Ode to Michigan

Monday, February 8, 2010 at 12:12 PM
Michigan. The name has become synonymous with the great American fall from prominence. The worst economy in all the land. The disappearance of manufacturing from the Rust Belt. The decay of Detroit. Where people once looked to Michigan as a symbol of American innovation and prowess, now people scoff at it as a crippled lion. Dilapidated, broken down, withered away.

I speak today to show how much Michigan still represents the US. The people, the heritage, and the culture; though financially ruined, we still remain true to the foundations of being American.

Everyday, we get up and emerge from our homes to head to work. Some of us put on our work boots, grab our gloves, and pack a large sack lunch, and then head down I-94 towards the endless operation of Detroit's factories. Others button up their white shirts, knot their ties, and pull on their italian shoes before rushing off to the latest meeting with executives to decide the company's future direction. From the most humble blue collar worker to the high flying executive, we all travel on the same roads, and face the same bitter winters. You will find all manners of people in working side by side here.

You will find here some of the most unassuming and friendly people in the country. There is no pretentiousness, just plain down-to-earth people. We enjoy the simple things in life. A family, a house, and of course a car, all earned by working hard and reaping the rewards. This culture comes from when we were just poor farm boys who saw the arrival of the burgeoning auto industry to our state. An opportunity arrived on our doorstep, we seized it, and saw a renaissance flower in result. This is America. Humble, hard working, and opportunistic.

The oft derided American auto industry still churns out the most complex mass-produced product man creates. Michigan is full of classic American icons such as the block GM and the script Ford. I've seen massive factories more than a million square feet, more than a mile long, vast enough to require bicycles for transportation inside. Some of the skills and knowledge found in south east Michigan are simply unavailable elsewhere. American technological might is still here.

We may be the poor, the huddled masses right now, but we still have things to be proud of. It is not our status in life, but how we conduct yourself that shows our nobility.

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