Quote:
Originally posted by hoosier
I share your feeling that it is a tough situation. It's a self-inflicted toughness, for the most part.
Michigan used to be about the most socialist state, with high welfare payments, govt. controls, and high taxes. Now it - and especially Detroit - are reaping the consequences.
Many of these parents are at fault - they may have dropped out of school, had children with no fathers for support, spent money on big screens instead of books, and watched soap operas instead of seeking a job. That was sufficient when welfare checks were coming in and getting larger every six months. Now they have a problem.
|
We still have the high taxes, one of the highest in the country, I believe. Income tax of 4.9%, Sales tax of 6%, gas tax of (can't remember exactly, but I think it's 17 cents a gallon), cig tax of $2.00 a pack... I pay a 1.5% income tax to the city of Detroit but have no vote there. Residents pay 3%. People who work there pay more in actual dollars than residents do. With the city going bankrupt, they are cutting police and fire services. They cut bus services drastically,making it impossible for some folks to get to work at all. We're in rough shape right now.
I think the biggest problem is that they've remained dependent on the auto companies for unskilled labor jobs, but those are no more. Delph and Visteon are talking about cutting their employees salaries by 2/3. We're talking from almost $30 an hour to $9 an hour. How are people going to survive on that?
In part, unions inflated Michigan's economy and the businesses can't afford to survive here. Detroit never rebuilt after the riots of '67. There was a corrupt mayor for a long time. The fact that they allowed crime to get so bad in some areas that it's not safe for police or EMS is a crime in itself.
Maybe the city going into receivorship will help, but I'm not convinced. In any case, I don't think they should keep taking money away from those schools, because the school should be the one place where kids can feel safe, warm, get those two free meals and learn something, from stable adults who care about them.
Threaded Mode