I'm glad the Michigan economy is doing so well they can afford this nonsense:
" bill proposed by Michigan Democrats in the state legislature to buy an i-Pod for every Michigan student, supposedly for educational purposes. The plan would cost an already-strapped state government an additional $36 million, adding to their billion-dollar deficit, causing many observers to wonder where Democrats Matt Gillard and Andy Dillon came up with the idea.
Today, the Detroit Free Press answers that question. It turns out that Apple paid for their travel to visit their corporate offices in California:
Two state lawmakers backing a controversial plan to buy iPods for every schoolchild in Michigan were among a group of politicians who made a trip to California that was paid for at least in part by Apple, the maker of iPods.
The 2 1/2 -day trip earlier this year covered a range of issues and interaction on topics related to Michigan. It included a visit to Apple in northern California, where the politicians discussed classroom technology and educational uses for the popular audio and video players, said Rep. Matt Gillard, D-Alpena, one of the legislators who made the trip.
House Speaker Andy Dillon, D-Redford Township, also made the trip to San Francisco and nearby Santa Clara County.
The $36-million iPod proposal was unveiled last week at a news conference called by Dillon to discuss the state's budget crisis and House Democrats' plans to address it.
The lawmakers insist that the i-Pods would benefit grade-schoolers in their education. Students could download lectures, they claim, which should prompt even more questions. How many lectures do first-graders get? Sixth graders? How would they download these lectures, and what makes the politicians think that any elementary- or secondary-school students would actually use the i-Pods for that purpose? Would the state replace them if they got lost, too, and continue to buy them as children moved from kindergarten to the first grade?
Is this a great country, or what?
Jinx
" bill proposed by Michigan Democrats in the state legislature to buy an i-Pod for every Michigan student, supposedly for educational purposes. The plan would cost an already-strapped state government an additional $36 million, adding to their billion-dollar deficit, causing many observers to wonder where Democrats Matt Gillard and Andy Dillon came up with the idea.
Today, the Detroit Free Press answers that question. It turns out that Apple paid for their travel to visit their corporate offices in California:
Two state lawmakers backing a controversial plan to buy iPods for every schoolchild in Michigan were among a group of politicians who made a trip to California that was paid for at least in part by Apple, the maker of iPods.
The 2 1/2 -day trip earlier this year covered a range of issues and interaction on topics related to Michigan. It included a visit to Apple in northern California, where the politicians discussed classroom technology and educational uses for the popular audio and video players, said Rep. Matt Gillard, D-Alpena, one of the legislators who made the trip.
House Speaker Andy Dillon, D-Redford Township, also made the trip to San Francisco and nearby Santa Clara County.
The $36-million iPod proposal was unveiled last week at a news conference called by Dillon to discuss the state's budget crisis and House Democrats' plans to address it.
The lawmakers insist that the i-Pods would benefit grade-schoolers in their education. Students could download lectures, they claim, which should prompt even more questions. How many lectures do first-graders get? Sixth graders? How would they download these lectures, and what makes the politicians think that any elementary- or secondary-school students would actually use the i-Pods for that purpose? Would the state replace them if they got lost, too, and continue to buy them as children moved from kindergarten to the first grade?
Is this a great country, or what?
Jinx
