Michigan

Disclaimer: while the article is national news, the first cited example is based right here in The Great Lakes State (where? -- r^2^ ).

In December, a new company registered in Michigan: American Lidar. Its planned home would be an easy drive from the big three U.S. automakers. […] The company behind American Lidar, and not mentioned in its registration, is China-based lidar maker Hesai Group, which the U.S. has labeled a security concern. It is a familiar playbook: a company facing regulatory or reputational problems sets up a subsidiary or affiliate with a different name.

Chinese companies’ efforts to shift production, rebrand as American or set up subsidiaries with new names are legal, lawyers say. Still, such moves irritate regulators who can’t enforce laws when it isn’t clear who is behind a company.

• Related report from India media WION

A month after it set up American Lidar to be its manufacturing facility in the U.S. heartland, Hesai was added to the Defense Department list that designates companies as Chinese military entities operating in the U.S. Its stock fell 30% in a day after the list was published and hasn’t recovered. Almost one-fifth of Hesai’s revenue comes from the U.S.

Hesai filed a lawsuit this month against the Defense Department, asserting it should be removed from the list because it has no affiliation with any military and isn’t controlled by the Chinese government.

…which is false as all Chinese "private" business is "enlightened" in Xi's CCP.

Further ~~reading~~ interaction:

• Original WSJ article

  • The article is paywalled but the "Listen" audio works and the related video, What Banning TikTok in the US Would Look Like* plays

And why not? DTE says there's plenty of money still to be made on Michigan's abundant methane resources, global warming be damned, and compared to northern Michigan's propane jones, it's almost half the cost and at least a stop-gap measure.

Like many buildings in this part of rural northern Michigan, the Tsuber Auto garage in the Village of Mesick is heated with propane, delivered by truck once or twice a month to the tank outside.

On average, [owner Vyacheslav Tsuber] said, it costs anywhere from $3,000 to $5,000 a year to heat the shop. But that could soon change. DTE Gas Company, a subsidiary of Michigan’s largest utility, is expanding its natural gas network to the area, giving over 1,000 homes and businesses the choice to switch to natural gas.

What’s left out of that equation, say climate advocates, is a third option: electrification. Instead of locking in fossil fuels for decades to come — and reducing the incentive for people to electrify their homes — why not make it easier to switch to electric heating instead?

As Sam Stolper, an assistant professor at the University of Michigan School of Sustainability puts it: “We have really ambitious [climate] goals for good reason[…]and we’re not going to hit them if we keep making decisions to switch to natural gas … instead of going straight to electrification.”

So many stumbling blocks.

What We Want Now
!detroit@midwest.social ☆ !michigan@midwest.social ☆ !music@midwest.social

…or maybe Consumer Energy has to give back ~USD$1M of the recently approved USD$92M rate increase

Power outages. Clients in the cold. Incorrect billing estimates. Broken meters. Inordinate delays in new service. This is Consumers Energy.

From crack reporter Kyle Davidson at MichiganAdvance…

Consumers Energy has faced repeated criticisms on the quality and reliability of its services, with members of the House Energy, Communications and Technology Committee pressing the company on its plan to address future long-term outages after an ice storm in February 2023 left thousands of Michigan households without power for days.

“It is a fundamental job for a utility to measure the amount of electricity used and then accurately bill their customers,” MPSC Commissioner Katherine Peretick said in a statement. “There was a clear and obvious failure here, and this $1 million fine and the corrective actions required in the settlement agreement will hopefully ensure this doesn’t happen again.”

Consumers Energy has not responded to a request for comment as of the time of publication.

Remember…Parma spelled backwards is AMRAP!
!detroit@midwest.social ☆ !michigan@midwest.social ☆ !music@midwest.social

Rule #1: Don't panic.

In Michigan, the case initially went undetected. A nasal swab first tested negative for influenza in Michigan, but an eye swab from the patient was shipped to CDC. There, it tested positive for the flu virus, according to the CDC.

The virus has been circulating in dairy and poultry farms across the U.S. for several months, and was detected in Michigan cattle March 29. Just more than a month later, the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development’s director Tim Boring directed farmers to take extra precautions to separate potentially infected livestock and to minimize interaction between humans and farm animals. […] Boring, in the statement released Wednesday afternoon, said finding the human case is “exactly how public health is meant to work, in early detection and monitoring of new and emerging illnesses.”

