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Michigan iPod proposal possibly influenced by Apple
arstechnica.com — Two Michigan lawmakers who support a plan to spend millions of state tax dollars order to buy an iPod for every child in the state may have flown to California thanks to Apple. The accusations raise questions as to whether the two lawmakers support the plan so heavily because it was due to the financial influence of Apple.
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- billmania, on 10/12/2007, -4/+95A billion dollar budget defecit, and they want to buy iPods? How about free bullet proof vests for Detroit residents?
- willynilly, on 10/12/2007, -6/+72No doubt. Buying iPods as an "educational tool" is a monumental load of *****.
- miles01110, on 10/12/2007, -30/+14"financial influence of Apple" kind of makes me laugh. If it was about financial influence they'd be buying Zunes.
- ChrisWickenscom, on 10/12/2007, -21/+37Well, according to apple fanboy's an ipod is suitable for body armor, because they know so much.
- Elranzer, on 10/12/2007, -29/+5"No doubt. Buying iPods as an "educational tool" is a monumental load of *****."
Right. They should have bought Zunes.
/sarcasm - zebstah, on 10/12/2007, -10/+8What do you expect? The state just handed GM millions to train "workers" and retool plants: AKA, bribe money to prevent layoffs. Of course, GM kicked in 10% as well. I think the cash would have been better used recruiting new and vibrant companies and industries instead of gifting money to the dying big three.
Michigan is horribly run, from top to bottom. - LogicBomB, on 10/12/2007, -2/+23The state should never spend tax money on petty luxury.
- masterofNone, on 10/12/2007, -14/+12i'm a big iPod user and a big Mac user and as big a fan of Apple as there is... but the idea of buying every kid an iPod is dumb.
however... flying a customer to a conference on iPods in education isn't very unusual or inappropriate. hookers would have been inappropriate. - Mindris, on 10/12/2007, -17/+3There are only 2 people in Michigan that would know how to use them including the guy that got flown to California.
- Tawni, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8Bullet proof vests and they could fix the broken education in system in Michigan as a whole.
They really should be ashamed of themselves the kids need an education not ipods. - gxcdesign, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8Well it wasn't influenced by Microsoft
- unibomber999, on 10/12/2007, -1/+16Michigan has had better governors, but Detroit is hopeless right now. Kwame Kilpatrick is a crook just like Coleman Young a generation before him, and is running that city into the ground.
A buddy of mine owns a bar/club downtown and has had to hand out bribes to everyone in the city to get everything from his liquor license to a fire inspection done. In fact, the fire inspector came right out and told him what he wanted (I think it was a tv and a microwave or something), and told him to put it in his car or he wouldn't get an inspection done.
But yeah, what they need is more iPods. Thank god I don't live in that *****-heap of a city anymore. - DirkBelig, on 10/12/2007, -10/+30Are Diggers unaware that Governor Jennifer Granholm is a Democrat? Since when do Democrats get criticized on Digg???
When she was elected four years ago, she was the belle of the ball - so attractive (Joan Allen would've played her in the movie), so bright, so pretty after 12 years of fat, bald Republican John Engler - and there was talk about amending the Constitution to allow this noble Canadian to run for President.
Then she ran the state into the ground. Business have fled. We're in a one-state Depression with an unemployment rate that consistently lags 2-2.5% behind the national rate. We have a heavy union presence (auto industry), high taxes, a monstrosity called the Single Business Tax which no other state has, lots of regulations and the only way we can get anyone to locate here is thru tax bribes. Google, who only has more money than God, was given about $180 million in tax breaks to open an office here. Meanwhile, Comerica bank, which started in Detroit in 1849 has announced that they are pulling out and moving operations to Dallas because they see no future for Detroit and Michigan.
Despite this record of total failure, she was reelected last November because the alternative was an unpolished businessman, Dick DeVos, who was smeared in her ads as someone shipping away jobs to China (a lie) and tarred with the "evil rich white Republican" brush because his family owned Amway. It's OK for dot-bomb millionaires from Washington (can't recall the name of the woman) and Jon Corzine, who spent over $100 million dollars of his own money to buy a New Jersey Senate seat and his current governorship, to be rich because they're liberal Democrats.
