It's the naysayers that really make my teeth itch. I think that's one of the biggest things that drives me up the wall about the whole Tea Party movement. The Can't Do attitude. That's why reading the comment threads to local articles is bad for my dental health.
There's so much awesome stuff going on, and these dudes...they're just...they're just so gratingly negative and gloomy.
For example: The high speed trains.
That's awesome.
FRIGGIN' awesome.
What kind of nay-saying maniacs would want to crush friggin' HIGH SPEED RAIL?
It's like saying no to jet packs, or puppies, or puppies with jet packs.
It's like saying no to flying cars...or...cars that run on friggin' electricity. Friggin' awesome.
Which leads me to my second example: Advanced battery manufacturing plants have been opening up in West Michigan, one in Holland and one in Muskegon that's going to employ as many as 700 people. So it was awesome to read this article in the local papers...
A plan for electric cars' spent lithium ion batteries
HOLLAND — Mass production of lithium-ion batteries from local plants for electric cars is still a year away, but Western Michigan University students already are working on how they will be used once their days on the road are through.
Pow.
Awesome.
Not ONLY are we working on the future of cars...but we're working on the FUTURE of the future of cars.
Frickin' awesome.
I can't explain to you how awesome. Not just awesome. Frickin' awesome. Maybe you already know. But:
1. It's awesome.
2. It's going to create jobs: AWESOME
3. It's pre-emptively reducing waste
4. It's awesome.
And of course the standard, tooth curling Tea Party response
Michigan just loves wasting tax payers money. No wonder the state is in a bad deficit and was the only U.S. state too lose population from the latest census count.
Are they doing it just to be anoying?
"Yadda yadda yadda, waste of time, blah-duh blah-duh blah-duh, waste of money, shoobe doobe doo...free market...picking winners and losers...barf barf barf barf barf retch retch retch retch..."
Basically: "We can't do that."
It's an incessant talking point crammed into every stinkin' comment thread and it makes me want to get all a'punch. It's just...constant. EVERYTHING. The papers could be talking about repairing a new road that leads to the future site of the advanced battery manufacturing plant.
Friggin' awesome.
...or it could be talking about an expansion of the Ludington Pumped Storage Facility to facilitate Michigan's transition to renewable energy.
Friggin' awesome.
...or it could be talking about the 100MW to 150MW wind farm planned for Muskegon County.
Friggin' awesome.
...Or....or more recently...it could be talking about -- and this is friggin' awesome -- the electrical vehicle charging stations that are currently, right now being installed in Muskegon County in anticipation of electric vehicles.
FRIGGIN'
AWESOME.
MUSKEGON — The first plug-in electric vehicle has yet to be sold in the Muskegon area, but the first charging station in the county is operating and more are on the way.
ChargePoint America is an electric charging station program of Coulomb Technologies of Campbell, Calif. The company has approached Muskegon officials to get up to 20 stations installed in various locations in the Muskegon area.
(friggin' awesome)
Here are all these wonderful and hopeful things coming into the area. And yet there are waves and waves of negative voices against them. These waves of Tea Partiers who seem to take absolutely no joy in anything, including tearing things down.
They look out into the world and they see crap and conspiracy and corruption from sea to shining sea. Grumpy as all hell.
These are incredible steps toward the future. They're incredible steps toward new industries and cleaner industries and more sustainable industries. Plus...they're friggin' awesome industries. Wind power?!? Come on! That's just so cool. Electric cars?! High speed rail?! Awesome. Friggin' awesome. I'm thrilled to see these things knocking on our door.