From the Freep's coverage…

[Michigan chief medical officer, Dr. Natasha] Bagdasarian said the average Michigander shouldn't panic. […] "The risk to the general public remains low," she said. "And that's for a few reasons: No. 1, we have not seen evidence of sustained human-to-human transmission. ... For this to become a bigger risk to the general public, we would be looking for sustained human-to-human transmission and we have not seen that."

Citing privacy concerns, no details were released Wednesday about specifically which farm employed the Michigan worker or in which county the infection occurred. The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development reported Monday that avian influenza outbreaks have been identified in 18 dairy cow herds in the following Michigan counties: Clinton, Gratiot, Ionia, Allegan, Ingham, Isabella, Montcalm, Barry and Ottawa.

It's more cow herd outbreaks than in any other state, according to the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota. Since the outbreak began in February 2022, H5N1 avian influenza also has been detected in domestic birds from 23 Michigan counties: Bay, Branch, Cass, Eaton, Genesee, Gratiot, Ingham, Ionia, Kalamazoo, Lapeer, Livingston, Macomb, Menominee, Montmorency, Muskegon, Newaygo, Oakland, Ottawa, Saginaw, Sanilac, Tuscola, Washtenaw and Wexford.

Alt Freep link for your convenience via archive.is

Everything I say is a lie…
!detroit@midwest.social ☆ !michigan@midwest.social ☆ !music@midwest.social

From ace reporter Anna Liz Nichols at MichiganAdvance…

The Caring for MI Family Tax Credit is one of the proposals under Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s recommendations for the state’s next budget and would afford caregivers tax relief of up to $5,000.

“That work is almost always uncompensated. … It is not always visible in policy in terms of how we respond to the needs of caregivers, things that caregiving requires so that people can do it,” [Michigan Lt Gov Garlin] Gilchrist said. “Caregivers are a critical infrastructure to life, to success, to wellbeing, to stability, and we need to make sure that they are really supported.”

“These are people who care for their loved ones and use their own dollars for out of pocket expenses, grandparents taking care of grandchildren, aunts, uncles, sisters, brothers, mothers daughter taking care of those who they love,” [state director of AARP Michigan Paula] Cunningham said. “They don’t do this for the money, they do it because of their commitment to their family members and … their loved ones.”

Although the majority of the readers of this community were hatched from reptile eggs, I'm sure there are those among us who are part of this uncompensated, unofficial nursing team (if you aren't, I wouldn't ever wish it on you). Talk about tough; you're constantly in damage-control mode. At least with the state's proposal, this monthly USD$416.00 largesse could help with, for example, occasional outside care so you can do stupid stuff…like take a shower or grocery shop or talk to someone.

Otherwise, you know, we could always demand the dismantling of the trillion-dollar racket known as "American health insurance" and maybe shoot for a system proposed back in 2003 by the late representative John Conyers (D-MI) that would cover most of these needs…? No, I get it…y'alls too busy checking…

Reporter Brian McVicar at mlive.com covers the big news about the coming outdoor covered arena in Grand Rapids…

After years of planning and fundraising, a ceremonial groundbreaking for Acrisure Amphitheater, the 12,000-capacity venue that officials say will transform a sprawling stretch of Market Avenue in downtown Grand Rapids, is happening Tuesday.

The venue would have 7,000 fixed seats and 5,000 lawn seats. Its main entrance would be along Market Avenue, and its pedestrian plaza would be open to the public during events and non-events.

In addition to 201 Market Ave. SW, the venue would also occupy 225, 233 and 301 Market Ave. SW. The site is bordered by the Grand River on its west, by Market Avenue on its east, by U.S. 131 on its north and railroad tracks on its south.

The venue is expected to host an estimated 54 events per season, with a projected 300,000 visitors.

Me, I got an allergy to stadiums and arenas named after corporations.

From crack reporter Jon King over at MichiganAdvance, Another Day, Another Election Interference: more voting obfuscation for the ever-unstable GOP…

Following overwhelming victories in a recall election last week, the Republican members of the Delta County Board of Canvassers are refusing to certify the election results.

Unofficial results indicated that Van Ginhoven, a Democrat, and independent candidates Myra Croasdell and Matt Jensen, each defeated Republican Commissioners David Moyle, Robert Barron, and Robert Petersen by an approximately 3-1 margin. The incumbents were targeted for recall after they voted in February 2023 to fire County Administrator Emily DeSalvo.

