than you have.

            Finally, you may be faced with competition, not just from the market, but from the Government itself. Folks who drive to Lansing and make friends with the Governor and Legislature  (make contributions to the Governor or Legislators?) get tax breaks and regulation abeyances that you don’t. You get to pay extra freight for the favored ones.

What does Michigan REALLY Say to You?

            Now if you aren’t stupid, what does that set of incentives and disincentives say to you? It says to keep your potential ideas quiet and take them somewhere else. It says you’ll at best have to fight every step of the way, and be punished for success. Sure we don’t SAY that. The Honorable Jennifer Mulhern Granholm must give five speeches an hour on how Michigan reveres its entrepreneurs. But like I said, the people aren’t stupid and can tell the difference between facts and BS. Even inspired and eloquent Harvard-trained BS. Facts talk last and loudest.

And the Real Problem Is....

            Taxes, over-regulation, misguided government policy. These are the problem, not Michigan. Michigan is a champion athlete chained down by a wrong-headed government.

            It’s a jammed dynamo, a caged lion waiting to be freed and roar. Michigan isn’t “broken,” it’s just stymied by bad leadership and bad policies. But we can do something about that. And this is just the year to do it. Let’s free Michigan!! Our people have amazing potential. Free them and get out of their way. You’ll be amazed at what we’ll accomplish. In fact, you’ll be…dare I say it?…blown away.