Did the word “downsizing” even exist before the 1980s? If it did, it wallowed in relative obscurity. Most of us became aware of the “d” word during that infamous decade when stories proliferated about manufacturing companies trimming their work forces at plants in Michigan and sending jobs to tax friendlier places to do business and “remain competitive.” The explanation was that the workers in this state were paid too much for what they did and their counterparts in Texas, Mississippi and Arkansas were willing to do it a lot more cheaply. Since then these companies have gone even further, severely reducing or eliminating work forces in the United States and sending jobs to overseas Third World sweatshops, where the native boys and girls are happy to do the work for even less than minimum wage here- although maybe that's because they're chained to their sewing machines and don't have a choice. Meanwhile, politicians like Dick Devos try to sell downsizing as good for the US economy but then pinning the blame of their opponents when companies take their advice- how convenient.
While downsizing has been touted for the last 25 years as a cost-saving, necessary function for modern business, we’ve heard a lot of hot air at the same time about how government must get “leaner and meaner,” how it should “trim the fat” and how it should turn over many of its inefficient services to private enterprise. “Big government” was the big target of the Reagan Revolution of 1981, the Newt Gingrich Revolution of 1994 and the latest wave of Neoconism with George W. Bush as its figurehead. Yet the politicians who have subscribed to and advanced the gospel of smaller government have done virtually nothing to reduce the number of politicians. Instead, they’ve only reduced government services to the people who need them most while increasing the number of kick backs to their supporters who write the big checks that finance their re-election campaigns.
Closer to where we live, we’ve seen the number of state legislators remain the same and the number of Barry County commissioners actually increase in the last 20 years, despite attempts to have their legions downsized. Michigan state representatives and senators tenaciously resisted any attempts to have the State Senate eliminated, thereby whittling the number of lawmakers in Lansing from 148 to 110. The Unicameral Michigan effort that started in 2005 in little old Hastings and Barry County failed to gain enough traction to "Fire the Senate." Legislators refused to debate the proposed idea and most in the big-time media refused to report on the petition drive until it was clear it had failed (the Grand Rapids Press never even mentioned the effort, begun in their back yard, until it was dead in the water).
Candidates like Brian Calley, the man likely to be the next State Rep. for the 87th District, bristled at the suggestion the State Legislature could be downsized. Calley at first said he preferred a part-time legislature, even though the current group in Lansing only has to show up for work about 90 days a year. Then he said he had a good working relationship with Sen. Alan Cropsey, who was very responsive to him, a county commissioner. Of course, the fact that Calley has been groomed for the job might have something to do with his cozy relationship with Cropsey- one of the worst legislators in the entire state capitol. Our new state rep’s crowning argument was that he wasn’t against reducing government, he just didn’t like this particular proposal. So does Calley, supposedly like the Ford Motor Co., have a better idea? I have not heard nor seen it.
A proposal to save Michigan as much as a billion dollars in salaries, fringe benefits and personal expenses over 10 years was scuttled by politicians who spend a lot of time telling us they want smaller government and don’t want the people to spend their “hard-earned money” on things they don’t need while giving themselves fat pay raises and building a Taj Mahal of an office complex on the taxpayers' dime. Apparently we believe their carefully crafted hooey because we still elect ‘em again and again and November looks to be more of the same from the West Michigan electorate.
The Barry County Board of Commissioners, when it took on the task of redistricting in 1992, managed to increase the number of commissioners from seven to eight, thereby increasing the cost of local government by 12.5 percent. That, in a county government dominated by the party that proudly boasts of advocating smaller government.
When the issue resurfaced in 2002, Barry County Democratic Party Chairman Mel Goebel and GOP Chairman Mark Englerth came up with a proposal to reduce that number from eight to five, thereby saving county taxpayers plenty of bucks spent on lawmaking services that may not be necessary. Their proposal to downsize the County Board by 37.5%, trimming salaries, per diems and fringe benefits, was defeated in a 3 to 2 vote, with Clerk Debbie Smith, Treasurer Sue Vandecar and Prosecutor Gordon Shane McNeill standing by their friends on the County Commission and allowing all of them to keep their seats. Englerth and Goebel were turned away, though their idea, like Unicameral Michigan, promoted downsizing government.
