Traverse City Record-Eagle

Archive: Friday

November 27, 2009

Letters to the Editor: 11/27/2009

Read the lines

While the state is cutting school funding due to a lack of money, some department heads are busy spending money on what can only be termed "discretionary" spending.

According to minutes of a September, 2008 meeting of the Department of Labor and Economic Growth, this past fiscal year, $11 million was spent with Mohawk Industries of Georgia for carpet tiles.

This is enough to carpet the road from Suttons Bay to Cadillac. Another $6.8 million was spent for ergonomic and general seating. This is enough chairs for about 10,000 state employees. This is about one third of the state work force that works seated. Sadly, it does not include the 100 State Police who were laid off; patrol car seating was not included.

Another $18 million was spent with Public Consulting Group of Maine; the purpose was not stated, but with the name of the company it sounds like "help us with propaganda."

Another $28 million went to Integris, of Maine again. For an executive information system. These two Maine purchases total $46 million.

"Buy Michigan First" apparently does not apply to our government. The governor has line-item veto power; maybe she should start reading the line items.

Keith Ashley
Lake Leelanau

Just a politician

Letter writer Fred A. Cepela was badly misled in his lavish praise of Rep. Dan Scripps, D-Leland. In a Nov. 1 letter Cepela wrote "Scripps fought successfully, on behalf of his fellow sportsmen, to save wetland protections."

The bill that was enacted was introduced by Republican Patti Birkholz in the Senate as SB 785 on Aug. 27 and scheduled for a vote Sept. 24. Scripps' copied her bill as HB 5463 on Sept. 23. His timing is suspicious. It's all on the Michigan.gov Web site.

Both chambers enacted the Birkholz bill and sent it to the governor. Scripps' bill passed only the House and died in the Senate. Scripps' press release gave the false impression that he was responsible for the measure. His press release mentions only his name, not any of the names of the 105 other representatives and 34 senators, and certainly not Republican Birkholz.

Scripps would have you believe he is a hot-shot environmental lawyer and a whirlwind of activity in Lansing. Actually, he is a common politician who campaigns 53 weeks a year.

Tim Richard
Bear Lake

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