Neff Zone Column

Print Edition: May 26, 2007

FOR THE PEOPLE

Whatever happened to "For the People?" That’s the question asked on the first track of "Rock Patriot," a new album by noted Michigan rock and roll legend Mark Farner. If the name Mark Farner doesn’t ring a bell, he was the lead guitarist/singer for one of the most successful bands ever to come out of Michigan – Grand Funk Railroad. Back in their heyday, Grand Funk, three guys from Flint, sold more records and concert tickets than any other act on the planet, including the Beatles. Grand Funk Railroad (the original threesome, not the current reincarnation that visited Cadillac a couple of summers ago) still holds the record for the fastest concert sell out at Shea Stadium in New York, 72 hours in 1971. To put that in perspective, this was before Al Gore invented the Internet so online sales didn’t exist; it took the Beatles 80 days to sell out Shea.

Farner has lived in Michigan his whole life and grew up in a working class family, so when he asks whatever happened to "for the people" it got my attention. You know what? It’s a really good question and a keen observation.

For example, did you know that the Michigan legislature has the sixth-largest budget of governing bodies in the country -- $97 million? It costs each and every one of us $9.56 to support that outlay. Now add in Governor Granholm’s salary of $177,000, the third highest in the nation. Do you feel like you’re getting a big bang for your bucks from these sixth and third rankings? Given the fiscal mess in Michigan, these rankings don’t show much benefit "for the people," do they?

What "work" is being done by our state government? Don’t ask the legislators because they may not know. If you want to really put your finger on the pulse of Michigan contact your nearest lobbyist. Why, because there are now nine lobbyists for every legislator in Lansing. Last year the 1200 groups registered to lobby in Michigan. Together they spent $22.7 million on direct lobbying, up 27% over 2001. Now you know why some local citizens have complained in letters to this newspaper that their attempts to contact local representatives and senators have yielded nothing but deafening silence. Ordinary citizens have been trampled by a herd of lobbyists. I’m guessing that "for the people" is not a phrase often used when lobbyists meet with politicians.

On a national level, it was announced this week that Americans have the costliest health care system in the world and that we get poorer results than just about every comparable nation. Your government spends $6,102 per person on health care costs -- $24, 408 per family of four. Does your family feel like it’s receiving over $24 grand of health care services from the government? Probably not. As I’ve said before, if the federal government got out of the health care business tomorrow and instead bought each family in America a top-of-the-line private sector health care policy, they would immediately cut their health expenditures in half and at the same time cover every man, woman and child. What’s "for the people," what we’re doing now with half of the country’s citizens without health insurance, or covering everyone at half the cost of what we now spend?

Perhaps nothing, though, symbolizes Farner’s "for the people" question on a more day-to-day level than the price of gasoline. In 2006, the average household spent $2,227 for gasoline, but that may look like the good old days after the 2007 tallies are in. If there ever was an industry more arrogant, more incestuous with government officials, more callous than the oil industry I want to know where, what and who.

With world record profits, the oil companies continue to claim they are merely pawns in a game of supply and demand. The newest gambit is to claim that refinery capacity is so low they can’t produce more than they are right now. Baloney!

The oil industry will tell you that environmental requirements make it impossible to build a new refinery these days, but the fact is that since 1976 there has been only one application for a permit to build a refinery in this country and that application was approved.

In the meantime, since 1980, the oil industry has closed over 200 refineries. One, for example, was the refinery in Alma, Michigan. Up until 1999 it produced 2 million gallons of gasoline per day and was very profitable. Big oil bought the Alma refinery and closed it.

If the industry had a concern about capacity, then why take 200 refineries offline and replace them with just one new one? Easy answer: To limit the supply thereby manipulating prices and increasing their profit margins. To, wit, refineries have increased their prices by 255% over the past year. The difference between what it costs to buy a barrel of crude and make it into an equal amount of gasoline is $4-5. Refineries that make a "spread" of $8-9 are considered very profitable Currently, oil refineries are operating at a plus $30 per barrel. Nothing about this is "for the people."

I could go on with example after example of how "for the people" has somehow become a missing element of our government and political system. I’ve lived long enough now to know that often dissent is reflected in art and once that happens amazing changes can take place. Rock on, Mark, rock on. I hope everyone buys your CD and takes "For the People" to heart. It’s a message this country needs to take to the streets again.

Jim Neff is a local columnist. Comments to neffzone@gmail.com. Read Neff Zone columns online at www.neffzone.com/cadillacnews.