Wednesday, August 06, 2014

What came first the chicken or the egg? How about the egg head?

Or. How about an incubator of educational standards that are world class?

That HAS been the educational system within Michigan. Michigan has a very long history of incubating some of the most successful people on Wall Street. Michigan? Yes, Michigan. 

There is no discrimination in Michigan, the list of famous people spans the USA economy from a USA President to the star studded stage and onto NASCAR. (click here). Among the most prolific incubators for the entertainment industry is Detroit.  There is a reason why there have been so many stages in Detroit.

The performance industry wasn't just populous talent. This is Jay Meetze of Flint a producer and composer of opera. So the talent and BRAIN TRUST RESOURCES the people of Michigan have walking among them is considerable. 

The home grown resources found opportunity in both genders even among the sciences. Emily Helen Butterfield from Algonac, Michigan pioneered the Michigan Women's Movement in the late 1800s. But, that isn't her only contribution.She founded the first women's business club in the entire country of the USA. It was the Detroit Business Women's Club. So, what was her business? I wouldn't really call it a business exactly.

Ms. Butterfield (I am sure she would approve of the Ms.) was educated in the Detroit Public Schools. She and her father loved art and she sketched nature and landscapes in her teenage years.

That affection for art they shared blossomed into an architectural firm called Butterfield and Butterfield in 1917. But, why would she be involved with an architectural firm, family or not? Why indeed. She became the first woman architect licensed in Michigan in 1907.

Did you notice? She came back to Michigan regardless of her travels to work hand in hand with Dad. A Michigan architectural firm born and breed right in the state.

Architecture is an art and science. Math and science. Engineering. Such a career requires high levels of learning from the beginning of any education including advanced information in High School. 

Anyone know the name Charles Moore? This is Charles Moore. He hales from Benton Harbor. He was an architect and what an architect he was. He is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects and winner of the AIA Gold Metal of 1991. Below is a picture of Piazza d'Italia by Charles Moore (with Perez Architects), New Orleans. Now bad for a guy from Michigan. 

 

The highly COMPETENT education system in Michigan doesn't end the architects. That high competency in math and science belongs to Michael Bloomfield. No, not the mayor of NYC. He is an astronaut that has flown three missions on the Space Shuttle. 

Astronaut Bloomfield hales from Flint. But, any state in the nation can have a flash in the pan astronaut, but, how many can claim their fame with a long tradition of influence in aerospace with Roger B.
Chaffee, an astronaut in the Apollo Program. 

Roger Chaffee is among the great Americans that advanced the USA Space Program. He died for his country and it's space ambitions along with Gus Grissom and Ed White in a terrible accident within their capsule. Chaffee and Grissom are buried at Arlington National Cemetary and Ed White is buried at West Point Cemetary. The number of astronauts born in Michigan goes on from there. 

Then there is the car industry with people like Roy D. Chapin founding the Hudson Auto Company and John DeLorean who's father was employed by the union within the Ford Motor Company. 

John DeLorean was born and breed and educated in Detroit schools. He worked for a while for GM before he founded the DeLorean Motor Company. He was a first generation American born to immigrants. While working within GM his best loved contribution was the highly collectable Pontiac GTO. As a matter of fact John DeLorean was the youngest department head within GM at the Pontiac Division at the age of 40.

The infamous competition that started in Hamtramck, Michigan began with two brothers with the last name of Dodge. Their names were Horace Elgin and John Francis. They were born in Niles, Michigan and went to Detroit to work in a boilermaker plant and then followed that up as machinists for a company in Windsor, Ontario. They were self taught. Now, that is noteworthy of young men who are home spun in Michigan. That only begins the list of those that grew the automobile industry in Michigan. They were all home grown and educated. They did their state proud.

Anyone know the name Ballmer? Steve Ballmer? No? He was the son of two immigrants, Beatrice Dworkin from Belarus, she was Jewish and Fredric Henry Ballmer from Switzerland. Still no clue? Fredric Henry Ballmer was manager of Ford Motor. Still don't know Steve Ballmer? One last clue: He attended college prep and engineering classes at Lawrence Technological University in Southfield, Michigan and graduated from Detroit Country Day School, a private college preparatory school in Beverly Hills, Michigan, with a perfect score of 800 on the mathematical section of the SAT.

Okay, Steven Ballmer was the first manage hired by Bill Gates at Microsoft. But, that isn't all. He became the defacto number two at Microsoft after 20 years following his hire, and leading several Microsoft divisions, including operations, operating systems development, and sales and support. February 1992 onwards, he was Executive Vice President, Sales and Support, led Microsoft's development of the .NET Framework. Ballmer was then promoted to President of Microsoft, a title that he held from July 1998 to February 2001. 

I could go on and on and on, but, what is the point to all this? Michigan is the point to all this. The educational system, it's free form structure allowing artistic development and free thinking is infamous. The Michigan's brain trust and what has been contributed to the USA and the world is rarely discussed. The FAILURE of the Michigan educational system is the only thing talked about today. Somehow the bottom fell out of the magic of Michigan.

