Six O'Clock News - Buy A Car. Please. Edition
Dismal auto sales numbers continue - Ford down 48%, GM down 52.9%, Toyota down 39.8%, Nissan down 37.1%. Aya curumba.
GM has produced 30 Volts for testing, and has plans to build another 80 this summer. In other GM news, General Motors Europe is predicting the loss of 300,000 jobs if that division fails. They are seeking aid from Germany and other European governments.
Porsche goes hybrid. Wonders never cease.
Mayor Kenneth Cockrel Jr. is vowing to veto the Detroit City Council vote on Cobo. Conyers threatens to take it to court. The rest of the state just shakes our collective head and sighs.
Michigan university presidents want more money from Lansing. Not exactly news, but just another group that has taken a number to get in the long line of complaints about the budget cuts. Better talk to Bishop, he has more coming for you.
Dow agrees to clean up dioxin in a Saginaw Township park and nearby residential sites. Good. Now, how about that river?
Someone is actually moving from Denver to Lansing. Jackson National Life Insurance Co. plans to bring 150 jobs to the city, and is not asking for tax incentives to do so. Imagine that.
Why does Nancy Cassis hate jobs? The Michigan Film Office is supposed to post online the tax credits given out ($50 million) along with other info from the 2008 totals on film incentives, and boy oh boy, Nancy will be right there to find something to bitch about, you betcha! She doesn't care that 35 film productions spent $125 million in Michigan and created 2,800 jobs. She's gonna git ya! If only the Senate Republicans put as much effort into creation and cooperation as they did pure partisan destruction, obstruction, and general time wasting activities, maybe the people of Michigan wouldn't think the legislature was such a colossal joke.
Meanwhile, back in the productive world, No Worker Left Behind has released some funds to Lansing Community College to train more students in time to be ready for what is expected to be a very busy Michigan film industry this summer.
Curtis Granderson is a cool dude. Granderson has announced a new fundraising initiative called Scoring For Schools, which will help raise money for Michigan's inner city public schools. Every time Curtis scores a run, individuals or companies will donate to the foundation. Those donating will have the option of which inner city area they would like their donation to be used, as well as whether they want their donation to be used for educational initiatives or for college scholarships. Check for more info at www.GrandKidsFoundation.org