WobblyReport

Declaration of Independence TL;DR? Find a full transcription of the original Declaration of Independence here . Read on for a modernized and distilled version. Sometimes people reject an established political authority that they had for a time in the majority agreed to follow. Here’s why we did. Obviously human beings are created equal, inheriting unalienable rights, among them Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. People institute governments to secure those rights and produce the best chances for Safety and Happiness. Government power starts and ends with the consent of the people. If government fails in these regards, it is the Right of the People to change or abolish it and institute new forms of government. Prudence dictates that we not change or abolish long-established governments for slight or short-lived causes. Plus, people are naturally averse to change. But when a long train of abuses clearly aims to impose tyrannous rule, people have both the right and the dut...

Multiple petition drives gearing up in the Mitten Michigan’s Board of State Canvassers (est. 1850) has been busy throughout late spring reviewing numerous petition proposals that state residents are likely to see when we are out and about in public this summer. Here are a few of the petition drives being reviewed and my views on their substance. RANK MI VOTE Summary: Constitutional amendment to guarantee voters in Michigan the right to: rank candidates in order of preference in most federal, state, and certain local elections; require that candidates for major offices receive a majority of votes to be elected; receive timely notice of changes to polling places or voting procedures; cast a ballot if in line at the time polls close; use secure and accessible paper ballots in all elections, preserved for certification, recounts, and audits; vote for eligible write-in candidates not listed on the ballot; participate in primary elections held at least 140 days before the general election....

The shoestring-budget defenses around the kitchen garden off the side of the house are less than totally effective against deer. Plastic fenceposts and mesh survived the winter and are holding up better than expected, with lengths of twine fixed to nearby tree limbs and light, metal stakes in the ground for reinforcement. Protected from human predation within city limits through various ordinances and common sense, North American deer become remarkably emboldened. People are warned against treating them as nonhuman companions and videos from rutting season corroborate. So despite additions of bamboo poles, fishing line and strips of plastic for visibility, they have yet made incursions into the kitchen garden and trampled or eaten young plants. Additional defense measures will be necessary. We haven’t observed them in the act. Motion-activated, outdoor cameras have become more affordable but the information collected may not be worth the sensation that comes with seeing hard work de...

Live musical performances are a very special variety of social gathering. People come together around beats and melodies, participating as players, dancers, spectators and listeners. These events can be a great exhalation, a release of massive, pent-up energies deriving from the experiences of all those present. Having attended many musical performance events in a wide variety of roles—including but not limited to light and sound technician, performer, dancer, listener and reveller—when they involve a lot of fun-loving people and competent show-running, they are far and away my favorite social environment. Other types of gatherings seldom match the intensity of sensory stimulation alone. But that’s only a surface-level difference. Beneath high decibels and flashing lights and before crowds assemble, mingling heat and breath, people prepared a venue while others waited and talked in lines outside, some casual and others almost visibly vibrating in anticipation. Before that, artists p...

Michigan consistently has ranked at or near the bottom of U.S. states in government transparency and accountability for over a decade. Journalists and government watchdogs have been sounding alarms while statutory remedies have stalled in legislative limbo or faded entirely from view. Two policy reforms would go a long way: banning legislators receiving gifts from lobbyists and ending the total exemption from Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests currently enjoyed by the office of the Governor of the State of Michigan and by members of the Michigan State Legislature. Given the incentives at play, Michigan residents cannot rely on representatives to enact the necessary reforms. In a response to an investigation published by the Detroit News in 2024 that revealed Lansing politicians receiving gifts from lobbyists unchecked, retired litigator Bob LaBrant said a ballot measure through a citizen-initiated petition drive may be Michigan residents’ only hope. “The December 2024 lame...