Somehow along came Former CEO Snyder and decided he was the savior of Michigan. Snyder hasn't been a savior to anything except perhaps the profiteering of Wall Street. There is NOTHING Snyder has found or perfected or took away from democracy that wasn't already there. The ONLY problem with Michigan is the OUTSOURCING of it's brain trust to every other corner of the USA and the world. Why? Because Michigan, while a magnificent incubator of genius and strong work ethics, has a high quality of life. What does a high quality of life demand? It demands a Middle Class. What does a Middle Class demand? Good pay, disposable income and FREEDOM to spend their monies to continue to grow an economy. 

When Roger Smith knew he had to provide high profits to stockholders and outsourced the jobs to other nations he began the unraveling of the economy of Michigan, ultimately the region and contributing to the downward spiral of the Middle Class across the country. But, Ronald Reagan finished off the Middle Class when he fought Airline Controllers in California. The people who actually thought as industry leaders they knew what was best for their company's bottom line, didn't stop to realize where their status came from in the first place. The entire auto industry can and should thank the brain trust of Michigan. Without them it would be nowhere.

The ONLY problem with Michigan is the implosion of it's economy. The educational system is primarily intact except where Snyder have toyed with school systems and towns and cities to incorporate children of many cities into the school system of one. Snyder is the worst thing that has happened to Michigan. He only appreciates it's educational system where it delivers highly talented people that can be EXPLOITED for what they know and what they invent and their desire to be prosperous. 

The Governor of Michigan has no answers for the people of Michigan. He has answers for Wall Street. The Tech Sector he brags about existed long before he became Governor. The real question Michiganders have to ask themselves is with all this emphasis on the successful Tech Sector, "Why aren't there more jobs?" That is the only question that has to be answered and the answer is simple. While the Tech Sector is very successful, the companies are sold to Wall Street for profits and finding cheaper labor elsewhere. Sound familiar? Snyder's name may as well be Roger Smith. 

There are profound differences between the way industry and government run and why. Industry is built from the ground up. As the demand for it's products takes shape and there is demand, industry grows. Government has nothing in common with business or industry. Government EXISTS. Why does it exist? Did someone invent something and then grew Detroit? Detroit is land. Detroit exists because people came to the land and developed their livelihoods and economy. Governments grow because the people in a city or town increase. There is nothing remotely similar between a business model and a government. Government exists. It can't cut middle management because that middle management runs the trash collection department and the water department. The only way a government shrinks is if the people aren't there on the land anymore. And with Detroit we realized even if the government shrinks there is still a need for it to operate in someway. Detroit lost it's tax base because the economy collapsed. People didn't have jobs. The jobs that remained still has a viable existence and the people living there still needed a government. The people didn't do anything wrong in Detroit. The larger government didn't stem the economics loss.

Detroit and Benton Harbor as well as Flint and the rest of the cities are not at fault. If there was corruption that is a completely different issue. Corrupt government needs to be prosecuted. 

Wall Street failed for a long time and continues to fail the Michigan economy. I don't know why Michigan hasn't recovered, but, it seems to me the Michigan Brain Trust is a well kept secret for a reason. The problem is, do the people of Michigan believe there should be ways to promote the industries created in Michigan or can Wall Street exploit them so much better? 

Why not simply build the story of all stories (political narrative) to move people and governments around and allow exploitation of Michigan's land in a way Snyder and his buddies believe is best?

There is a challenge before the Mayors of Michigan. They need to recruit these home grown companies into their towns. That means the people that will work for them have a strong work ethnic and are 'educated enough' to create their product. 

Mayors have nothing to lose. 

If there is no Michigan Brain Trust Techy Industry in their town there is nothing going into the treasury anyway. If a Michigan Brain Trust Techy Industry comes to make a Michigan city or town their home, then people work, they buy homes and they pay property tax. The Mayors of Michigan can do this. There is no reason for them not to. If I were a Mayor of Michigan I'd want a conference of Mayors and invite the Chancellors of the major universities and ask how this can work out to the benefit the people, hence, their towns, counties and ultimately the state.

Snyder is not providing good leadership, he is providing the leadership he is only capable of; namely that of a Venture Capitalist. That isn't going to put people to work and will exploit natural resources rather than pursuing high tech resolves as better and more attainable. It is up to the people of Michigan to fire Governor Snyder and put someone in office that will provide SUPPORT to Mayors to bring home their home grown brain trust so people have jobs and those companies have profits.

Michigan's Snyder's assault against local governments.

August 6, 2014
By Michael Wayland

ACME TOWNSHIP, MI- In his first public speech (click here) after the passing of Proposal 1, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder is expected to tout the termination of the state's personal property tax as another example of Michigan's improving business environment.

"We've continued to create a great climate," he said Tuesday afternoon, prior to his Wednesday morning speech at the 49th annual Center for Automotive Research Management Briefing Seminars near Traverse City. "Tomorrow morning, hopefully I can say we don't have a personal property tax on industrial equipment. Tat's a big deal."

The proposal phases out personal property taxes that small businesses pay on office equipment and manufacturers pay on industrial equipment. It also authorizes the creation of an authority to distribute existing use tax revenue to local governments who currently rely on personal property tax collections to provide services, including police and fire.

