Prayers for Massey Family, LSSU Gets Large Grant, Tightening of Michigan Voter Rules, Michigan K-12 Reform, Veterans Hotline, and Michiganders in Mexico
– INFORMED BREVITY –
Prayers:
Our prayers are with the Massey family on the tragedy of their missing son, Trenton. Unless we have lost a child none of us can imagine the pain and hurt the family is going through.
It was heartwarming to see the huge turnout from the Northern Michigan University community, where Trenton was a student, to help with the search.
Lake Superior State University Gets Large Grant
This wonderful Upper Peninsula asset is going to invest $10 million dollars in campus-wide infrastructure improvements. The funding for this huge plan comes from new donor funding.
This investment by the university will benefit current and future students. It will add to the already important economic impact of the university across the Upper Peninsula and Michigan.
Congratulations to LSSU.
Tightening of Voter Rules in Michigan
The organization collecting signatures to put voter identification rules says it has now collected enough signatures to force a ballot question in November. It will include a requirement of proof of citizenship to register to vote and a mandatory photo identification card will be required.
The Americans for Citizen Voting who has been collecting signatures says it is a “common sense reform.” Opponents say it will undermine access.
Your thoughts? Let us know and we will share what we hear from you.
Michigan K-12 Reform–Graduation Rates, Literacy and Math Test
Michigan’s high school graduation rate has increased to 84%, which is up from 82.83% last year. The high school dropout rate in Michigan is 7.13%. Last year it was 7.68%.
Maybe we will see a bipartisan plan come forward from state education policy makers that will improve our student’s state test scores and overall educational performance.
Move the slogan “Fix the Damn Roads” to “Fix The Damn Education Performance.”
How do you think your community schools are performing? Let us know.
Veterans Crisis Hotline
Share the phone number 800-273-8255 with veterans in your family and in your community. Let them know that there is help out there and to call this number to reach out.
Michiganders in Mexico
Scores and scores of our fellow Upper Peninsula residents and other Michiganders spend their winters in Mexico. We have talked with many of them and we are happy to report that they are safe and sound after the reports of cartel violence in parts of Mexico.
Much of the violence took place in Mexico’s second largest state–Jalisco. U.S. media reports made it sound like the entire nation was on fire and lives were being threatened. The facts we are told were quite different. The lives that were lost in the two days of violence were members of the Mexico military or cartel members.
We are told by our fellow Michiganders in Mexico that no other Mexicans or non-Mexicans lost their lives. There were some buildings, cars and buses that were damaged after being set on fire.
Two days after this, our fellow Michiganders told us that life returned to normal and everyone was out and about doing their normal daily activities.
During the period of January and February there were 26 American lives lost to mass shootings. One Yooper told us that Chicago is more dangerous. Also during this period of time, Canada had a mass shooting at one of its schools on the west coast of Canada. This Yooper told us that he was telling us this just for the purpose of comparison and that he felt more than safe in Mexico.
So, U.S. media pay attention–including bloggers.
Glad everyone is safe in America’s largest trading partner.
Quotes:
“Some men only improve the world by leaving it.” Oscar Wilde.
“He who knows that enough is enough will always have enough.” Lao Tzu.
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“Mandatory photo ID” to vote will only work when every eligible voter is issued a valid voter photo ID. Ensuring that every eligible voter is issued a valid photo ID is what has to be Mandatory.
Exactly. The fraud this is supposed to stop is almost non-existent. Whereas the impediments to voting get worse every year. This rule will do nothing to increase electoral security but will do a lot to suppress voting.
enhanced license needs a lot of info but none of it is hard or costly to have .
If this is what government wants then they need to foot the bill of getting photo ids to ALL people
This would include going to nurse sing homes, where most people still vote by absentee ( that is also being as a “problem “)
But also door to door in low income areas to photograph all identities of those eligible to vote.
They have to pay the $20 if people are expected to somehow get to the Secretary of State, IF THEY HAVE ANY TRANSPORTATION.
Women who changed names when married have to cart the their birth and marriage certificates to prove who they really are!
I’ve been voting by mail for over 30 years due to traveling and health issues now that I’m old. I’m ok with photos for All IF THE GOVERNMENT WILL TAKE ON THAT COST .
how do these people live that have no picture i.d.? almost every thing you want to do takes photo id cigarettes’ tobaccos alcohol entry to court house, cough syrup, meds my god how hard to put you b.c. in your purse dd-214 passport only reason not to want this is if your a cheating dperson