Sunday, June 20, 2010

The Sunday Paper: June 20, 2010

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Grand Haven at sunset, a couple days shy of the Summer Solstice. Summer officially begins at 7:28AM tomorrow morning. Get out there and enjoy!


Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there - hope you have an excellent day today! Some news from the week...

  • For the first time ever, the Big Three have surpassed foreign auto makers in the J.D. Power and Associates' annual report of initial vehicle quality. Ford led the way with a dozen models rated in the top three in their respective categories - more than any other automaker.

  • The first 4,400 Chevy Volt buyers will receive a free home changing station. The stations can recharge the battery faster than the regular 120V overnight plug-in. Ford and Nissan are offering the same; the Energy Dept. is awarding grants to get 15,000 charging stations into homes and businesses.

  • Meet the candidates - the Freep is running a series that profiles all seven guys running for governor. And don't forget, Andy and Virg debate tomorrow night on WOOD TV, the station will stream it live starting at 7PM.

  • This week, Grand Rapids Press explores the ways we can keep young talent in Michigan by creating vibrant urban areas that offer diversity of thought and people, "tolerant" attitudes to different religions and lifestyles, education and business opportunities, mass transit and walkable downtown areas, ways to get involved in the community, and selling the whole package to the rest of the country. Sound familiar? It should. It's a pretty cool idea.

  • A new study shows that health care reform is going to be a good thing for Michigan. As of now, 3.8 million people, 39% of our population, is either uninsured or on various forms of Medicaid, and that consumes 22% of our state budget. One staggering figure - unpaid medical bills accounted for $2 billion in 2008, a 94 percent rise from 2004. After health care in fully implemented in 2014, the "state's uninsured numbers would drop from 1 million now to less than 150,000". The Freep has more on the study here.

  • Mike Bishop offers another budget deal. Yawn. After complaining about how we have solved budget problems with "accounting gimmicks, that borrow against the future, that create one solution and a far bigger problem" he proceeds to do that very same thing again by simply shifting money around in departments. Oh, and we still have to pass all the nasty Republican cuts. In keeping with tradition, Speaker Dillon "did not talk to reporters" about the budget situation, as the House, for two years running now mind you, has not offered a solid budget plan. Are we sure Dillon actually wants to be governor?

  • Michigan ranks second in the nation for lightning injuries, and on average, lightning kills more people per year than tornadoes or hurricanes. Stay safe out there...

  • Detroit will host the 2010 U.S. Social Justice Forum starting next Thursday, an event that is described as a "movement building process ... the next most important step in our struggle to build a powerful multiracial, multi-sectoral, inter-generational, diverse, inclusive, internationalist movement that transforms this country and changes history." It has sent Nolan Finley into a outrageous and immature name-calling hissy fit on the front page of the DNews today, so you know it has to be good.

  • A poll that made me smile: Hansen Clarke leads Carolyn Cheeks-Kilpatrick in the race for Congress in the 13th district. Senator Clarke opened his Detroit HQ Saturday. Gonna need me a t-shirt...

  • Ending on a nice note: The ranks of volunteers grew in America in 2009; 1.6 million more people signed up to help various efforts in their communities, raising the nationwide total to 63.4 million volunteers total. And Michigan ranks above the national average on the number of people who offer their time; 28.7 of citizens participate in our state, while the nationwide rate is 26.8. Grand Rapids is in the top ten of midsized American cities, with an average of 36.3 hours volunteered per resident. Looking for opportunities to volunteer? Check the Michigan Community Service Commission web page for ideas.