Snyder said the proposal is "another major indicator" about how the state is "becoming more competitive and a better place to do business."...

Excuse me? There are emergency managers all over the state and Detroit in up against the ropes and Snyder is padding the pockets of the wealthy? Really?

The unemployment rate in Michigan in January 2014 was 8.3 percent. Nationally the unemployment rate in January 2014 was 6.6 percent. Currently, Michigan's unemployment rate has flat lined at 7.5 percent over the past four months. Currently the unemployment rate nationally is 6.2 percent.

Snyder took office in January 2011 with an unemployment rate in Michigan of 11%. That is high, but, the unemployment rate in Michigan in May of 2010 was 13%. Michigan was already rebounding from the global economic collapse and it's collapsed auto economy. In contract the USA national unemployment rate in January of 2011 was 9.1 percent with a rate of 9.6 percent in May of 2010. 

Michigan has recovered at a faster rate in seven months before Snyder took office dropping by 2 percent in those seven months. Snyder's fuzzy math and emergency mangers have not only assaulted the democratic process and children within their school systems it slowed down the very rapid recovery Michigan was already experiencing.

Michigan would not see another 2 percent recovery for another thirteen months in May of 2012 when the rate was 9 percent. Now, 28 months on Michigan STILL has not recovered to a 7 percent unemployment rate, while the national rate is 6.2 at the end of July.

It is interesting the Michigan Governor is so persistent in pushing the idea there needs to be a better economic environment seeking all kinds of Visas for Chinese investment, which are monies that will leave the country except for meager employment. Now he is giving away more Michigan income from it's treasury while the cities are still without their democratically elected officials and the state's largest city is seeking settlements with unions. This is completely outrageous. I suppose all those connections in China from his time at "Gateway Computers" are still hot and delivering.

Snyder's funny math starts with manipulating monies for education with schools in trouble and then rather than harnessing the power of a full recovery he has decided to play tax reduction for the wealthy while the state can't keep up with the national recovery.

I can hear the campaign music playing now, "Well, the rest of the nation has fracking as it's best friend, so why don't we and we'd be recovered by now, too." Michigan could be producing huge amounts of wind energy right there on the lakes and selling it to the entire region. Why isn't that happening and why fracking at all?

Snyder came with a lot of baggage when he took the governor's seat. He had sold a perfectly viable Michigan business developed with a Michigan brain trust and sold it with to Wall Street while serving as CEO and Chairman of Ardesta, the venture capital firm and CEO of the company Ardesta had sold.

Snyder's dealings before his days as governor is not the only problem. He continues to use state monies and eyeing his relationship with Ardesta to develop high tech industry in Michigan with Michigan's brain trust and monies only to sell it to Wall Street.

October 13, 2013
By Gary Anglebrant

Michigan's medical device industry has witnessed the sale of a growing number of its companies in recent years. The following lists some that state experts and players in the industry consistently mention as the most noteworthy....


Exits and deals


Accuri Cytometers Inc.
City: Ann Arbor
Sold to:
 Franklin Lakes, N.J.-based Becton, Dickinson and Co. in 2011 for $205 million
Investors:
 Included Arboretum Ventures, Plymouth Venture Partners, Flagship Ventures, Baird Venture Partners
Business:
 University of Michigan spinoff making cytometers (automated cell analysis devices) small enough to sit on a desktop

Ostial Solutions LLC
City:
 Kalamazoo
Sold to:
 South Jordan, Utah-based Merit Medical Systems Inc. in 2012 for $30 million
Investors:
 Self-funded, angel investors
Business:
 Maker of a catheter used to implant coronary artery stents, founded by CEO R. Kevin Plemmons and the Fischell family of medical device inventors

Snyder did NOTHING to keep these jobs in Michigan and now he wants to pad the pockets of his friends? I don't think so.

Pioneer Surgical Technology Inc.
City:
 Marquette
Sold to:
 Alachua, Fla.-based RTI Biologics Inc. in July for $130 million
Investors:
 Included Beringea, Highlander Partners, Hopewell Ventures, Pharos Capital Group and River Cities Capital Funds
Business:
 Maker of spinal implants, bone grafts and other spine, cardiothoracic and orthopedic products; also offers contract manufacturing services. (See story.)



In the pipeline


Ablative Solutions Inc.
City:
 Kalamazoo

CytoPherx Inc.
City:
 Ann Arbor

Delphinus Medical Technologies Inc.
City:
 Plymouth Township

HistoSonics Inc.
City:
 Ann Arbor

Tangent Medical Technologies Inc.
City:
 Ann Arbor

Michigan's brain trust delivers some of the most sophisticated industries in the world and then people like Snyder and his friends steal them rather than Michigan providing a home to these inventors and companies and employing Michigan citizens. 

Snyder is Wall Street and Michigan is looking more and more like a picked over venture capitalist's dreamscape. When Snyder brags about the developing Tech Sector in Michigan, he surely had NOTHING to do with any of it. The tech sector was always in Michigan, but, is stolen before it has a chance to actually employ the citizens.