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Gitmo Detainees in Michigan-Part III
There was a townhall meeting in Standish, MI today. No....it had nothing to do with healthcare reform. Instead, it was a forum to discuss the concerns of area citizens who would be most affected if soon-to-be-closed Standish Max prison is re-used by the federal government to house the Guantanamo Bay detainees.
Except, many of the meetings attendants were from places outside the area.
Nope. I've got a hunch that most of the "opponents" at the meeting were imported by the Republican Party.
See, one of the speakers at the townhall was Rep. Pete Hoekstra.
Standish Max, located in Arenac County, is not even in Hoekstra's district.
Hoekstra wants to be Michigan's next governor.
Hmmmm. Now what better way to get public exposure in parts of the state that are outside your district, where you aren't a familiar face among the local population, than to stick your nose where it doesn't belong?
I mean, Arenac County is in Bart Stupak's district. Stupak has already said, along with Sen. Carl Levin, that he will not object to the transfer of Gitmo detainees to Standish Max if it is agreeable to the local citizenry.
Now, I may be wearing my tinfoil hat here, the one bedazzled with the chunks of red plastic that could have been real rubies if only they had tried harder, but, I've had sunshine blown up my ass so many times I know the feeling and I kinda think this event wasn't all that genuine. In my humble opinion, this "townhall" was crafted by the people that want Hoekstra to be the next governor of Michigan.
I have no doubt that there were legitimate attendees at the event, actual concerned locals that are not comfortable with having terrorists housed so close by and I in no way am making light of their concerns. But neither should politicians be allowed to use fear to advance their agenda.
Oh, gee. That sounds kinda familiar, does it not?
More later.
Gitmo Detainees in Michigan-Part I
Gitmo Detainees in Michigan-Part II
Except, many of the meetings attendants were from places outside the area.
"Every speaker but one criticized the idea during the two-hour meeting at a local church."This surprises me. A good many of the local residents are open to the idea bringing the Gitmo detainees to Standish Max and I am a little baffled by this excerpt from the above linked piece...
"employees of the state prison fearing they would lose their jobs if the Guantanamo inmates are moved to Standish."Whot? They are already going to lose their jobs when the the prison shuts down so what exactly is their motivation here? Are they still holding out hope that California will import the overflow of their prisons? Uhhhh....didn't they get the news? California, facing their own budget problems, has declined Michigan's offer. Pennsylvania? They have yet to respond to a proposal we offered a while ago.
Nope. I've got a hunch that most of the "opponents" at the meeting were imported by the Republican Party.
See, one of the speakers at the townhall was Rep. Pete Hoekstra.
Standish Max, located in Arenac County, is not even in Hoekstra's district.
Hoekstra wants to be Michigan's next governor.
Hmmmm. Now what better way to get public exposure in parts of the state that are outside your district, where you aren't a familiar face among the local population, than to stick your nose where it doesn't belong?
I mean, Arenac County is in Bart Stupak's district. Stupak has already said, along with Sen. Carl Levin, that he will not object to the transfer of Gitmo detainees to Standish Max if it is agreeable to the local citizenry.
Now, I may be wearing my tinfoil hat here, the one bedazzled with the chunks of red plastic that could have been real rubies if only they had tried harder, but, I've had sunshine blown up my ass so many times I know the feeling and I kinda think this event wasn't all that genuine. In my humble opinion, this "townhall" was crafted by the people that want Hoekstra to be the next governor of Michigan.
I have no doubt that there were legitimate attendees at the event, actual concerned locals that are not comfortable with having terrorists housed so close by and I in no way am making light of their concerns. But neither should politicians be allowed to use fear to advance their agenda.
Oh, gee. That sounds kinda familiar, does it not?
More later.
Gitmo Detainees in Michigan-Part I
Gitmo Detainees in Michigan-Part II
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Flower,
Great info!
Have you considered doing an op ed piece for the paper there? Actually, I would vote to use this post!
Please, keep us updated! This is very interesting and enlightening!
Thanks. Rec'd.
August 20, 2009 11:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
Migwetch, Auntie.
I would do an op-ed, but the local rag is a weakly (misspelling intended) affair and their editorials of preference tend to be about the naughty children overturning trash cans in the city park. In other words...the op-eds are not of much substance and anything I have sent in has not been printed.