When the county canvassers met this past Tuesday, however, Republican members Bonnie Hakkola and LeeAnne Oman refused to certify. The board, consisting of two Democrats and two Republicans, has to produce at least three votes in order to certify. […] Van Ginhoven tells Michigan Advance that the GOP canvassers cited, without evidence, irregularities in the vote totals based solely on the similarity across all three races.

While the board’s failure to certify the election has delayed the swearing in of the new commissioners, they will meet again on Monday, at which point they will have a final opportunity to provide certification. […] “And if at that time, the Republicans are still not willing to sign off on the certification, then everything’s going to have to be trucked downstate on the county dime and go to the State Board of Canvassers,” said Van Ginhoven.

Everything I say is a lie…
!detroit@midwest.social ☆ !michigan@midwest.social ☆ !music@midwest.social

The NYT article (being in the Dining section) doesn't really go into it, but this one goes over the climate risks to wild rice

Who could have forseen this? 🤦‍♂️ From our friends over at BridgeMichigan, journalist Gabrielle Nelson reports on the pants-around-the-ankles situation in EV land…

A new International Energy Forum report, co-led by a University of Michigan researcher, found that a swift transition to EVs will require “unprecedented rates of mine production.” […] The world’s active copper mines, the authors concluded, can’t deliver.

Waitaminute…swift transition? Much like space exploration and a national renewable energy network, thanks to corporate greed and government myopia/complacence, the execution of a working national EV strategy is at least 20 years behind schedule, by my unscientific reckoning. Talk about dropping the ball.

Amid mounting political pressure to address climate change and looming competition from overseas automakers, Michigan’s Big Three automakers have all set ambitious EV production targets. General Motors has committed to all-electric sales by 2035, and Ford Motor Co. has said it wants half of its sales to be EVs by 2030, although both now face a reality check amid a slowdown in EV sales.

Bridge Michigan spoke to Adam Simon, a professor of earth and environment sciences at the University of Michigan and lead researcher on the report, about its findings. […] “Without copper,” Simon said, “you don’t have an EV.”

Unless the industry can find a way to make EVs with less copper, meeting EV demand would require an average of 1.7 new mines every year until 2050, according to the report. Achieving a full net-zero economy could require as many as six new mines per year.

…or Scrupulous Senator Reports Regaled Shill Stubs

State law bans lobbyists from giving officeholders gifts worth more than $76. However, lobbyists [slimy creatures that they are, tell me I'm wrong -- r^2^ ] have used various strategies to circumvent the prohibition, including providing tickets to lawmakers and then privately sending them letters asking for the value of the tickets over $76 to be paid back to the lobbying firm, according to more than 10 sources with direct knowledge of the arrangements. […] Whether lawmakers ultimately hand over what they owe the lobbyist is a mystery.

Sen. Paul Wojno, D-Warren, mistakenly thought he had to disclose tickets he received from lobbyists to a Detroit Lions game, to a Detroit Red Wings game and to the North American International Detroit Auto Show's annual Charity Preview event. The auto show tickets were worth $700, Wojno wrote in his disclosure.

Eric Doster, an Okemos attorney who advises clients on how to comply with state lobbying and campaign finance policies, said it's become a common practice for lobbyists to ask lawmakers to reimburse them for the cost of tickets over the gift limit. Such transactions are perfectly legal, Doster said.

Rep. Dylan Wegela, D-Garden City, a first-term lawmaker who has called for greater transparency, described the strategy of lobbyists using letters to seek reimbursements after sporting events as a loophole. […] Wegela said receiving tickets from lobbyists should be banned over a certain financial threshold. […] “Certainly, it should all be reported, period,” Wegela said.

[All emphasis in the above quotations is mine -- r^2^ ]

I was thinking (working without tools, I know), "what if your preferred politician isn't a sports fan or car buff?" It's a rhetoric question, kids.

Alt link for your convenience via archive.is

Stay sick, scratch glass, turn blue, climb walls…but don't get caught!
!detroit@midwest.social ☆ !michigan@midwest.social ☆ !music@midwest.social

Why should DTE have to pay their "extracurricular" business expenses when you can?

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed testimony on Tuesday in DTE’s most recent request to increase its rates, calling the $266 million request “excessive and unnecessary.”

[…]business consultant Sebastian Coppola said DTE’s proposed gas rate hike would result in a 6.5% increase to the average customer’s bill.

