Economist David Littman tells us why we MUST vote for the MCRI if Michigan is to recover and have a future for all of us
VOTE YES: Affirmative action is bad for state's business climate, true equality
BY DAVID LITTMANN
October 2, 2006
On Nov. 7, voters will be asked to pass the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative, ending Michigan's practice of favoring some individuals and classes over others. For Michigan's economic sake, they'll need to vote YES. Here's why.
A state's business climate is highly dependent on justice, both perceived and actual. Job growth does not occur when employers, investors or workers discover politicians and the Constitution of a state confer special preferences to one kind of worker over another. The same injustice occurs when policies offer tax breaks to one firm and not to one of its competitors. The same misallocation of resources is inevitable when state or local regulations favor one type of investment over another.
Michigan's sinking economic, financial, real estate and employment fortunes reflect the quicksand of policies that have for decades afforded special privileges to a chosen few at the expense of the many. For Michigan it has become painfully clear that U.S. and international marketplaces prefer environments where government policies are more flexible and attuned to realistic market incentives.
The state's set of special preferences, rather than general preferences and incentives, smack of contrivance, rather than a genuine quest for excellence. When a justice system degenerates into policies that install political overrides to the natural, competitive order, its economy also degenerates. Michigan laws are unwittingly announcing that this state lacks the wherewithal to compete.
Because markets thrive on incentives that apply to those who want to work, study, invest and profit, Michigan needs to revisit the efficacy of financial targeting and hiring-preference policies. To do otherwise is to broadcast to the world that (1) Michigan is a paternalistic state, interested in currying favor with particular interest groups but not with its entire constituency; and (2) Michigan is cultivating a climate of resentment and divisiveness that threatens labor productivity and morale. Furthermore, the state's current attitude impairs profits by raising regulatory and enforcement costs, thereby injuring risk/reward ratios on capital investment or new business start-ups.
Michigan has relied on race, gender and legacy preferences, to cite only a few realms, when it comes to college admissions and workplace hiring and promotion. It does so under the guise of correcting the wrongs of bygone eras. But preference-based policies look backward, not forward. Economically, they will never jibe with the "value added" fundamentals that guide the global economy. Even the U.S. Supreme Court has rebuked much of Michigan's preference-peddling.
MCRI, by contrast, is the catalyst for empowering citizens. Through MCRI, individual effort and excellence are rewarded. Performance and character become the economic benchmarks for evaluation, rather than some group-norm that is pre-determined by numbers from a bureaucrat's worksheet.
The Michigan Civil Rights Initiative has been vilified by special interest groups that fear that their "protected" individuals can't make it in the workplace or in schools of higher learning. This is false pessimism. What opponents really fear is MCRI's capacity to return self-confidence, self-esteem, hope and prosperity to millions of Michigan households. What sends tremors through the opposition is that once these men and women demonstrate they no longer need special privileges, they'll cast off their "protectors" as well.
Now is the time for Michigan voters to enthusiastically and optimistically cast their ballots in favor of marketplace-determined disciplines and outcomes. MCRI enshrines values shared by all -- economic virtues that once assured our economic preeminence. It is time to remove legal contrivances and political favoritism that will continue taking us down.
DAVID LITTMANN of Holly is an economic consultant. Write to him in care of the Free Press Editorial Page, 600 W. Fort St., Detroit 48226 or oped@freepress.com.
Copyright © 2006 Detroit Free Press Inc.
BY DAVID LITTMANN
October 2, 2006
On Nov. 7, voters will be asked to pass the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative, ending Michigan's practice of favoring some individuals and classes over others. For Michigan's economic sake, they'll need to vote YES. Here's why.
A state's business climate is highly dependent on justice, both perceived and actual. Job growth does not occur when employers, investors or workers discover politicians and the Constitution of a state confer special preferences to one kind of worker over another. The same injustice occurs when policies offer tax breaks to one firm and not to one of its competitors. The same misallocation of resources is inevitable when state or local regulations favor one type of investment over another.
Michigan's sinking economic, financial, real estate and employment fortunes reflect the quicksand of policies that have for decades afforded special privileges to a chosen few at the expense of the many. For Michigan it has become painfully clear that U.S. and international marketplaces prefer environments where government policies are more flexible and attuned to realistic market incentives.
The state's set of special preferences, rather than general preferences and incentives, smack of contrivance, rather than a genuine quest for excellence. When a justice system degenerates into policies that install political overrides to the natural, competitive order, its economy also degenerates. Michigan laws are unwittingly announcing that this state lacks the wherewithal to compete.
Because markets thrive on incentives that apply to those who want to work, study, invest and profit, Michigan needs to revisit the efficacy of financial targeting and hiring-preference policies. To do otherwise is to broadcast to the world that (1) Michigan is a paternalistic state, interested in currying favor with particular interest groups but not with its entire constituency; and (2) Michigan is cultivating a climate of resentment and divisiveness that threatens labor productivity and morale. Furthermore, the state's current attitude impairs profits by raising regulatory and enforcement costs, thereby injuring risk/reward ratios on capital investment or new business start-ups.
Michigan has relied on race, gender and legacy preferences, to cite only a few realms, when it comes to college admissions and workplace hiring and promotion. It does so under the guise of correcting the wrongs of bygone eras. But preference-based policies look backward, not forward. Economically, they will never jibe with the "value added" fundamentals that guide the global economy. Even the U.S. Supreme Court has rebuked much of Michigan's preference-peddling.
MCRI, by contrast, is the catalyst for empowering citizens. Through MCRI, individual effort and excellence are rewarded. Performance and character become the economic benchmarks for evaluation, rather than some group-norm that is pre-determined by numbers from a bureaucrat's worksheet.
The Michigan Civil Rights Initiative has been vilified by special interest groups that fear that their "protected" individuals can't make it in the workplace or in schools of higher learning. This is false pessimism. What opponents really fear is MCRI's capacity to return self-confidence, self-esteem, hope and prosperity to millions of Michigan households. What sends tremors through the opposition is that once these men and women demonstrate they no longer need special privileges, they'll cast off their "protectors" as well.
Now is the time for Michigan voters to enthusiastically and optimistically cast their ballots in favor of marketplace-determined disciplines and outcomes. MCRI enshrines values shared by all -- economic virtues that once assured our economic preeminence. It is time to remove legal contrivances and political favoritism that will continue taking us down.
DAVID LITTMANN of Holly is an economic consultant. Write to him in care of the Free Press Editorial Page, 600 W. Fort St., Detroit 48226 or oped@freepress.com.
Copyright © 2006 Detroit Free Press Inc.
posted by Jack Lifton at 3:02 AM
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