I might have better luck with the tv people. Hmmm. They do have a forum where you can submit inquiries and they have a reporter follow up if they deem the question is worthy.
I will look into that, because I would actually like to know just who was behind setting up this "townhall".
August 21, 2009 11:03 AM | Reply | Permalink
What about the papers in surrounding communities? This will have impact beyond local.
And what about those running against Hoekstra? Seems like they would be eager to delve into this and find out the truth.
Kudos to you for following up!
August 21, 2009 11:27 AM | Reply | Permalink
For being in the minority the republicans are certainly playing the hand they've got craftily.
Democrats on the other hand... well I don't have to tell you how it's been going but the fact that the president talks about how he has not given up on bi-partisanship on a day when Senator Grassly who has already said the president's plan would 'pull the plug on Grandma' etc., and that the public option must be dropped, today he says there should be 80 votes for any health care legislation in the senate. The president is playing a fool with the republicans in my opinion. I really don't understand what he is doing.
Sorry to hear about the 'staged' meeting. Sounds like a real disappointment.
August 21, 2009 1:14 AM | Reply | Permalink
80 votes? WOW! We need to find the pages where the GOP and their supporters get advantages for them to be willing to cross the aisle and support HCR. Who are those people?!?!
August 21, 2009 2:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
Sink, my reply to your comment is below GZap's. I hate when that happens.
August 21, 2009 7:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
Now it's below mine.
hahahahhahahaha
:o)
August 21, 2009 7:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
"All politics is local." -- Tip O'Neill.
I don't know why I typed that...it just came into my mind after reading your comment.
80 votes?
Hmmmmm.
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.
Sounds like chess, to me. ;o)
August 21, 2009 11:17 AM | Reply | Permalink
If this event was paid for with taxpayer funds and Hoekstra made a pitch for gov. there is potential for an ethics charge.
August 21, 2009 7:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
I do not think it was paid for by taxpayer funds, jonnie. But, there was a definite Republican tilt to the thing.
I will be putting up a new blog soon with some links I found.
August 21, 2009 7:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
Where were the unions in all this?
August 21, 2009 2:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, they sure weren't there standing up for their employees, dd. Nope. Actually, I don't know if the state prison employees even have a union. If they do, they've rolled over on their backs like every other union in the state has done. Oh geeeeeze...do not get me started on unions now, Mr. Day. I've got enough on my plate with this prison thing right now...if I went off on the UAW too, I'd explode and really, nobody wants to clean up THAT mess. ;o)
August 21, 2009 7:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
I've run across some new information that I will put into a new blog since this one is about to roll away into the 24 hour abyss.
Thanks everyone for reading, recommending and commenting.
August 21, 2009 7:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ah, yez. A long-standing Republican tactic which never seems to get the attention it deserves.
You know what kind of people do this? Addle-pated morons that would scream pretty damn loud if some outsiders showed up in their towns and messed with their local issues. I think it is far and away time for roll calls. Locals get seated first and outsiders can participate ONLY after locals have been seated. Questions should be accepted only after the person posing it has identified the area of town they live in.
This is hardly unfair, if these outsides don't like your Prison they can protest them in their OWN districts. They can bother their OWN reps. Showing up at others townhalls is dishonest. Period.
I'm sick and tired of these goddamn brownshirts subverting democracy and getting away with it. Start requesting that anyone that is not a local, make room for locals. It's called being American.
Sorry for the rant flower, but this is EXACTLY how a bunch of ignorant, poorly educated bullies have managed to hijack the best interests of this Nation. (They're usually paid, too. Gross, ain't it?)
This IS a small little something we can all do to thwart them. Ask them where they come from, hold out your ID and ask to see theirs, as a matter of good faith. When this is done, it's funny how quickly they suddenly remember they're supposed to be somewhere else.
August 21, 2009 9:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
If you really want to get your rant on, check out the blog I just put up. This entire "town hall" was merely a showcase for politicians pushing their agenda and had little to do with addressing the concerns of the regular citizens who apparently went away from the meeting knowing less than when they came.
Rant on, Chicken. I'll hear you.
August 21, 2009 11:27 PM | Reply | Permalink