Letter to Morning Sun about Jack McHugh article

On Tuesday, February 13, the Morning Sun ran an editorial by Jack McHugh. McHugh works for the Mackinaw Center for Public Policy, a conservative “think tank” that was very supportive of John Engler’s administration. In case you have forgotten, Engler left the state with a seven-billion dollar deficit, a school-funding system that never worked, and did what he could to remove government regulations for business…that John Engler, remember? Curiously, the Mackinaw Center never challenged Engler’s poor management, but has done nothing but challenge Jennifer Granholm’s efforts to clean up Engler’s financial mess.

Surely Mr. McHugh is aware that when a governor speaks of “investing” in education or infrastructure, this is not the same as when a business owner speaks of “investing,” because the expected “returns” on the investments are completely different. But maybe not; maybe he really does not understand the difference.

He might ponder the differences as he drives his car on publicly-funded roads, buys gasoline at stations that are regularly inspected (by government inspectors) so he receives what he pays for, or reads his paper by lights in a warm house (utilities are regulated by taxpayer-funded state employees). Perhaps he attended a state-supported university in Michigan where professors (state employees, all) helped him hone his political thought. These are just a few of the results of the “investments” Granholm is talking about, and investments that governors before Engler understood. Or maybe he does understand, but prefers to grouse. That’s okay. It is, after all, a free country protected by the military and police who are paid for by us all.