Former State Rep. Bob Bender, a public supporter of status quo candidate Calley, once told a crowd that whenever then-Governor James Blanchard talked, the people should hold on to their wallets. It appears the taxpayers should do the same when the politicians who say they want smaller government tell us what they think we want to hear. The smaller government agenda is just a reduction of services to the unfortunate among us who can't help themselves while throwing tax cuts at the rich who give fat campaign checks to the politicians in power which perpetuate the system of the status quo.
When are we finally going to throw out the liars and cowards who promise they’ll work for us when they really are actively working against us while taking care of themselves and doing the bidding of special interests who bribe them?
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23 comments:
Efficiency is one of my favorite topics, but I like the word "value" even better. I have many pairs of pants that seem to have shrunk, and belts that no longer reach all the way around. Buying smaller clothes will not solve the problem. You have taken a typical American position that results are related to immediate gratification. This leads incorrectly to conclusions of winning and losing. Losing leads to hand-wringing and despair. In fact, it takes a long time for some changes to happen and we need to encourage the efforts. Unicameral was only recently added to the Chairmarm's vocabulary. Getting elected is only the beginning of governing. Term limits assume that a winner of a popularity contest is immediately transformed into a great leader of government. How many voters had even considered the thought of a single "cameral"? Informing the public takes as long as educating a child. Perhaps the advocates of fewer Commissioners should have been more persistent.
A more sensible arrangement of County Commissioners would be along lines of newspaper readership. That way the population of our four corners might become better informed of the issues that seem to only be important to the taxpayers concentrated in the part of Barry County that the world rotates around.
"Brian Calley, the man likely to be the next State Rep. for the 87th District", may be a Rush to judgement. Farther on down, you report that Kalnbach received more votes than Bailey, in a Republican Primary, with many other choices available. If most of the Baileyites and many of the no-longer-represented voters were actually voting against Calley instead of for the other options, then Citizen Calley will need to work hard to get a ride to Lansing. GWBII has not made Puritanism as attractive as the "shiny city on the Hill".
sibbbravo, i followed the unicam movement almost from the beginning and the money savings by getting rid of the senate was not a primary issue but a side benefit. The groups primary bitch was with accountability and transparency. These are the same issues argued here in the blogger whether talking about a county commissioner race, the 911 board, or the house and senate races. As the group argued, you get rid of one state chamber and you get rid of the conference committee where most decisions are made by hand-selected few behind closed doors often with lobbyists invited as "consultants". Remember the bruhaha with the "secret" commissioners meeting at the Baltimore Twp hall? Imagine if you can, dozens of secret meetings being held every session day in Lansing with maybe 6 party partisans deciding the fate of ALL legislation that affects nearly 10 mil people. The party in the majority controls the power. They control the agenda and the outcome. And yet, the voter do not have a clue cause you can't see how the decision was made.
As far as "value" government is concerned, that might be a pipe dream. I think the best we can hope for is a reasonably efficient government. Its the outcome or product not necessarily the numbers of employees or politicians. I defy anyone to come up with a "value metric" for any government. Without a metric, you cannot establish a benchmark to note progress or regression. Economists try to do it and are miserably wrong most of the time. Using our fed government as an example, we've seen fed employee numbers go down, taxes go up, services go down, and the cost of government go up.
Sentinal is absolutely correct and especially as to unicameral.
Some consequences of a sucessful abolishment of the Senate are a bit more abstract. A most important by-product will be a far more responsible House of Representatives.
When the unicameral ammendment is passed in 2008, its passage will demonstrate to the remaining legislative house that the people can and will take legislative reform into their own hands. The result will be a far more careful body. For example: It makes perfect sense to district the legislature within Congressional Districts rather than the current hodge podge overlapping between the state and Congressional District boundries.
Lets say for example that the people in subsequent ammendment decide that Michigan House Districts must lie within the 15 Congressional Districts. These could be as few as 4 House seats per Congressional District or 60 seats. 5 per district or 75 seats or even as high as 6 per CD, coming to 90 seats. The point is that an aroused electorate the abolished the Senate will be most willing to discipline the remaining body should it not perform but choose instead to continue feathering it's own nest.
Full time pay for our current legislature could be limited simply by paying only for actual session days and limiting them.
Expenses can be limited to actual verifiable expenses within a legal description.
Campaign finance law can reduce the amount of special interest money in any race by establishing a minimum % of money raised and spent in each district, of money from outside the district.