By leveraging this class-envy, her inherent public works and teachers union support and the fact that DeVos was too politically timid to punch back at her lies, she was reelected. (A year before, Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was reelected after wasting city money on a luxury SUV and having his bodyguards rough up the TV reporter who asked about it on camera. His winning strategy: Playing the race card against his BLACK Dem opponent, inferring that he wasn't black enough. Crazy.) Since then, things are still going downhill and the very liberal Detroit Free Press, who endorsed Granholm last year, was so disgusted they put an editorial against her on the front page above the masthead!
First she proposed more spending on "education" (code for teachers union payback) and now she wants to give kids "free" iPods. She's also proposed new taxes to pay for these things. Lovely. That's really going to help Michigan recover. - Splizxer, on 10/12/2007, -2/+11"Michigan iPod proposal possibly influenced by Apple"
Ummm, YA THINK? - sigsegfalt, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6OLPCs would be much more justified (and cheaper).
- tavisjohn, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6If apple thinks that iPods are educational devices, then let them DONATE them to every Michigan student!!!!
They have donated millions of dollars of computers to schools over the years. So let them donate iPods as well!!!! - TBagwell, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2UM is (or was, anyways) the single biggest purchaser of apple hardware in the world.
- coollettuce, on 10/12/2007, -4/+1Woah, I live in Michigan. I'm 15 so maybe I can get one of these iPods.
- kaenzenwo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+36I... I just... speechless. Proposing something like this when our budget is like it is should be grounds for immediate dismissal.
- carltonsmith, on 10/12/2007, -1/+12as P.J. O'Rourke said, "Forget term limits. We need jail."
- knobenheimer, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Don't blame me, I voted for Kodos....I mean DeVos.
- acosta814, on 10/12/2007, -10/+28Update: If you are a home schooled child in Michigan you will recieve a playstation 3. Well because at this point Sony is willing to give them away.
- jxs2151, on 10/12/2007, -12/+13Just wondering where all the "Evil Coorporate Entity" screeds are......oh, forgot we are talking about Apple here. The two minutes hate can only be directed at approved evil.
- kenvsryu, on 10/12/2007, -17/+8This will get to the front page and disappear quickly. Apple is not evil. Apple DRM is great for society. Apple payola is good for you.
- BritishGolgo13, on 10/12/2007, -4/+10I would much rather have them pay for my expensive ass tuition than buying me a device I have no time to use.
- betterth, on 10/12/2007, -6/+1Silly, how can a major corporation make a fun ton of money and get their product given to millions of children in their impressionable years, children who will then grow up almost "brainwashed" by free luxury devices to buy Apple products.
- betterth, on 10/12/2007, -6/+1Silly, how can a major corporation make a fun ton of money and get their product given to millions of children in their impressionable years, children who will then grow up almost "brainwashed" by free luxury devices to buy Apple products.
- bobpaul, on 10/12/2007, -3/+20Well "duh" it was influenced by Apple. That's how our government mostly works--corporate lobbying.
- jjb123, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3And it isn't just republicans anymore ether.
- geoken, on 10/12/2007, -6/+7What a bunch of idiots. Any rational person would realize how these actions would be extremely suspect. I mean you get flown and shacked up in Cuppertino on Apple's expense, then come back and propose a totally ridiculous bill to give an iPod to every student in the state.
- MadScientist420, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6Maybe they should give them away with the purchase of a new Ford instead. Then, maybe, someone will buy one.
- jmurph05, on 10/12/2007, -5/+3they'd have to give out like 4 fords to all the kids, then maybe the plants could make cars that didn't just sit around on the lots of the dealers
- knodi, on 10/12/2007, -9/+1Dumps idea ever. If your going to give them something like this at least give a cheaper MP3 player.
- h3ndrix, on 10/12/2007, -5/+4Who will buy the computer to download the music from itunes? Who says these kids can afford the tunes? Are they promoting illegal downloading?
- threemagic, on 10/12/2007, -5/+7No, they are promoting podcasting their classes so they can take them home with them. The kid and the parents can re-listen to the lesson to get homework done correctly. As an added bonus you can re-listen to the teacher talk about the first part of the chapter over again just before the test as a refresher.
- Ryosen, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3@threemagic
I really hope you don't believe in that. First, parents already do not spend enough time with their kids, whether helping with studies or just in general. They're not about to sit down for hours and listen to something as mundane as a middle school history lesson. Kids won't use this as a learning tool, either. If they want to review their audio-based lessons that badly, they can bring in a tape recorder. Except....Second, teachers will refuse to be taped - simple as that.
