The North Coast is a powerful description so befitting of our state of Michigan. But there is also a quiet dignity in that phrase and an expression of pride.For the better part of a century, Detroit and Michigan have been synonymous with the automobile. No other place even comes close. We do not claim to have invented the automobile. We just invented the entire automobile industry - the design, the engineering, the factories, the assembly line - all of it. As we put the world on wheels, the auto industry became more than our economic base; it became our pride and our identity. Detroit became The Motor City. And when our country needed us, we became The Arsenal of Democracy.The auto industry legacy is now just as vital to Michigan's economy and image as it has ever been. Although the focus is on diversifying our economy, diversity does not mean to eliminate or replace. Diversity means to add to that which we already have and we have the ingredients for economic growth right under our nose. The talent, creativity and resources already exist here in our world class universities. Wayne State University partnered with NextEnergy is a perfect example. Michigan's University Life Sciences Research Corridor is another. There is room for more.

As important as it is to be positive, it serves no purpose to overlook our problems. Our political climate needs critical review. In so many ways, from the taxation mess to the millions of tons of out of state garbage and filth allowed into our landfills, our political leadership has failed us. Lobbyists have far more influence over our politicians than the citizens who elected them and Lansing is too preoccupied with party loyalties to attend to Michigan's needs. This burdensome bureaucracy is clearly not working and it is long past time to change it. Do we really need a bicameral legislature? Do we even need a full time legislature? Would a referendum based system give citizens a stronger voice?

We also have an image problem which we must do something about. Unfortunately, Michigan does not have a mechanism to promote itself. We have no movie industry to endlessly glorify our state in wide screen technicolor. There are no prime time TV shows depicting the lives of auto executives in Bloomfield Hills 48304 and no one dines at Michigan Pizza Kitchen. Even the automobiles we design and produce are advertised against the backdrop of the Golden Gate Bridge or the Pacific Ocean; not the Mighty Mac or the dunes of Lake Michigan. Media production would certainly fit well into our plans to diversify our economy.

For far too long, the East and West Coast based media have promoted a negative image of Michigan. This type of unwelcome publicity serves a purpose. They want what we have. Eventually, established businesses hampered in their ability to recruit talent, leave the state and other businesses, and people, stay away. Chicago and Los Angeles covet Detroit's premier auto show and California is attempting to lure our entire auto industry to the West Coast and claim it as their own. And, of course, there is the threat to the Great Lakes - our water. As our image is tainted and we lose our industry and population, we grow weaker politically. By 2020, California alone is projected to have 61 seats in the House of Representatives. That is equal to Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin combined - virtually the entire Great Lakes basin. Michigan will have a mere 13. When the parched Southwest comes to take our water, how will we stop them?

There are people who are unencumbered by loyalties to persons, places, or things. Obviously, I am not one of them. For some reason that I can not explain, I identify with Michigan and when Michigan is hurting, I feel it. The negative publicity and the reasons behind it are the most troubling to me personally. But things are looking up. Jeff Daniels is the spokesman for Michigan in a series of outstanding TV promotions. However, if I could make one suggestion for Mr. Daniels; "the upper hand" is clever but "The North Coast" says so much more.