New Gitmo in Standish MI?

[RipCity]

LANSING – The people of Standish and Arenac County support the importation of California convicts to fill a soon-to-be-closed state prison and save local jobs. But if American criminals can’t be found, they’d settle for terrorist detainees from Guantanamo Bay, a trio of state lawmakers told a House committee this morning.
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“First and foremost our goal is to keep the prison open,” said Rep. Tim Moore, R-Farwell, whose district includes the Standish Maximum Facility.

If California, which is considering exporting prisoners to reduce overcrowding, decides not to utilize the Michigan prison, Moore said the community is receptive to the idea of housing terrorists “if it can be done safely.”

He was joined at the hearing of the Corrections Reform subcommittee by Reps. Joel Sheltrown, D-West Branch, and Jeff Mayes, D-Bay City, all of whom said they believe the Standish facility can securely house prisoners of all kinds.

State prisoners from outside of Michigan, which the Department of Corrections has pursued as an option to avoid closing Standish and another prison in Muskegon, is preferable to housing federal detainees, because the prison could be operated with virtually the same staff it has now, the lawmakers said. If the prison is converted for use by the Department of Defense, it would presumably be staffed by federal employees, they said.

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Terrorists just two hours from my house..Thank you Obama!

 

[maxiep]

It just shows how desperate Michiganders have become for any kind of employment, since Obama's policies are killing the auto industry.

I, for one, am uncomfortable that terrorists would be so close to one of the largest muslim populations in the US. It would be dangerous and at best a PR nightmare.

 

[barfo]

It just shows how desperate Michiganders have become for any kind of employment, since Obama's policies are killing the auto industry.

Yeah, the auto industry was so healthy before Obama took office.

barfo

 

[deception]

It just shows how desperate Michiganders have become for any kind of employment, since Obama's policies are killing the auto industry.

I, for one, am uncomfortable that terrorists would be so close to one of the largest muslim populations in the US. It would be dangerous and at best a PR nightmare.

nimby's must die. where is your patriotism? if i was u- i would lobby my governor to accept one of the detainees

 

[RipCity]

You guys are missing the point. If the Gitmo detainees are moved there it will have to be staffed by FEDERAL employee's, thus eliminating any economic benefit to Standish or the state of Michigan.

How about this, why not keep them at Gitmo where they belong? As I've stated previously, closing Gitmo was a public relations stunt, changing absolutely nothing, and now the citizens of Michigan have to live with it.

 

[maxiep]

Yeah, the auto industry was so healthy before Obama took office.

barfo

The US auto industry was dying due to CAFE standards and UAW legacy costs. If you wanted the Big Three to come back, let them declare bankruptcy, shed their contracts and offer lines of credit guaranteed by the government (like we did with Chrysler in the 80s). You don't take over two companies and start dictating how they're run and what they're going to build.

Detroit builds great cars, but they have to go cheap on finishes because they're starting off $1,700-$2,600 in the hole compared to imports. Imagine if they could spend that money to improve the fit and finish of their automobiles. As for CAFE standards, when people buy American, they prefer SUVs and pickups. Instead, Detroit has to make small cars to even out the fleet. And the small American cars can't hold a candle to foreign imports.

 

[maxiep]

You guys are missing the point. If the Gitmo detainees are moved there it will have to be staffed by FEDERAL employee's, thus eliminating any economic benefit to Standish or the state of Michigan.

There will be a small economic benefit from federal employees moving to Standish, but otherwise you're correct.

How about this, why not keep them at Gitmo where they belong? As I've stated previously, closing Gitmo was a public relations stunt, changing absolutely nothing, and now the citizens of Michigan have to live with it.

Absolutely spot-on.

 

[deception]

How about this, why not keep them at Gitmo where they belong? As I've stated previously, closing Gitmo was a public relations stunt, changing absolutely nothing, and now the citizens of Michigan have to live with it.

no it wasnt. the white house had no option because the supreme court deemed it unconstitutional during bush's tenure. if palin was running the show- she would have to do the same. fyi- there are much more ppl being detained at basra airforce base and havent been extended habeus corpus either if that brings u any satisfaction

 

[barfo]

You guys are missing the point. If the Gitmo detainees are moved there it will have to be staffed by FEDERAL employee's, thus eliminating any economic benefit to Standish or the state of Michigan.

What? You think they'll bus federal employees in from Washington DC to work the prisons?

I expect most federal prison employees live and spend money near where they work, like everyone else.

barfo

 

[barfo]

The US auto industry was dying due to CAFE standards and UAW legacy costs. If you wanted the Big Three to come back, let them declare bankruptcy, shed their contracts and offer lines of credit guaranteed by the government (like we did with Chrysler in the 80s). You don't take over two companies and start dictating how they're run and what they're going to build.

I think we only took over GM. Fiat took over Chrysler, and I'm pretty sure Fiat and the US government are two different things.
And they refused to declare bankruptcy, they had plenty of opportunity to do so. The government didn't prevent them from it. They chose this solution over bankruptcy.

Detroit builds great cars, but they have to go cheap on finishes because they're starting off $1,700-$2,600 in the hole compared to imports. Imagine if they could spend that money to improve the fit and finish of their automobiles.

Imagine if they hadn't made the stupid management decisions that led to that situation.

As for CAFE standards, when people buy American, they prefer SUVs and pickups. Instead, Detroit has to make small cars to even out the fleet. And the small American cars can't hold a candle to foreign imports.

More stupid management decisions. There's no fundamental reason why US car companies can't make a good small car, they have just failed to do so.

Bad management is what killed the US car companies.

barfo

 

[maxiep]

I think we only took over GM. Fiat took over Chrysler, and I'm pretty sure Fiat and the US government are two different things.

And I'm pretty sure Chrysler's deal with Fiat was brokered by the Federal Government. I'm also pretty sure Chrysler also received bridge financing from the Federal Government.

And they refused to declare bankruptcy, they had plenty of opportunity to do so. The government didn't prevent them from it. They chose this solution over bankruptcy.

It's a matter of semantics. The bottom line is that an Obama-run government was going to apply as much pressure as possible to keep them from declaring bankruptcy. Strong-arming was the flavor of the day with this deal.

Imagine if they hadn't made the stupid management decisions that led to that situation.

Absolutely. There's no way I'm going to defend their management. That being said, the decisions made in the 70s and 80s killed GM. It had little to do with their current executives.

More stupid management decisions. There's no fundamental reason why US car companies can't make a good small car, they have just failed to do so.

It's really hard for a few reasons. First, it takes long experience, which builds a reputation. If Hummer came out with a economical car, people would resist it. The Japanese companies have a 40 year record and an entire country to subsidize them and their mistakes. Honda's expertise isn't so much in making small cars but small engines. Those things are a wonder.

The reputation of poor quality has also killed small cars. Small car buyers care about economics. GM cars have a terrible (and now undeserved) reputation for reliability. When you care about cheap transportation, that's a big deal.

Second, it takes focus and resources. The bulk of the Japanese attention is put on small vehicles. The bulk of American companies is put on sedans, SUVs and pickups. The best minds go in different places in these companies.

Third, the legacy costs hurt small cars more than larger sedans, SUVS or pickups. In other words, that $1,700-$2,600 hurts more on a $15-20K car than a $35-$40K car.
Second,

Bad management is what killed the US car companies.

barfo

It was one of the primary reasons, but not the only one. The UAW managed to kill the golden goose. Eventually, they ran out of the Big Three's money.