« Don’t Worry, BP Happy! | Home | Assimilated By Facebook – Is Resistance Futile? »
Is Governor Rick Snyder Planning To Sell Michigan To Taiwan Like He Did Gateway?
Topics: Politics | 1 CommentBy admin | February 23, 2011
If so, he might want to reconsider his ill-conceived plan to destroy its film industry. It’s one of Michigan’s greatest assets at the moment. And by the way, why isn’t he on Dickipedia?
 Can Rick Snyder do the same amazing things for Michigan that he did for Gateway? |
We already jokingly offered Michigan’s new governor some suggestions for turning things around in the state; we were trying to be a little positive about having a pro-business, Republican governor. But we didn’t mention the film industry in Michigan, because WE DIDN’T THINK HE’D BE SO GODDAMN STUPID as to try to kill it. Oops. Did I raise my voice? Sorry. What is wrong with this guy’s brain? How could he not get this? As a Michigan resident, I can say with confidence that the business brought to the state by offering incentives to the film industry has been the greatest thing happening here in decades. It’s easy to debate the industry’s real impact on the state’s economy – pieces like this one gleefully focus on negative anecdotal information to paint a negative picture, while articles like this Detroit News piece paint a much more positive picture (with actual numbers and facts, by the way). But one thing you CAN’T debate has to do with two equally important factors; things that aren’t about short term financial results, and that you can’t plot on a graph. Sentiment, and opportunity. I’ve lived in this state most of my life; I saw the 70′s labor exodus as a child, I’ve watched the ups and downs of the auto industry from sellout to bailout, and I can tell you that I have NEVER in all those years seen the kind of excitement, passion, and inspiration for business and entrepreneurship I’ve seen since the state opened its doors to the film industry with incentives. I’ve worked in film myself, and have a lot of friends much more inside the business, and one thing I’ve heard repeatedly over the years is that the west coast base of the business LOVES hiring midwesterners. Why? Because of their work ethic. If there’s one thing Michiganders have, it’s an understanding of a hard day’s work, and film work, as we all know, calls for marathon hours. What better marriage could you imagine? I could go on about this forever, and yes, it would all be anecdotal. But I’m astounded by Rick Snyder’s failure to recognize the incredible opportunities for Michigan’s future here, and instead focus on short term budget wrangling. But I guess I shouldn’t be. This is perhaps similar to his strategy in his role as custodial CEO of the Gateway computer company, which was eventually sold to Taiwan’s Acer. But only after the company outsourced half of the jobs it provided stateside anyway. Is this your plan for Michigan, Mr. Snyder? Not if the people have their way. There are plenty of campaigns afoot to show your support for Michigan film, and more forming daily. I’m personally a “take it to the streets” kind of guy, so I like Michigan Film First’s plan for a rally March 3 . Got a suggestion for how to show support? Feel free to share it as a comment.
Posted by adrian on 02.23.11 5:02 pm
The article you link to, admittedly, is one anecdotal story that could be used to paint a negative story. However, there is no need to rely on random anecdotal stories to portray Michigan’s film incentive as bad public policy that is hurting the state, even if a small percentage are benefiting greatly.
The 2010 Senate analysis is a through and comprehensive analysis of the program, which it finds to be very costly and not particularly efficient. You should read that report, as it contains far more “actual numbers and actual facts” than almost any other credible report, and way way more than the EY report the other article discussed. What was lacking in the so-called positive article you like, however, were the other findings in the EY report–that it does not come close to paying for itself, and most (well over half) of the compensation and wages that qualified under the incentive went to out of state talent and businesses.
You may also want to read that report in the entirety. Final point…across the board, supporters of film incentive programs are the ones who have to rely on anecdotal spin, because they don’t have any solid or credible data they can rely on to support their claims. The other side does. I wish I could tell you that the film incentive was a good idea or that it was sensible public policy, but that is simply not the case. Film incentive supporters are wrong about the efficacy of these programs, and it is time for them to accept it. Keeping their heads in the sand is unacceptable when schools are closing and police and fire fighters lose their jobs and see resources dwindle. If you want to work in Hollywood, move to Hollywood.