What’s your News IQ? To find out, take the Pew News IQ Quiz about prominent people and major events in the news.
You can take the Quiz at http://pewresearch.org/politicalquiz/
I correctly answered 11 out of the 12 possible questions. I gave the wrong answer to “Do you happen to know how many women, if any, sit on the U.S. Supreme Court?” I answered “more than 1.” I forgot that O’Connor had retired a few years ago.
Mary Ellyn’s edit: I got 10 of our 12. I missed the Supreme Question and the imported oil question.
Crain’s Detroit Business reporter Amy Lane writes…
A study released Thursday cites some key Michigan tax incentive programs as ineffective in producing jobs and tax revenue, compared with what would result from a change in tax rates. The study by Anderson Economic Group L.L.C., commissioned by the Michigan Education Association and the National Education Association, names the Michigan Economic Growth Authority program, the renaissance zone program and Michigan’s incentives to attract the film industry as ineffective in that they resulted in fewer jobs and less tax revenue than would be produced from an alternative tax policy like a lower overall tax rate. The study said eliminating those programs and “replacing them with well-designed alternative policies, would promote more job creation and generation of tax revenue than if the policies were kept in place.”
State government needs to stop picking “winners” and “losers.” Instead, Michigan would be better off cutting taxes for everyone.
You can read the entire article at http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20100304/FREE/100309908
From the Troy Police Department…
The intersection of Rochester Road and Wattles Road will be closed to Wattles Road traffic March 5, 2010 to Monday, March 8, 2010.
Work will be done in the intersection all weekend long, including removing and repositioning the existing traffic signals, and is not scheduled to be reopened until Monday, March 8, 2010, at 5:30 AM.
Troy Police Traffic Safety Unit officers will be on hand at 8:30 PM, Friday, March 5, 2010, to assist the road construction crews with shutting down the intersection. TSU officers will remain on site to make sure traffic is flowing safely before leaving the area.
Rochester Road will remain open during this construction project with one lane for northbound Rochester Road (in the N/B Rochester Road curb lane) and one lane open for southbound Rochester Road Traffic (in the S/B Rochester Road curb lane). Rochester Road will be free flowing during this phase of construction as the traffic signals at the intersection will be removed and repositioned before the intersection is reopened.
THERE WILL BE NO LEFT TURNS ALLOWED FROM ROCHESTER RD TO WATTLES RD.
Wattles Road will be closed at Bristol Street (to the west) and at Worthington Street (to the east).
Weather will play a determining factor as to when this phase of the construction will be completed.
If the weather is favorable, the intersection may be reopened Sunday, March 7, 2010.
Whenever the intersection is reopened, the configuration for Rochester Road traffic will shift. There will only be a total of three lanes for Rochester Road. One northbound, one southbound, and one center turn lane. These three lanes will be set up on the WEST side of Rochester Road. The configuration will remain this way until the next major phase of construction begins.
NOTE: I corrected some of the dates because it looks like Troy PD personnel mixed them up with last weekend.
Here’s a shameless plug! Come see the Proclaim Drama of Our Shepherd Lutheran Church’s presentation of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” Both Alex and I have roles in the musical. While Alex is now a “veteran” of the stage, this will be my acting (and singing and dancing) debut. Of course, as a former elected Troy City official, I guess I’ve done my share of performing in public!
For more information on the performance, click on the image below.
Mary Ellyn and I attended the monthly meeting of the local Brothers of John the Steadfast reading group on Tuesday night at Lutheran High School Northwest. Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word Pastor Allen Lunneberg facilitates our monthly sessions. Tonight we covered the Fourth Commandment in Martin Luther’s Large Catechism.
The Fourth Commandment. “Thou shalt honor thy father and thy mother that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long upon the earth.” What does this mean?–Answer. “We should fear and love God that we may not despise nor anger our parents and masters, but give them honor, serve, obey, and hold them in love and esteem.”
Mary Ellyn and I found this quote from Luther quite appropriate…
“We must, therefore, impress it upon the young that they should regard their parents as in God’s stead, and remember that however lowly, poor, frail, and queer they may be, nevertheless they are father and mother given them by God. They are not to be deprived of their honor because of their conduct or their failings. Therefore we are not to regard their persons, how they may be, but the will of God who has thus created and ordained. In other respects we are, indeed, all alike in the eyes of God; but among us there must necessarily be such inequality and ordered difference, and therefore God commands it to be observed, that you obey me as your father, and that I have the supremacy.”
Sorry Jill and Alex, we may be “lowly, poor, frail, and queer,” but we’re still deserving of honor as your parents.
You can read more at http://www.bookofconcord.org/lc-3-tencommandments.php
Carl Menger: “Money is not an invention of the state. It is not the product of a legislative act. The sanction of political authority is not necessary for its existence.”
President Grover Cleveland: “Patriotism is no substitute for a sound currency.”
From today’s Detroit News…
No sooner had the returns come in showing the defeat of Troy’s proposed 1.9-mill tax hike than Mayor Louise Schilling’s announcement the city would have to lay off 47 police officers, close the library, nature center, community center and museum. Later in the week, the mayor said the layoffs and closures were under consideration, but wouldn’t happen immediately. We hope not. Voters have a right to determine the level of revenue they will grant government, and deserve government officials’ best efforts to make the most of that money. While such amenities as nature centers and community centers are optional, care is required in providing for public safety. City officials need to look at every other expenditure before they pare police and fire protection to dangerous levels.
Read the entire editorial at http://bit.ly/9ZehOt
Congratulations to Canada on winning the Gold Medal in today’s Men’s Olympic Ice Hockey game. It was a great game and Team USA can be proud of their effort and their Silver Medal.
Team USA goalie Ryan Miller (from East Lansing and Michigan State University) played a big role in their success. I really like his goalie mask which is pictured below.
According to the Troy Chamber of Commerce, “The city of Troy has cancelled the State of the City address which was to be given at the luncheon on March 4th.”
You can see the Chamber’s notice at http://bit.ly/aWttzo
I see that it’s now listed as canceled on the City’s website at http://bit.ly/awDaCJ
Interesting development!
3/2/10 UPDATE: I forgot to thank Jeff Verhoef for the tip.
For those who did not watch all seven hours, the Heritage Foundation has compiled the day’s highlights into one video.