Even if this fantasy of obvious graft were to get passed, it won't get used. Not by the teachers, not by the parents. About all that it will do is ensure that the kids that are coming up on voting age will vote for these criminals.
- RedHerringHack, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10I can see a use for a media player for education. Especially one that records audio and video.
Educational podcasts would be a great tool. But buy "Dime a Dozen" low-fi disposable pieces
of crap. Not Multi hundred dollar devices. Make them sell cookies for them. Have a bake sale. - universal12, on 10/12/2007, -6/+1This sounds ridiculous. People are not using their heads anymore. Why not spend millions to help the poor you dummies?
- DeFex, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2What a scam. this also happened in California? i wonder what junket apple sent the Michigan government officials to get this deal?
it seems corruption in government has a "trickle down effect" from the white house.
Maybe they ought to study the reliability of the various mp3 players before giving them to students.Ipods are a throwaway after 1 year item.
um wait a minute WTF do they need Ipods for again?
By the way workers without children, aren't you happy even more of your tax money is being wasted on other peoples brats! - Grimfaire, on 10/12/2007, -5/+20Those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it.
When dealing with Apple and Education that should be the #1 thing on everyones mind. Apple has a horrible history with education in the classroom. They've a long list of deals and kickbacks to legislatures, teachers, boards, etc... to get Apples into the classroom only to turn around a few years later and go oh well... we didn't like the Apple Computer all that much... this Macintosh is so much better. Since we're not supporting the Apple computers anymore, if you want our help you'll have to purchase these much more expensive Mac computers.
Yes, I know the Mac fanbois will dig this down. But the truth hurts. Apple is not this loveable corporate entity. They're just as mean and underhanded as the next one.- adc86, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Wait, are you talking about things that happened before 1984? Do you realize the dynamics of the computer industry?
- logandr, on 10/12/2007, -7/+3The next thing we'll discover is that the Microsoft High-Tech High in Philadelphia is "influenced" by....*gasp*...Microsoft!!
- jayhawk, on 10/12/2007, -5/+3the state more seriously considered laptops in the past (perhaps a year ago) and the gov. nixed the idea in her budget before it even had legs. this effort isn't going anywhere.
as for apple potentially playing a role in this story . . . more power to a company trying to make money (spoken like a true stockholder).- brstilson, on 10/12/2007, -6/+1Agreed. Granholm has cut off so much public services funding in her term you'd think she was a Republican. Laptops would be a great tool for students. It's funny she didn't talk about nixing the laptop idea when she was railing on about "investing in education" during her campaign.
- manifestdata, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Well, at least we can tell which side you sway because even though your candidate won, you still find stuff to cry about. QQ
- adc86, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Look, honestly, every child does not need a laptop, iPod, or other piece of technological equipment. The state simply needs a "Oooh, well if we moved to Michigan we'd get that!" It's just marketing. I'm sorry, but even as an Apple user, a paper can still be typed in Word under Win95. In fact, that's what my brother's high school is still running.
Granholm merely wants to fluff up this state's appearance, and with the high amount of ignorance abundant in the rural and suburban areas, she'll probably succeed.
"Last one out of Michigan, turn the lights out."
- brstilson, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9I live in Michigan and it is just mind-blowing to me to watch these lawmakers entertain ideas like while at the same time our roads are rotting away, schools are closing, funding for public services is being cut (by our DEMOCRAT governor, figure THAT one out), and the unemployment rate is incredibly high. Did they actually think that anyone would buy the argument that MP3 players are EDUCATIONAL?
- jayhawk, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6i live here as well. we have about the worst economy and unemployment of any state in the nation. services are going to be cut. the state isn't like the federal gov't in that the state can't run a deficit. cuts have to be made. congress and the gov have realized that education is one of the keys to improving our situation, but the state legislature is split between dems (house) and repubs (senate) so there will be a heck of a lot of compromise before this is over. but stupid programs like this won't see the light of day, fwiw.
- tateswayz91, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4They should put the money in to weather control devices. Maybe it'll stop snowing in April.
- jeylux, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2maybe we wouldn't have to pink slip 40% of the teachers every year if they didn't buy iPods....
- Raian, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3Let them eat cake!
- mizraabianz, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3What a lame case, only in this country lawyers can do crap like this, instead of spending that money on better things, they want tax money for ipods?? must be kidding. If you are dumb student and your parents give a crap about your education, having an ipod is very less likely to help you get into good college.