The current system is broken. Wailing about low voter turnout in Primary Elections begs the question of why so many voters have given up on the system. Hell, in legislative races a 50% vote would astonish the experts. Sooner or later we have to address the reasons so many people have given up on the system. It is not soley because they are stupid or lazy. Many have figured out that the system now merely provides cover for the special interests who run this country from the statehouse to the capitol.
A system that is made up of absolutely safe districts for one party or the other (in 98% of the districts), AND, allows Primary Elections wherein multi-candidate races 6, 7 or more candidates, the voters TO ACTUALLY ELECT a legislator or Congressperson with as few as 20%, or fewer, of the votes cast. Clearly the purposes of the Republic are not served and a history of voter turnout clearly shows that this pattern in not a recent occurance.
In a free market economy, value is easy to measure. "Money talks, etc."
It gets more interesting when it comes to government.In theory, value is measured by votes. Unfortunately, the non-voter expects the voter to deliver a value to him, free of charge. He then is dismayed when the commission for the service is more than the cost of the item. Too bad!
If you are so dumb that your vote can be swayed by a clever TV ad (Kumbaya in the background..La,La, Lala, La, La, La!)then the guy with the big bucks will take your gal home from the dance.
Here's a thought. If you want to sell your idea, like a single "cameral" for example, get testimony from people who own one.
Too often in Barry County we argue the merits in our own vacuum. We forget to look outside the fishbowl at what other similar counties are doing and how much they are paying.
Obviously, failing to do this will cause the November millage to fail, again. When the subject shifts from Charlaton Park to the general topic of theme parks in general, suddenly the discussion erupts with creative ideas about how to generate money and get off the dole. Maybe we need to send the ladies to a successful theme park for their next Commissioners Convention. Don't say that they won't be Commissioners by then. That doesn't seem to enter the cost/benefit equation of value.
I suppose Dixie could do a seminar on "Business Plans for Theme Parks" and the Economic Development Alliance could pick up the tab. Dr. S could attend, free of course.
El: Kallenbach did receive more votes than Bailey (in Barry), but that is no cause for Dems to have hope. As long as ultra-conservative Ionia is in the mix, Calley is a lock for this seat.
Pol: Tricky thing with redistricting county commissioners. In Allegan when they redistricted, they increased from 9 to 11 (in the 90's they went from 13 to 9). The main promoter of this increase? Then Treasurer Fulton Sheen, who in an effort to get an early jump on his State Rep. bid, sent a slanted questionnaire to township officials saying that more commissioners would give the municipalities more of a voice. It's only given more headaches. There bloating the county government bureaucracy was clad in the cloth of "democracy".
In Kalamazoo, the GOP felt their grip on the county commission slipping. So they packed their board up to 17.
Granted statute does set a range (based on a county's population) of how low and high a county redistricting committee can set their commission districts. Kent Co. was trying to get a waiver from state, so they wouldn't have to increase (I believe it was denied).
I never understood why Barry breaks with most other counties and goes with an even number. I have maps that show that a 7 district or a 5 district map works and they are way more balanced to ensure "one man, one vote" than the current structure. A 9 person board would have also worked, but with the county's population concentrated in four pockets, this would of diluted things too much. While I would agree with el on the pant metaphor as it pertains to the State, it's been a mixed bag when it comes to county boards. You balance the need for local representation with getting the county's business done.
The bigger problem is accessibility and transparency. It wasn't too long ago boards around here didn't function with an administrator--now it's de facto. Administrators seem to be municipal bouncers, insulating the Board from the public and vice versa. They also set agendas and control a good deal of information the Board receives (a power that if unchecked, can be dangerous). This, along with most boards holding day meetings limits who can serve on the Board and how readily constituents can access the Board.
In Barry, we go through periods of Commissioners overlooking the public good in favor of cronyism, or just plain incompetent Board members. But if recent history is any judge, voters weed out the bad apples through the ballot box. Hopefully, this new batch will be good stewards of the public trust.
Excellent and thoughtful analysis, Jay. This is the kind of thought process we need on the blog.
Fewer than five Commissioners would ignore the fact that Barry has five distinct "cultures". They could be called "the Banner", the "Journal", the "Enquirer", the "Gazette" and the "Press" cultures.
The "Gazettes" and "Presses" are more populous than the eastside folks, which leads us to the awkward geometry.