Need I remind the DTE-bill-paying customers amongst us that a $368 million rate increase was approved only in December 2023?

Coppola also pointed to DTE’s estimated $74,769 jet travel costs included in the company’s projected expenses submitted as part of the rate case, and[…]leased private aircrafts for executives[…].

DTE spokesperson Ryan Lowry [said], “Regarding travel expenses, a fraction of the costs for limited air travel for business-appropriate needs[…]were included in the initial DTE Gas rate request.”

Everything I say is a lie.
!detroit@midwest.social ☆ !michigan@midwest.social ☆ !music@midwest.social

…and what digs she had set up for herself! Computer, printer, coffee maker…yeh, not glamorous…

From the AP website:

Contractors curious about an extension cord on the roof of a [Midland,] Michigan grocery store made a startling discovery: A 34-year-old woman was living inside the business sign, with enough space for a computer, printer and coffee maker, police said.

The woman, whose name was not released, told police she had a job elsewhere but had been living inside the Family Fare sign for roughly a year, Warren said. She was found April 23.

A spokesperson for SpartanNash, the parent company of Family Fare, said store employees responded “with the utmost compassion and professionalism.” […] “Ensuring there is ample safe, affordable housing continues to be a widespread issue nationwide that our community needs to partner in solving,” Adrienne Chance said, declining further comment.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced charges on Wednesday against former Adams Township Clerk Stephanie Scott and her attorney, Stefanie Lambert Junttila, alleging the pair permitted an unauthorized computer examiner to access voter data concerning the 2020 election, which included non-public information.

In a statement, the Michigan Department of Attorney General contended that Scott, a Republican, disregarded multiple instructions from the director of elections to present the Adams Township voting tabulator to an authorized vendor for maintenance and testing. The department said Scott withheld the tabulator until it was seized by Michigan State Police executing a search warrant.

“Ensuring election security and integrity stands as the cornerstone of our democracy,” said [AG Dana] Nessel[.]

[Stefanie Lambert] Juntilla’s attorney, Dan Hartman said a statement: “I have spoken to Stefanie who remains steadfast in her efforts to bring transparency to the people’s election data, processes and procedures.”

As covered back in March (you read it here! -- r^2^), our Gov Whitmer signed off on two bills banning the sale of…

[…]any device specifically designed for inhaling nitrous oxide from canisters for recreational purposes, with stiffer penalties for selling the devices to minors.

That's great and would have solved the problem there and then…but unfortunately we're dealing with humans. The problem with idiot-proof solutions is that they're always inventing a better idiot. Take me, for example: I'm most likely a better idiot than you are.

From today's Detroit News article, "'Whippets' cannisters causing big problems in Michigan as lawmakers crack down"…

Many community leaders are hoping a new statewide ban, starting June 10, will make a difference. The two-bill package adds nitrous oxide or whippets to the list of drug paraphernalia under the Public Health Code that can't be knowingly sold to minors for the purpose of being inhaled for recreational use.

Of course. We all hope for the same thing, even the most cynical and coldhearted amongst us. But let's get down to the real problem here…

Whippets are metal containers. Some are about 3 inches tall and often sold in packs. More recently, cylinders about 12 inches tall also are being sold. Once a user sucks out the nitrous oxide, the canisters are no longer needed. Tens of thousands of them end up as hazardous litter, contend many who deal with the issue.

Four years ago, more than 30,000 canisters were picked up in a six-week period in southwest Detroit by a group that formed to clean up whippets in the community, organizers said. And more than 11,000 were picked up in a single day at a recent Motor City Makeover, an annual citywide volunteer cleanup and beautification initiative, Detroit Police Department officials told a state House health policy committee in February. [all emphasis mine -- r^2^ ]

It's no skin off my genitalia if you wanna huff your way to a vitamin deficiency (to go with your mental deficiency)—weed's gonna harm you less in the long run. Nevertheless, like I have no legal problem with heroin enthusiasts or exhibitionist sex, I don't wanna see your—ahem—biohazard leftover paraphenalia littering my streets. Ya follow?

And now…

r^2^'s Solution to The Whippit Problem

Return deposit on whippit cannisters.