- sabarsky, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5I love macs/ipods as much as the next machead but this is absolutely retarded. How about proposing that kind of spending on...i don't know...BOOKS? Supplies for teachers and classrooms? Oh, and Apple, quit dicking around with politicians and lobbyists and stick to making consumer products.
- tadarnold, on 10/12/2007, -5/+1Maybe it's not so far fetched! The public schools are screwed up and cost taxpayers a fortune. Why not close down all the schools, and give students iPods with video/audio lessons. They could learn just as much, and I don't have to pay for teachers, buildings, buses, lunch ladies, printed books, etc...
- PaperMonkey, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3@ tadarnold - That's a great idea! Best I've heard in years!
So are you going to supervise all of these children while they sit at home and learn? No? oh... So then what you are saying is that they should close the schools _and_ have people stay home from work. So now not only are you laying off all the people employed by the school system but you are forcing people to stay home or pay for child care. That aught to do wonders for the economy..... really kick start job creation efforts. - brstilson, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2having a live teacher in the room will never be superseded by a one-sided video lecture because a student can ask a live teacher a question if he/she doesn't grasp the material right away. You can't do that with a video.
- adc86, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Psh... Yeah. Ask a teacher questions. Look up "Connected Math"
It was a pilot program when I was in high school, here in MI. The idea is that the bastard teacher sits and plays solitaire while the students teach themselves. Guess where I learned math? At home, with my mom, and on the internet.
I hate this state so very, very much.
- PaperMonkey, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3@ tadarnold - That's a great idea! Best I've heard in years!
- ShawnPeterson, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1So who's getting married?
- levirogers, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5This is ridiculous; Global Warming, Starvation in third world countries, a failing national education system: Our grand idea.... buy each kid an ipod. What a bunch of idiots.
- JK1150, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3I thought they just wanted to give a multi-million dollar contract to a single company with no bid for no reason...
- RedHerringHack, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2Home schooling would keep the promising kids away from the undesirables so they might actually have a chance at greatness rather than be dragged down by idiots. Standard MP3 lessons would be fantastic and would only require one teacher so we could get the best there is. I have MP3s of Richard Feinman lecturing on Quantum Theory that I still listen to even though I don't use QCD in my daily life. They remind me of how physicists/scientists/I should think.
- 8bit_Hero, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9Lies, Lies. Apple wouldn't do something like that! /s
If this was Mircosoft, the comments would be filled with Apple drones calling for the head of Bill Gates - kaiser44, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Just the nexus between stupid money grubbing, vote buying and pandering politicians and corporate America.
Nothing to see here people just same old same old. - aroundtown, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Why don't they buy every kid a set of educational books valued at $100, save themselves money and actually help the world.
- IEatHamburgers, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1This is stupid, but they're doing worse. The whole "Buy every sixth-grader/high-schooler a laptop" thing is ridiculous. How can you justify coughing up a billion dollars for laptops which you can't install your own software on (making them completely redundant when your school has half-a-dozen computer labs), you get charged for repairs, and no teacher wants to use? And this is Michigan in 2007, where teacher's jobs, athletic programs and vocational/technical classes are being axed left and right. This is my experience in a rural district - imagine how bad it must be in the Motor City... This makes the $36 million they're considering spending on the iPods look like pocket change.
Seriously, how about these politicians actually listen to the schools and pay for what they *really* need? - dethl, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Oh noes....a computer company lobbying the government? Say it ain't so!
Apple - $1.1 million spent on lobbying
http://opensecrets.org/lobbyists/clientsum.asp?txtname=Apple+Computer&year=2006
Sun Microsystems - $34,000
http://opensecrets.org/lobbyists/clientsum.asp?txtname=Sun+Microsystems&year=2006
Microsoft - $8.8 million
http://opensecrets.org/lobbyists/clientsum.asp?txtname=Microsoft+Corp&year=2006
Dell - $1.5 million
http://opensecrets.org/lobbyists/clientsum.asp?txtname=Dell+Inc&year=2006 - Mofo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2What makes it even better is that Michigan just paid Ford 350 million to keep several factories open for a few more years despite the fact that they are losing money and the equipment is very outdated.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6249117.stm - du4l1ty, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2*****, I should have waited on getting my ipod.
