Michigan almost doubled the average time behind bars for its prisoners between 1990 and 2009, says a new study by the Pew Center on the States released Wednesday. While the trend mirrored a national one, Michigan’s practices on longer incarceration for all types of crimes was particularly notable, and expensive, the report’s authors stated. “The […]
Pew study says Michigan spends cash it doesn't have to on prisons
Posted inGuest Commentary
Do liquor control rules fail public?
While the Snyder administration has reported consistent progress on pruning Michigan’s regulatory thicket, the matter of how much to regulate the liquor market has proven to be more ticklish than most. As Bridge reported in April, “The one exception to the smooth process of developing (reform) recommendations could be the Liquor Control Advisory Rules Committee, […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
“True scholarship consists in knowing not what things exist, but what they mean; it is not memory but judgment” — James Russell Lowell 19th century American poet and editor. Welcome to a special Ron French edition of Land O Links. Each link you see here was recommended by Bridge’s senior writer, a master of the […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Festivals haul in $700 million for Michigan
They celebrate fruit, cheese, beer, wine, music, the arts, holidays, seasons, cultures, industries, hobbies, geography, history and … well, pretty much all things Michigan. They go by all sorts of names — fairs, festivals, events — but the roughly 4,000-5,000 such gatherings annually share an important attribute: the generation of millions of dollars for the […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Michigan's libraries, learners will lose if tax funds aren't replaced
By Lance Werner/Kent District Library Libraries and other organizations such as schools, police, and fire departments that provide essential tax-supported services have been working with state lawmakers for nearly a year to brainstorm ways to replace the business equipment personal property tax (PPT), if it is eliminated. Replacement is critical because, without it, the services […]
Posted inPhil's Column
Michigan profits from Snyder's long view
Broad agreement has been reached on the last of the budget bills, and the Legislature will soon adjourn. The Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Mackinac Island policy conference has come and gone. Summer, in other words, is almost here, a blessed pause before the noisy chaos of the fall’s political campaigns. So this may be […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
“Knowledge is a treasure, but practice is the key to it” — Thomas Fuller, 17th century British author. * There’s probably a great deal of math behind this which, as a liberal-arts grad, I will take on a certain amount of faith. The cool map, though, shows Michigan as one of just eight “green” states […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Grand Rapids, Detroit losing race to gain college graduates
The Detroit and Grand Rapids metro areas have tripled the proportion of their residents with college degrees since 1970. Still, an expert on work-force development in Michigan says the state’s two largest urban centers are treading water — at best. An analysis by the Brookings Institution of the 100 largest metro areas placed Detroit 65th […]
Posted inTalent & Education
45 minutes with the mustache
My upfront prejudice, so you all know where I’m coming from, here on the last day of the Mackinac Policy Conference: I’m not a Thomas Friedman fan. The New York Times columnist and best-selling author traffics in glib catchphrases, strangely articulate taxi drivers in Bangalore and a certain sort of cheery fear-mongering. His talk Thursday […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Feds leave small harbors dredging for cash
It’s taking plenty of $100 checks and some larger amounts, fundraisers and perseverance. But with a big slice of their economic future at stake, members of the small waterfront community of Pentwater are banding together to pay for something Washington, D.C., no longer does: Dredging of the sandbar that annually accumulates and chokes off the […]