• USD$1.00 on 3" cannisters
• USD$5.00 on 12" cannisters
• USD$20.00 on cannisters larger than 12"
  • Exemption for individuals/businesses with a valid Michigan food establishment license

Labelling

• Cannisters may no longer have "enticing" labelling. Any labelling on cannisters is limited to company information (name, address, internet information) and cannister content information. Labels are to be no greater than one-quarter of cannister surface area minus 0.25" top and bottom radii. Labelling must be text only, with no illustrations nor logotypes.
  • This is inspired by Plain Tobacco Packaging statutes worldwide…except here…in "The Greatest Country in The World"

"Cracker" tax
No…I'm not saying adding a new tax on 80% of the citizenry of Michigan and Ohio (I'm kidding! I'M KIDDING!)…

• a 50% state tax would be applied to the purchase of N~2~O "crackers," including online sales.
  • aforementioned exemption applies for licensed individuals/businesses

It may not be the perfect solution but as the old saw goes, "'perfect' is the enemy of 'good'". It's not going to stop anybody from inhaling laughing gas but you're gonna see a dramatic decrease—decrease is the keyword here, for the Manichians or absolutists among you—of whippit litter around the state.

Being how I don't run in those circles, I had no idea (other than the non-trivial litter problem) how common and widespread the problem is worldwide.

Has anybody in the State government considered any of these proposals before and I'm just repeating past arguments as my own? I couldn't find any prior art online.

What do you think?!

Alt link for your convenience via archive.is

Remember…Parma spelled backwards is AMRAP!
!detroit@midwest.social ☆ !michigan@midwest.social ☆ !music@midwest.social

cross-posted from: https://midwest.social/post/11707077

…or is that Honor Among Thieves in Saginaw…? Quid Pro Quo in Action? Birds of a Feather Flock to Mid-State Michigan? l could go on and on, you know I could…

Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, whose prison sentence was shortened by then-President Donald Trump in January 2021, attended a campaign rally for the Republican candidate on Wednesday in Saginaw County.

Kilpatrick was once a prominent Democratic politician in Michigan before he was sentenced in 2013 on two dozen counts of using his positions as mayor and state representative to carry out a decade-long criminal racket involving extortion, bribery, conspiracy and fraud.

Trump commuted Kilpatrick's sentence[…]16 years before Kilpatrick was initially set to be released from federal prison.

"This commutation is strongly supported by prominent members of the Detroit community," the Trump White House said in a statement in January 2021.

By who exactly?

From the Freep's article…

Michigan Republican Party Chairman Pete Hoekstra − who knew Kilpatrick from his time as mayor and as a state legislator and Hoekstra's time as a congressman from west Michigan − told the Free Press he saw Kilpatrick, his wife and his children come into the hangar at MBS Airport in Freeland ahead of the event.

"He said, 'Hey, congressman, good to see you.' I didn't recognize him at first − my bad − and he said, 'Kwame Kilpatrick,'" Hoekstra said, adding that the two spoke briefly. Hoekstra also served in Congress with Kilpatrick's mother, former U.S. Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, D-Detroit.

---

Alternate links for your convenience:

• Detroit News, Ex-Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick attends Donald Trump's rally in Michigan via archive.is
• Detroit Free Press, Kwame Kilpatrick among those who attended Donald Trump rally in Saginaw County via archive.is

---

Further reading:

• The Metro Times: Kwame Kilpatrick’s wife buys enormous house in Novi despite former mayor’s unpaid restitution
• The Freep: Kwame Kilpatrick has a new job, but he has shown he prefers thrills to paying his bills

---

Stay sick, scratch glass, turn blue, climb walls…but don't get caught!
!detroit@midwest.social ☆ !michigan@midwest.social ☆ !music@midwest.social

Michigan prosecutors executed a search warrant to obtain hundreds of files from Google and X (formerly Twitter) as part of an ongoing investigation into the fake electors plot in the state.

The warrants targeted the Google and X accounts of pro-Trump lawyer Kenneth Chesebro, who played a major role in the scheme nationwide. […] The warrant sought Chesebro’s emails and direct private messages after he denied having an X account in an interview with Michigan prosecutors last year. […] State prosecutors obtained more than 160 sent messages and more than 25 received messages from X between 2014 and 2021, with most of them coming after the 2020 election.

In July 2023, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office charged the 16 fake electors for falsely claiming Donald Trump won Michigan in the 2020 election.

