The road to opportunity
The road to opportunity Governor Whitmer outlines her path to fix the damn roads and more BY VANESSA DENHA GARMO As soon as she was elected the 49th Governor of the State of Michigan, Gretchen Whitmer hit the ground running as she transitioned her campaign stump speech to her first year in office tour to “Fix the Damn Roads.” Along the way, she made a stop at the Shenandoah Country Club in West Bloomfield to address the Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce. “The Chaldean community is incredibly important to the health and welfare and future of the economy of the state and that is why I wanted to have this conversation with you about where we are headed as a state,” said Whitmer. “The first year of the first term, the governor has about 2 ½ months to write a budget which really takes about five months to write.” She outlined the problem and her reasoning behind the ask for the 45- cent gas tax increase. “We stopped investing in the foundation of our state,” she said, “the literal foundation and the figurative foundation.” She continued to say that the state of Michigan stopped investing in education, roads, bridges and clean drinking water. The total budget in Michigan is .2 billion. The discretion is in the general fund. Other funds are restricted. The general fund is more than billion. It funds a variety of state programs. It has not grown in 20 years but the costs of services have increased. The state’s ability to pay for these services have not grown. “Had that fund kept up with inflation, it would have more than billions more in it,” she noted. “We have a state infrastructure that is literally crumbling.” She described a legislature that kept moving money around from fund to fund to do short-term fixes on roads, water and education. Whitmer’s budget plan to fix the crumbling and dangerous roads goes beyond the pothole patches and could also impact her plans to significantly boost spending on education and environmental improvements. The national standard for roads is that the 90 percent of them should be in good to fair conditions at all times. In Michigan, 78 percent are in good and fair condition. “In terms of Infrastructure, if you are not rebuilding, you’re deteriorating,” said Whitmer, “There is no such thing as status quo.” If we don’t invest in roads, in three years the 78 percent of roads in good to fair conation will be at only 60 percent, according to Governor Whitmer. “Study after study has shown that we have the worst roads in America,” said Whitmer. “The state that put the world in cars has the worst roads in America right now.” On the large screen, the Governor showed a map of where we have bad roads in America, that the dots are everywhere. She also showed photos of potholes that included a pothole patching truck stuck in a pothole. The state has taken money from the school aid fund to shore up the general fund diverted to fill potholes. Michigan is dead last in educating children in literacy proficiency. “If we don’t get education of our children right, our economic future and their standard of living is all compromised.” She is focused on what she has deemed fundamental. She is also focusing on talent and education. Only 44 percent of adults Michigan residents have a post-secondary degree or a certification. Today we have PFOSS leaching into drinking water systems across Michigan. It is a fundamental issue that the Governor is focused on. She plans to fix roads, education and drinking water. Her goal is to have 90 percent of our roads in good to fair condition by 2030. She plans to clean up drinking water. She wants 100 percent of communities to have good drinking water. Close skills gap by bringing down the cost of a college degree, which will enable companies to fill good paying jobs. She wants Michigan to be a top ten state in education by focusing on literacy. The state has a 2.5 billion infrastructure problem and she is proposing a 45-cent gas tax. She plans to ramp it up in a series of increases. She also outlined why other proposed solutions don’t work including taxing marijuana which was a question from the audience. “Pot for potholes,” she joked. “This question comes up all the time.” The Governor even shared a slide on this issue. “Our roads is a .5 billion problem. It is so big it is hard to get your head around. Marijuana at its height is predicted to leverage 42 million in taxes to go to infrastructure….,” she explained. “Every man, woman and child would have to consume ,500 in marijuana every year to raise those kinds of revenue. At that level, no one is going to care about the roads.” She contends that there are not a lot of mechanisms to raise 2.5 billion dollars. Some have suggested to raise the corporate income tax. Gas tax would be dedicated to the roads under the constitution. Other increased taxes are not earmarked for roads. Others suggested raising the income tax which would include a vote of the people and hope the legislature appropriates the money for roads. This is the same for sales tax. Some feedback included taking money from various tax increases, however, the fact remains that the only tax that can be solely used for the roads is the gas tax. 24 CHALDEAN NEWS JUNE 2019
