Posted on 03/17/2023 5:31:36 AM PDT by Chad C. Mulligan
Since the early days of Henry Ford, Michigan was the proud symbol of America’s industrial might.
But then, starting in the 1970s, things went south — in part because of the might of the unions that ran the state’s political machine. That’s when Michigan transitioned into the sad symbol of closed factories: the American “Rust Belt.” Flint, Michigan, became a ghost town.
From the 1970s to the early 2000s, Detroit lost nearly half its population. Whole neighborhoods were bulldozed, and homes were selling for less than $10,000 as poor and minority residents fled the area's crime, lousy schools, high unemployment, and political corruption.
If you traveled to Florida or Arizona, you saw lots of Michigan license plates.
But then, Michigan began to reform itself with tax cuts and leaner and cleaner government. One big reform was Michigan became a "right to work" state. The state went through an amazing economic renaissance. According to the American Legislative Exchange Council's "Rich States, Poor States" report (which I co-wrote), few states rose on economic competitiveness faster than the home of the Wolverines. Prosperity returned.
Now the shine is off the engine. The Democrats took back control of the politics in the state, and the first thing they did was repeal "right to work" — a big wet kiss to the union bosses for all those campaign contributions.
"Right to work" is the law of the land in 26 states. These laws do not prohibit unions. There are many unions in these states. "Right to work" simply means that workers cannot be compelled to join a union.
Democrats are falsely advertising this as a restoration of workers' rights. That’s a bald-faced lie. Now, to keep your job in Michigan, you must join the union, and you must pay dues to the union bosses. The United Auto Workers union has been plagued with corruption, including massive pay packages to the union leaders.
This bill will not only take away the right to choose from Michigan workers, but it will also do great damage to the state’s economy. States that have "right to work" laws create jobs at almost twice the pace of states with forced union policies.
Many businesses won’t even consider locating a new factory or blue-collar operation in a forced union state. The auto jobs in America will now accelerate their move to the Southern states, which happen to be "right to work."
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI), a stooge of the unions, will sign the bill into law. And Michigan is about to see a return to the Rust Belt era.
Here is what's really telling. The Communist Party of America put out a press release celebrating the demise of "right to work" in Michigan. They note correctly that Michigan is now the first state in more than half a century to turn back the clock and force union chains on workers. Most states have been moving in the opposite direction.
What is sadly ironic about this endorsement is that throughout the 20th century, the unions in America were staunchly anti-communist. It was Lech Walesa, the Polish union organizer, who stood up to the evil communist government that tried to outlaw unions. He and President Ronald Reagan and the AFL-CIO helped defeat the evil empire.
Now the communists in America cheer on the unions as they sow the seeds of their own demise — as well as the demise of a once-mighty state.
Michigan under democrats becoming the model for sovietization of the whole country.
Missed opportunity. Trump should have appointed Mittens as the Czar of Detroit. His experience with the Olympics and turning around businesses. Then there’s the Romney name. Gotta be royalty in Michigan. Perhaps President DeSantis can talk him into it.
The author is wrong about one thing in a major way. Unions have always been the sister of Communism. Poland is a poor example to choose. Unions in this country are an offshoot of Communism at their very core.
I spent five years at the beginning of my career starting up power plants. Nothing I learned in engineering school prepared me for unions. In Arizona, I needed to make a simple five minute adjustment to a coal pulverized. I picked up a wrench to do it and almost got the entire job site shut down. SEVEN trades came out to “help” me - carpenter to move a plank, electrician, boilermaker, instrumentation, pipe fitter, laborer (to sweep the floor), and millwright. None of them moved quickly; there was zero sense of urgency. The five minute adjustment took an entire morning. I was a newly minted degreed mechanical engineer making half of what these guys were making. The “cost” to make that simple adjustment was 1,000 time higher than it would have been without those damned unions. The waste was absolutely mind boggling.
In Washington state, you could not get the unions off of a job at the end. They absolutely perfected featherbedding. In fact, the electricians were so proud of it they called themselves the “FLEAs” which stood for “Fat, Lazy Electrician.” They were PROUD of that!
My union “experiences” taught me everything I needed to know.
The lights were a safety requirement and had to be changed.
If a bulb burned out in the evening or during the weekend, an "emergency" service call was required......
It's a mystery why the the plant wasn't profitable and subsequently shuttered. But, no electrician jobs were "stolen" in the process by unauthorized personnel changing lightbulbs.
Michigan voted themselves back to failure. Kinda hard to feel bad for (all of) them.
The real problem is that Michigan’s “Republicans” are leftists as well.
Getting what they voted for.
Yeah, yeah, there’s cheating and all, but it shouldn’t even be that close.
And the useful idiots are voting their way into poverty.
“It’s a mystery why the the plant wasn’t profitable and subsequently shuttered.”
Indeed. About 20 years later, I went by the paper mill in Arizona and it was out of business as well and the plant closed down.
From the 1970s to the early 2000s, Detroit lost nearly half its population.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Although you’ll always find pockets of leftists, you don’t have to go too far north of Detroit before some common sense returns.
The Union papermill in Counce, Tennessee, is also infected with this idiocy. Many of the employees are ignorant of economics and politics and vote Democrat no matter what. I almost got into a fight with one of their “leaders” while in a gun store he was complaining about gun buying restrictions and I confronted him saying it was his politics that supported the laws...he wanted to fight because the truth stabbed him in the heart.
What Chief Pontiac could not do in 1763 the Democrats have done in the 21st Century.
Just noticing, are they? we endured 8 years of a non-American prog woman at the helm (Granholm) and now have 8 years of Wretched Hitler. WTH did they expect? It’s all due to Detroit/Lansing/AnnArbor leftist hawgs. Outside of that area, Michigan is bright red except for Traverse Gay and Marquette.
How different are we up north? When Hitler exempted the county where her summer retreat is and the “First Gentleman” showed up at a local boat place demanding to be moved to the front of the line, he said, “Do you KNOW who my wife is?” and the boat place guy said, “Yeah...and you’ll be ****ing lucky if I get to it by August.”
Engler was okay wasn’t he? But then a 180 swing to the dreadful Granholm. Voters are crazy.
You get it!!!!
The bush league chamber of commerce worshiping republiCAN’Ts that ran this state were beholdened to the chamber of commerce and the insurance companies.
That is who ran this state.
If you ask me, the best thing that has happened is that we threw all of the bastards out.
Now we have to deal with 2 years of democommies.
Now, if the democommies were smart, they would give the people what they have been screaming for for decades.
Could have cemented in democommie control for decades to come.
But, alas, they are not that bright.
Oh well, they will be gone in 2 years, and we will have a clean slate of MAGA republicans to replace them with.
I ran into Washington state unions installing some machine tools into the Puget Sound Navy Yard. It was like that on a job I did in the old Republic Aviation plant on Long Island, too, (late ‘70s). Rumor had it at the time that the Air Force curtailed the A-10 program because it was so bad. Have hated unions ever since. The UAW was just icing on the cake.
Yea indeed!
Engler was awesome. How we suddenly swung ALL the way over to Granholm is absolutely bizarre.. And we’re still paying for that mistake.
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