That’s it. We’ve had it. So long.
Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is a magnificent place and really is a world all to its own. Touching three of the Great Lakes, its climate, geography and culture is completely separate in many ways from the rest of the state.
Over the years, there have been at least four different attempts to secede from the state to form the state of “Superior” or “Ontonagon”.
With the massive overreach of the current government of Michigan, some in the Upper Peninsula are renewing the call for secession.
With frustration over revenue sharing cuts and potential tax law changes that could negatively affect local governments, dictated by Lansing lawmakers, talk at Tuesday’s Marquette County Board meeting included a resurgence of the decades-old idea of the Upper Peninsula becoming a state of its own.Commissioner Michael Quayle said he recently corresponded via email with a citizen who wanted more information about development of a potential severance tax for non-ferrous mining operations, including the Kennecott Eagle Minerals Co. mine in Michigamme Township.
Local taxing units have been concerned the severance tax could replace and shortchange current ad valorem tax revenue schools and local governments vitally depend on.
“The person kind of quipped at the end of the email and said we should secede from the state of Michigan,” Quayle said. […]
“Like I say, I kind of laughed about it at first, but the more I thought about it, all the problems that we’re going through and all we’re seeing and everybody else now that we got a little bit of money coming in up here, wants to help us spend it,” Quayle said. “I don’t know if there’s anybody out there willing to take the issue on, but I’m beginning to not laugh at it so much anymore. I think it might be a good idea if we did secede.” […]
Quayle said he was also concerned about the current legislature’s passing of more than 500 bills, with all but 20 of them taking effect immediately.
“It’s really kind of a scary situation,” Quayle said.
It’s an amazing thought, isn’t it? An area formerly represented by Conservadem Bart Stupak and now represented by a Republican thinks Michigan Republicans have gone too far.
It certainly says a lot about what’s happening in Michigan right now…
H/T Eclectablog reader Mike M.
[CC image credit: Wikimedia Commons.]