The new documents obtained by Michigan prosecutors show that Chesebro tried in vain to lure several notorious, controversial Trump allies to Washington, D.C. to witness the fake elector scheme unfold on Jan. 6, 2021, the day that rioters burst into the U.S. Capitol. […] The records also show that Chesebro encouraged conservative pundits and right-wing figures to promote his strategies for subverting the Electoral College process.

In related news…

BridgeMichigan: Michigan backtracks ‘co-conspirator’ claim in fake electors probe

Attorney General Dana Nessel is walking back claims former Michigan Republican Party Chair Laura Cox is an “unindicted co-conspirator” in a plot to overturn the state’s 2020 presidential election results.

Kim Bush, a spokesperson for Nessel, told Bridge Michigan in an email late Monday that the department “considers Laura Cox to be a cooperating witness in the case.”

Sen. Jeremy Moss (D-Southfield) [Michigan's only Jewish state senator -- r^2^] took to the floor of the Senate last week to condemn bigotry against Jews that he says is being wielded hypocritically.

“The overwhelming majority of Jews believe in a place of refuge in a Jewish homeland. But if you even mention how woven the Jewish religion is with Jewish sovereignty in Israel, today you get called a ‘colonizer,’ a ‘racist,’” he said. “Zionist is now being weaponized as a slur, and it is infuriating that the same people who will say that also post ‘Happy Passover’ to all who are observing without acknowledging what we’re actually observing.”

“And maybe even more so sickened by those who want to define what antisemitism is and it isn’t,” Moss said. “American Jews, especially on our college campuses are facing harassment, intimidation, incitement, praise for Oct. 7 [when Hamas attacked Israeli civilians and] threats of a repeat, just because they are identifiable as being Jewish.”

“I’ve said it after Charlottesville, Tree of Life, Poway, and specifically, I have said it from this floor a few years ago, antisemitism thrives when it is failed to be called antisemitism,” he said. “And I don’t care if it comes from the right or the left. Instead, some of the very same far left figures, activists, and organizations who were quick to condemn Charlottesville are cheerleading the chaos on our campuses and gaslighting those of us who call it out for what it is. Using the same tired trope that’s existed for centuries. The Jews have brought this upon themselves.”

Seems like the high winds knocked it down. This is just after an intersection where traffic turning right into this lane wouldn’t see the orange sign in the road due to a sign for the business on the corner, so this road safety sign was an ironic driving hazard. Not to worry, a couple of strangers and I managed to flip it out of the way of traffic:

Decades of pollution and rapid urbanization created ecological problems so severe that the lake was designated a “Great Lakes Area of Concern” by the U.S. and Canada in 1987.

Through expansive cleaning efforts, Muskegon Lake has gone through every step required to remove that designation. The Muskegon Lake Watershed Partnership is waiting for the EPA to officially delist the site, meaning it will no longer be a designated Area of Concern.

A recent study in the Journal of Great Lakes Research found that residents of lower socioeconomic communities in Muskegon feared the cleaned-up shoreline would be taken over by private interests.

The study found that many Muskegon residents were excited about the revitalized lakes, but others were concerned that the restored areas would attract high-end development and raise nearby housing prices. They feared that would lead to gentrification and less public access.

[Amanda Buday, rural sociology researcher from Grand Valley State University who worked on the study] said that as new businesses come to Muskegon, there needs to be a plan in place to prevent gentrification. […] “If there’s not some conscientious development occurring, if it’s all just high-end condominiums, then the price and the value of those houses can put a pinch on lower-income residents.”

Over at Michigan Advance, reporter Anna Liz Nichols writes…

Michigan Judge Kristen Simmons, while presiding over the case against several individuals facing felony charges for submitting false electoral votes for former President Donald Trump in 2020, began court Tuesday with a warning: Cut the social media posts.

“If it appears that you’re taking a photo, I’m going to have to take your phone and have it searched because we’re not going to have witnesses being intimidated when they’re coming in here under a subpoena to give testimony nor will I have to be taking time away from my judicial duties to address commentary made on Facebook posts. It’s juvenile and it’s ridiculous,” Simmons said.

Apparently, it's endemic amongst Republican minions as their Loudmouth-In-Chief was requested and ordered to do the exact same thing. Strategy? Egomania? Megalomania?

No one in the courtroom was singled out by Simmons, but her comments followed an in-chambers meeting with Nick Somberg, the lawyer for Meshawn Maddock, a defendant in the case and former Michigan Republican Party co-chair.

