9 minute read
Spectator/Stephen Tuttle
Continued from page 3 Chevrolet black to prevent using high beams that would help the German bombers to target our roads. There were Nazi subs off Cape Cod sinking ships.
My father’s younger friends and my friends’ older brothers joined the Rainbow Division that defeated Hitler in Europe and Hirohito in the Pacific. When they came back, they were the ones who made America great. They ran for public office and used taxes to build our great road system (now sadly falling into disrepair because tax cuts for the wealthy are almost sacred).
Then the Baby Boomers hit the schools. Our schools were well funded, and many of our teachers were our heroes who had survived the hell of WWII.
Hitler made Germany great after the Great Depression using slave labor. Only God knew how many died working or were shot!
We had great, well-paying jobs, workman’s comp, safe working conditions.
But prices were going up. My father kept a $10 bill in his wallet he never spent until a snowstorm made travel impossible; it bought a room and a good meal. Today I would need $100.00+. The import tax was cut and jobs went to countries where there was no Roe v. Wade, and children took their fathers’ jobs who died working.
Ron Stetson | Traverse City
Dumb and Dumber
I would like to address all my liberal friends: “How do you like them now?” Dumb and Dumber have made a wreck out of our country. We are the laughing stock of the world. Two freshmen in high school could not have done a more stupid job of running our country than Dumb and Dumber.
Let’s examine their achievements: 1) Afghanistan; 2) the Keystone Pipeline; 3) our Mexican border; 4) the COVID-19 fiasco, including mask mandates; 5) all their appointments of “lightweights” to their cabinet. None of them could carry Trump’s male cabinet appointments; 6) stopping drilling for oil throughout our country. Electric cars, in quantity, are 10 years away. How would you have liked to be stuck on I-95 a couple of months ago in your electric car? I had a 2015 Tesla and could not make a trip to the U.P. because of its limited range; 7) our relations with China and Russia; 8) inflation: I bought a couple of t-bones last week. A year ago, they were $20. Last week, $40. I filled my car up yesterday for $28 more than last January. 9) the supply chain fiasco; 10) defunding our major cities’ police forces; 11) last, but not least, the handling of Ukraine.
Dumb and Dumber have blood on their hands. All you liberals that voted for them also need to look at your hands and “wash the blood away.”
I am also sick and tired of all the Trump bashing: Mr. Trump was our greatest president since Calvin Coolidge.
Doug Wickstrom | Bellaire
Animal Welfare
I am overwhelmed by the incredible generosity and support of the local community regarding the recent animal abuse case in which over 160 dogs were seized and taken to the Cherryland Humane Society. Considering how difficult the past few years have been for most people dealing with the COVID crisis, unemployment, inflation, etc. and times being tough in their personal lives, it is amazing to see the outpouring of donations and compassion being shown for these poor dogs who suffered a traumatic and horrific existence.
Since the case against Raymond Feagles is ongoing, I would urge anyone who feels strongly about animal abuse to contact Kyle Attwood at the Grand Traverse County Prosecutor’s Office or Judge Kevin Elsenheimer at the 13th Circuit Court to express your opinion and concerns regarding this matter. Please consider being a voice for these defenseless animals who cannot speak for themselves and send a clear message that those who commit animal cruelty should receive the maximum penalty allowed under the law.
It is hard for me to understand how this situation could have continued for so long; it seems a neighbor or mail person would have noticed the huge number of dogs on the property, particularly those left outside in freezing weather. It is just another reminder that if you “See Something, Say Something,” whether it is abuse of an animal, child, or suspected domestic violence. Do not be afraid to contact the local authorities to investigate; your intervention may rescue someone from harm or possibly even save a life. As they say, it takes a village, and we are all our brother’s keeper.
Marg Hanlin | Lake Ann
Child Care Relief
One of the groups hit hardest by the Covid pandemic were women and children. Women were forced to quit their jobs in order to tend to homebound children, elderly parents, and family members with disabilities. The fact is that these care-giving responsibilities continue to fall mainly on women.
To help facilitate getting women back into the workforce, a second round of Child Care Stabilization Grants is being put into motion by Lt. Governor Gilchrist that will make child care more affordable for families. These grants will give a $1,000 retention bonus to every full-time childcare professional. They will also provide funding to child care providers to freeze tuition costs or expand the number of available spots in their programs.