One thing we often fail to recognize is that the westsiders are becoming more and more independent of County services. For example, they have their own Planning functions. They depend on outside Intermediate School Districts. They don't buy in to the idea that Barry County should follow one set of rules.
Without a significant change in leadership, the Board is at risk of increasing divisiveness and chaos. One underlying reason would be this difference between the eastern and western "cultures".
Jay, the number 8 is simple. Take the total population and divide it by the population of the City of Hastings...That is the magic number.
You raised another issue, the County Administrator.
Without pointing fingers, a competent Administrator with a dysfunctional Board would be sucked into "taking care of" issues that he might perceive as being too complicated for his Board. The current Board is all too willing to "let Michael do it", and avoid responsibility.
I have discussed this issue of accountability with some future Commissioners who have studied my el-grillo.blogspot. There are far too many "issues" without Commissioner oversight. This might lead to abuses, if it hasn't already.
Every issue, no matter how seemingly insignificant, should be "owned" by at least one Commissioner, who should be well informed enough to report fully on that issue to inform the rest of the Commissioners.
The requirement of this amount of attention is where I would begin to argue for more than five Commissioners, and where I propose four logical Standing Committees.
Pat,
The issue is more than mathematical, but if it was you could take each of the four Wards in the City and end up with 32 dysfunctional Commissioners. Or 16, or 64.
Part of the problem is caused by imaginary lines we call Townships. We probably could also divide the county into 8 segments with highways and rivers being the boundaries. An example is School Districts, which follow no logical pattern and cause gaps in services that are hard to fill.
You are right that the "magic" number system is the current method.
Statute does limit how many Barry can have (15 sticks out, but I have to check). After every census, a redistricting board meets with all the county-wide elected officials (Treasurer, Clerk, Drain Commisssioner, Register) and the heads of the two parties to carve up lines. They have to be roughly equal give or take a percentage point or two. Boards tend to follow Townships and road boundaries, but can use rivers and train tracks for boundaries (these two can be confusing when clerks who have to program ballots). Since the Apol standards were established, redistricting committees have been asked to stay away from rivers and railroad tracks.
Jay,
"Ultra Conservative Ionia" County will also react with the rest of the nation. Every time some out-of-control Puritan, like Don Rumsfeld, gets a microphone in his face and calls the rest of us "Neo-Fascists" and "Liberals" he offends a few more "Somewhat Conservatives" and sends us looking for a rational group to vote with.
On the national stage we don't have much to cheer us up, but the local options are much better.
If it was offered, I would vote for "None of the above".
In case anyone was interested...
Both Bailey and Lower ended up paying fines for late Capaign Finance Reports. Bailey may have more fines since he didn't file his Late Contributions on time.
"Ultra conservative Ionia" will become an understatement with Calley in. Tutored by Newell and from what I heard, advised by Sen. al cropsey, we aint seen nothin yet! I dont know all the Christian right in the legislature, but I cannot imagine anyone more to the right than Cropsey. He makes newell look like a moderate. If Cropsey had his way, the US would become a religious state under his god. And unlike Newell, Cropsey is active in politics, trying to jam his socio-religious agenda down the throats of unsuspecting citizens. Thank your god (if you believe) that Newell really didnt do much nor care. If we are lucky, Calley will focus on banking and leave the rest of us alone.
Newell not capable of tutoring anyone!
Not much? I have asked the question over and over again, what did Newell do? Zip!
I don't think Newell looked like anything!
I support a petition drive to amend the U.S.Constitution (divinely inspired, apparently by God) to change the Freedom of Speech to "The Freedom to Whine".
Dems Unite!
el grillo, spend some time with cropsey and you would be squeeelin like a pig. Check out his record.
sentinel,
You would be amazed at how little interest I have in people outside of Barry County, for a guy that spends his winters outside of the country (as long as the Bush family continues to allow me to leave and return).
If cropsey is the rabid dog of the christian right, we are already squealing like pigs.
At least we now know where fourteen of the POWs of the "war of terror" are. They must be relieved to be where they won't be tortured as much by christian CIA "interrogators". I've been to Guantanamo. Not bad duty.
Grillo, Since you are interested in best value government, check out this link...
http://www.mises.org/story/2294
I wish I had time. I only get an hour at the library, and the Community Center won't allow us seniors to blog.
I can lead the horse to water, but...
"Fortune Cookie Economics", complete with "Lucky Numbers"!
Definitely has something to do with horses, but they don't drink out of that end.
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