Somberg told media outside of court he was called into the judge’s chamber ahead of court Tuesday with the Assistant Attorney General’s on the prosecution’s side to discuss a Facebook post he had made. The post was in regards to testimony from James Renner, a member of the group who had his criminal charges dropped as part of a cooperation agreement with the Attorney General’s Office to testify in the case. […] “He testified publicly; it’s no secret that he is an Informant or snitch,” Somberg said. “Nothing I said was disparaging.”

Last I remember from way back in elementary school, the word "snitch", applicable or not, was disparaging. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

cross-posted from: https://midwest.social/post/11301182

The Pride of Muskegon and Ypsilanti…ladies and gentleman or whatever you consider yourselves…

Happy Birthday, Iggy Pop! Mostly shirtless but always dangerous since 1947!

~Mr~ ~"Gimme~ ~Danger"~ ~at~ ~Beale~ ~Street~ ~Music~ ~Festival,~ ~New~ ~Orleans,~ ~LA,~ ~2007.~
~Photo:~ ~Bill~ ~Dierssen~~.~ ~Later~ ~version(s)~ ~uploaded~ ~by~ ~Pomte~ ~at~ ~en.wikipedia.,~ ~CC-BY-SA~ ~2.5~~,~ ~via~ ~Wikimedia~ ~Commons~

How many second chances does Iggy Pop get?

-- journalist/Rolling Stone editor David Fricke on Iggy and The Stooges' Ready To Die

[…]the man doesn't seem to know how to sell out, even when he tries[…]

-- journalist Mark Deming on Iggy's Party

Mr Dichotomy, the Peanut-Butter-Smeared One himself has said…

I just got sick of listening to idiot thugs with guitars banging out crappy music.^1^3

"Idiot thugs with guitars" or not, Iggy's still got the goods…and the voice…

The-Shadow-Of-Your-Smile BONUS:

• Iggy Pop - Strung Out Johnny

---

!detroit@midwest.social ☆ !michigan@midwest.social ☆ !music@midwest.social

Michigan Advance's Katie O'Brien Kelley reports…

The Keweenaw Land Association has requested metallic mineral lease rights to about 10,631 acres across Baraga, Dickinson, Iron, Marquette and Menominee counties. At a Wednesday virtual public meeting held by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR), residents of these counties, members of environmental groups and other community members expressed concerns about the lease request and called for the DNR to deny it.

Tom Grotewohl, a U.P. resident, said he thinks that approving a mineral rights lease of this scale would be “entirely contradictory” to the DNR’s mission of protecting and managing natural resources. […] Grotewohl also said he was “very alarmed” that there were no in-person hearings being held by the DNR to discuss this lease. […] “Virtual meetings are a new technology, which still has not been embraced by many among older generations, which may include adjacent land wonders who have the right to know of the potential for mining to lower their property values,” he said.

This concern was reiterated by other speakers throughout the meeting, as several people were not able to unmute their microphones to give their public comments. […] Anna Bunting from Freshwater Future rejoined the webinar via phone because of this issue. […] “This is a woefully inadequate public participation process for such a huge lease request,” Bunting said. “There needs to be, and I certainly request, an in-person public hearing.”

Don't forget, kids: it's just not the same telling someone to go jump in the lake in a Zoom meeting. And by the way…

The DNR said that it will be accepting further questions or comments regarding the lease application. Comments can be submitted to the DNR via email. […] A post-meeting summary, which will respond to questions people had during Wednesday’s meeting, will also be posted on the DNR’s website.

…or What Goes Around, Comes Around: Russia-Ukraine Conflict Edition.

Here's a piece from the venereal, errr, venerated reportage of the BBC on the voluntary/mercenary counter-cyber on the behalf of the Ukraine. You may ask, "Raoul, baby, we all want world peace and all but what's this got to do with c/michigan@midwest.social?"

The [vigilante hacker] team, One Fist, has stolen data from Russian military firms and hacked cameras to spy on troops.

One of the hackers called "Voltage" has been co-ordinating hacks from his home in the US. […] His real name is [redacted -- read the article -- r^2^ ] and he is an IT worker from Michigan [emphasis mine -- r^2^ ].

The 53-year-old told the BBC he is delighted his efforts for Ukraine have been officially recognised with a certificate of gratitude.

Since the start of the conflict, Ukraine has controversially been encouraging volunteer hackers to attack Russian targets. But sending out official awards to foreign civilians is being seen as a controversial move and a sign of the times.