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Econ
Still Stealing You Blind: Ann Arbor SPARK Spends $7.7M & Creates 79 Jobs
by Rob Smith
The 1 percent here in Ann Arbor are just different than us. They look at out-of-work folks and hungry children, homeless men and women tossed out of Camp Take Notice, struggling small businesses and cash-strapped school…
House Calls: Rep. Jeff Irwin — “Snake Oil Salesman” Republicans Have Slowed Michigan’s Recovery
Representative Jeff Irwin, a Democrat, served for a decade as a Washtenaw County Commissioner. In January 2011, he began his first term in the Michigan House of Representatives. In his regular column, House Calls, A2Politico will pose a…
On European Trade Trip, Gov. Snyder Promotes Failing Mich. Tech Firm That Has Lost $412.3M Dollars Since ’09
A2P Notes: In Fall 2010, A123 Systems opened what the company touted as the "world's largest lithium ion automotive battery manufacturing plant in North America" in Livonia, Michigan. According to a September 13, 2010 piece in the New York…
Photos Reveal Michigan “Trade Delegation” to Europe “Exploring Growth Opportunities”—At Italian Art Museums
by Rob Smith
In the March 13th issue of the New York Times there is an article about the severe economic problems that face Italy. That country, like Michigan, has been in one of the deepest recessions on record. Unemployment in Italy last…
Green Energy Programs in Michigan Rely Heavily on Federal Subsidies—Some U.S. Senators Want To End the Flow of Money
by Rob Smith
Federal funding for rail. Federal funding for roads. Federal funding for green energy. Between 2009 and 2011, the state of Michigan has been the recipient of over $17 billion dollars in federal stimulus money also known as…
Michigan K-12 Education—$40 Billion Gets Us The New Jim Crow
By P.D. Lesko
Last year at this time my two sons, ages 10 and 13, were advanced in reading, mathematics and science, according to their work on the MEAP tests. This year, one son is advanced in social studies and that both are Level 2…
In Wayne County $729,675,152.78 in Federal Stimulus Money Went to K-12 Education
As A2Politico revealed in a February 23, 2012 post: The amount of stimulus funding send from Washington, D.C. to Washtenaw County between 2009 and 2011 is a staggering $767,218,458 million dollars, the 4th largest amount given out within…
Majority of $767,218,458 in Federal Stimulus Funds to Washtenaw County Soaked Up By….
by Robert C. Smith
The amount of stimulus funding send from Washington, D.C. to Washtenaw County between 2009 and 2011 is a staggering $767,218,458 million dollars, the 4th largest amount given out within the state. That's $2,222 dollars…
How Much “Fire, Ready, Aim” Leadership Cost Taxpayers This Time
by P.D. Lesko
The University of Michigan picked up its marbles and is going home. Officials there are now looking to build the U.'s next parking garage anywhere but on a 10 acre parcel of riverside parkland on Fuller Road. While the U…
Michigan Backs Financial Scheme of Convicted Felon & Now Taxpayers on the Hook for $18 Million
by P.D. Lesko
Guess what you can get in Michigan for a $10,000 donation to Rick Snyder's campaign? You can get $18,000,000 in state money to bail you out when your project crashes and burns just 10 months after it's launched. You can also…