- astra05, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2I live in Michigan, I am from the Detroit area and currently reside in Kalamazoo due to Education. They want to spend the money on this when they have had to raise my tuition at my university an average of 8% over the last 3 years? Enrollment at all major universities is down because less financial aid is available. I also worked for the DMC (Detroit Medical Center) which is highly subsidized by the State Government and most of the people that came were so poor they couldn't afford proper treatment. They want to buy luxury for some kids when facilitating the basic needs are not met? I said this during the elections, Granholm was an idiot with money, but she was still better that her second contender. Also, they are going to start raising taxes on Tobacco again and introduce a new tax to alcohol just to cover the deficit. So tax more goods so we can buy them Ipods but leave things like education and health in distress? Just outrageous.
- BlueDjinn, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5I realize that this is most likely an exercise in futility, but I'll try to make this clear anyway:
THERE NEVER WAS ANY SUCH PROPOSAL IN THE FIRST PLACE.
http://digg.com/apple/Shoddy_Journalism_and_the_Myth_of_the_23_iPod - hipporhino, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1The have switched gears, and are denying that this was ever a real consideration.
http://www.thedailynews.cc/articles/2007/04/13/news/news03.txt
They are also paying Apple back for the travel.
Seemed like a good idea to them at the time......now they look like putzes.- BlueDjinn, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3The reason they're denying that this was a serious proposal is because it WASN'T. The reporter made the "$38 million for iPods" proposal up out of whole cloth.
- wootah, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Let no IPOD be left behind! :O
- Baconn, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1No *****. Since when have people in government been trustworthy and honorable.
- MODAT, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1i dont think apple should be looked down for this..they are a company which wants to make money. Thats what companies do, they influence other people to buy their products.
- Lorddias, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Yes exactly what companies do. You don't even have any money and yet they still rob you blind. Apple should be looked down on for this, they would have made a state throw away lots of money they could have used elsewhere, for their own greed.
Sure its a dog eat dog world, but it just shows that Apple are just as inhumane as any other company.
- Lorddias, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Yes exactly what companies do. You don't even have any money and yet they still rob you blind. Apple should be looked down on for this, they would have made a state throw away lots of money they could have used elsewhere, for their own greed.
- dodoporridge, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1In other news, there's never been a better time to be in deafness research.
- frodobaggins, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0"one iPod per child" - Sounds like an article from BBSpot
- scottjl, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1well. ya think microsoft would influence them to be buying ipods? hell no.
i say buy 'em all zune's. at least you know they won't trade songs via wifi. - cgseller, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Would you rather Apple cover the costs of the flight or have tax dollars pay for the flight costs ??? Why is gifts looked down upon so much. It saves the taxpayers money. We are no different than stockholders and if that saved 5 people airfare to calf, then I say great. If they took them out to dinner - then I say great too. Government IT employees mostly are paid peanuts and as a result many of them are the bottom of the barrel. Offering perks like this is a way to get more qualified people to take a government job.
Before all you peeps start complaining about government waste, take a look at your own company first, and then take a government job, and you'll see corporate America is where the fat is. - EEdesigner, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0It appears that Apple made no such offer. However, if such an offer had been made, I would count on the dhimmicrat governor to accept it. After all, it's not in their best interests to have children: 1) know English, 2) know logic, or 3) know math. Come to think of it, the "education" interests wouldn't be able to provide the requisite knowledge anyway.
- orp2000, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2This whole story is untrue. I have emails directly from the state government in Michigan and there are several stories in the "upcoming stories" section of digg that dispute the accuracy of this story. There is no "iPod for every student" bill in Michigan - period. End of story.
- reenum, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0How asinine. What about spending this iPod on school funding, so that more teachers can be hired and new books can be bought?
- colincornaby, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Disputed accuracy of the whole iPod bill aside, I don't know why this is surprising. It's common practice that when someone is about to buy millions of dollars worth of your products, that you fly them to your headquarters to meet with your executives on the purchase.
- bbautista, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1The proposal is for upgrading the technology in the State's schools, which for most districts is long overdue. It makes no mention of iPods or any MP3 players whatsoever. This "iPod for every student" business is a result of sloppy journalism from the barely-credible Detroit Free Press.
- GeneralKickass, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2WTF? An ipod for every child? How about a brain for every legislator?
- neotexan, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Wow, a company shamelessly pushing its product on a customer that'll be willing to pay twice as much as its worth? If digg had a obvious tag like fark, now would be a good time for it.
- woranl, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Apple is evil
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