BOOK review Before There Were Borders: Review BY ASHOURINA SLEWO Written by first generation Assyrian-American sisters Josephine Attisha and Mary Zomayah, “Before There Were Borders” is a “coming of age” story about Sara Georges, a young Assyrian-American woman who shares her story of growing up in Iraq with her American-born granddaughter. Sara tells her granddaughter about how she dealt with Iraq’s culture, patriarchy, and limitations. Unaware of the harsh truths of her grandmother’s homeland, Sara’s stories are eyeopening for her granddaughter. Taking place in Christmas eve in present-day America and in Iraq during the 1950s, “Before There Were Borders” sets out to paint a picture of a time when Christian and Muslim neighbors lived in harmony. The book includes everything from romance and drama to magic and superstitions. As a first generation Assyrian- American, I was excited to read “Before There Were Borders”, especially considering it is written from the perspective of a woman. It is no secret that women in Iraq, and the Middle East, were not always highly regarded and I believe the book does a good job of addressing this. Early on, Attisha and Zomayah tackle this with Sara, their lead character, discussing marriage and how she would rather pursue her education first. Unsurprisingly, Sara recalls her mother being taken aback by this statement. “Please don’t think like that. If people hear you talk like this, they will think something is wrong with you,” her mother said. The idea that all women were called to marriage and that ultimately, that is all their life really is about, is a theme that is prevalent in the stories of all the women in the book. While slow to start, as the book progresses, we see the story go from being Sara’s story to Hayat’s story. Hayat was the Muslim woman who Sara eventually grew to become very close friends with. The unlikely friendship between the two started when Hayat was set to marry Sara’s neighbor, Lieutenant Colonel. An anomaly in those times, Hayat was 25 years old and still had not been married. Even more unusual to Sara was that Hayat would be marrying a married man who already had six children. She would eventually learn from her mother that marrying multiple women while still being married was a normal practice among the Muslim community in those times. As I mentioned, the book was slow to start. I found myself really trying to push through the first 50 pages or so. It was not until the story totally took Hayat’s perspective that I got lost in the book. Hayat’s story is beautifully written and compelling from start to finish. I didn’t realize just how enthralled I was by her story until an hour later when I reached the end. Reading the description for “Before There Were Borders”, I thought the book’s goal was to illustrate the then harmonious relationships between two religiously different groups of people, Christians and Muslims. If that was the goal, I’m afraid the writers did not achieve it. The book was largely about Hayat’s journey, with two or three brief moments that allude to her friendship with Sara even though Sara ultimately leaves Iraq with Hayat. Above all else, though, the Attisha and Zomayah accomplished so much more. Through their captivating style of writing, they have given a fresh, and more importantly, unbiased look at what Iraq used to be. And, along the way, they told the stories of several very different women, all strong in their own way. Except Fatima. I think anyone who has read “Before There Were Borders” can agree that Fatima was a deplorable human. I commend Attisha and Zomayah. As a first generation Assyrian-American, it can be hard to have a firm understanding of your identity, let alone a country, as you grow up between two worlds. They have done a stellar job in laying both out for everyone, Middle Eastern or not, to understand. I highly recommend “Before There Were Borders”. America's Largest Exterior Remodeler Local Owners The Sheena Family For Free In Home Estimate, call 248-940-1532 Showroom 2873 Haggerty Road, Commerce MI WindowWorldDetroit.com JOIN OUR GROWING TEAM. The Chaldean News is looking for motivated candidates to fill full-time salaried sales positions. Qualified candidates should email a resume to info@chaldeannews.com. JUNE 2019 CHALDEAN NEWS 25