According to a 2018 report by Networks Northwest, our region has lost 30 percent of its child care providers in the seven years preceding the report and may well be more than that now. Child care in our region for an infant and a preschooler is nearly $14,000 per year, more than $1,000 per month.
Currently, state and federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) programs can be claimed by eligible families and individuals with children, but many do not apply. These credits would help families put food on the table, buy clothes and school supplies for their kids. Governor Whitmer encourages every family who qualifies to take advantage of the EITC when filing their 2021 income taxes.
Finally, Governor Whitmer has proposed a tripling of EITC credits in her 2023 budget which would allow hardworking families average a combined tax refund of $3,000 beginning with the tax year 2022. Please contact your local state representatives and encourage them to pass this proposed increase in EITC credits.
spectator
By Stephen Tuttle
The unpleasant death throes of winter notwithstanding, the bicycling season is about to start in earnest. Yes, we all know some people cycle year-round, but most of us wait until the snow is off the ground. The health and economic advantages of biking are now well-known and have been oft reported. Regular biking, like other forms of low-impact exercise, can reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, and diabetes. There is even some evidence it can reduce the incidence of or eliminate depression, though that likely has as much to do with being outdoors as it does to being on a bike.
There are obvious economic benefits that accompany those health improvements; fewer medical interventions and fewer prescription meds saves money for the individual and the healthcare system in general. Communities that encourage biking and create biker-friendly trails and lanes also realize some economic benefits. Bicycles create less road deterioration and less need for surface parking or parking decks. They also benefit everyone by producing no toxic emissions, and bicycle manufacturing has a reasonably small carbon footprint. In 2014, the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) conducted some fairly detailed research on both bicycle usage and its economic impact. Presumably, the economic numbers have increased in the last eight years, but in 2014, the overall economic impact of bicycling was $668 million, including $63 million in retail revenue and $38 million from bike-specific events. At the time, MDOT found that 39 percent of households included someone who had used a bike for transportation, 28 percent included people who commuted by bike at least twice a week, and 4 percent who had participated in a bike-related event or race or had taken a bike-oriented vacation.
Traverse City and this region are especially bike-friendly with the TART and other trails and dedicated bike lanes adjacent to major roads. In Traverse City proper, bikers can even legally use sidewalks except in the downtown and Old Town areas. Cyclists are not allowed on limited access highways like an interstate but can otherwise ride on any local or state highway unless otherwise prohibited by local ordinance. That’s the good news about biking and its positive impact on both riders and the communities in which they ride. But the interface and interaction between cyclists and motor vehicles is too often less than positive. Cyclists and vehicle drivers function under the same traffic rules. The main exception is that cyclists, who must travel with the flow of traffic and not against it, are required to stay as far to the right as is practical but can ride two abreast when there is no other option. Like drivers, cyclists must stop at stop signs, stop at red lights, signal when turning, and obey all other traffic control signals and signage including speed limits. Vehicle operators, on the other hand, are required to share the road with cyclists and must, by law, provide a minimum of three feet of clearance when passing those riders.
Neither the cyclists nor the drivers always follow those rules. The Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning keeps track of the unfortunate result when one or the other ignores them. In 2020, they recorded 1,235 bike-vehicle accidents in Michigan that resulted in 933 injuries and 38 fatalities. Men accounted for 36 of those fatalities and most of the injuries. All of the reported injuries and deaths were suffered by the cyclists. Both sides in these incidents like to blame the other. Cyclists claim drivers either don’t see them or just don’t respect their right to be on the same road. Drivers claim cyclists ignore traffic rules and tend to swerve and veer in front of them unexpectedly. My personal observation, especially on the cross-town TART route, is that cyclists violated traffic regulations far more than drivers. It seemed the brighter their uniforms, the more likely they were to blast through stop signs and red lights. Once, in the company of the sheriff, I watched a large group of kids — in Norte colors — led by an adult casually cruise through a three-way stop intersection without so much as slowing down. Still, most data—and it’s plenty sketchy locally, statewide, and nationally—indicates drivers are more often responsible for accidents with cyclists. Aside from an approved helmet, a cyclist’s best equipment is vigilance. If drivers aren’t paying attention, then cyclists have to. Don’t count on drivers stopping even if they’re supposed to. Don’t count on them giving you room, so move a little farther right. Don’t assume they won’t open that car door.
Fair or not, cyclists have to assume an extra level of responsibility. No bicycle has ever won a collision with a motor vehicle. That it was someone else’s fault is little consolation when you’re dead right.
