Michigan Archives - Ramblin' with Roger

Thugs are usually associated with, er, a certain demographic. For me, when 13 people were charged in a plot to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, the term “thugs” came to mind.

In the spring of 2020, folks with guns gathered in Lansing to decry the governor’s stay-at-home order to try to stop COVID-19. Some brought signs that read ‘Tyrants Get The Rope.”
And IMPOTUS egged them on. “[She] should give a little.” Obviously, this is a different response than his reaction to other protests in America in 2020.

Governor Whitmer said, “When our leaders speak, their words matter. They carry weight. When our leaders meet, encourage, or fraternize with domestic terrorists, they legitimize their actions and they are complicit. When they stoke and contribute to hate speech, they are complicit.” The accused Michigan terrorists also discussed ’Taking Out’ Virginia Governor Ralph Northam.

But, wait! There’s more!

Beyond the plot of kidnapping, a mock trial, and possible assassination, there are more disturbing elements. There were additional plans to blow up a bridge near her home to delay law enforcement response. Another idea involved killing “police officers in the hope that Black Lives Matter supporters would be blamed, thus sparking a new civil war.”

The Michigan contingent is “very cozy with law enforcement—including Barry County Sheriff Dar Leaf.” Leaf, in fact, said, the accused terrorists were within their rights to conduct a citizen’s “arrest” of Gov. Whitmer.

Take a listen. Fox 17 reporter “Aaron Parseghian caught up with Leaf to get his thoughts” on the men facing charges. He expressed no regrets “appearing on stage with these men at a May 16 rally in opposition to the lockdown orders.

“Leaf belongs to a far-right fringe group who call themselves the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officer Association (CSPOA). If that sounds familiar, it’s because some of the whackiest and cruelest sheriffs in the news over recent years all belong to this organization.” This includes “the Trump-loving disgraced former Milwaukee sheriff, David Clarke.” He’s the black guy with lots of medallions who was at the 2016 Republic National Convention.

“In short, they (wrongly) believe the Constitution gives them the ultimate authority in their county and that they can enforce—or not enforce—whatever laws they want. They also frequently espouse anti-government views. Like many of today’s far-right groups, their ideas are founded in white supremacy.”

Of course, the defense says Gov. Whitmer kidnap plot was just ‘big talk between crackpots’. Ah yes, boys being boys. Or thugs.

In the United States, there are eight states that begin with the letter M, tied with the letter N. But N has the advantage of descriptive adjectives New (Hampshire, Jersey, Mexico, York) and North (Carolina and Dakota); only Nebraska and Nevada are one-word states.

In 1963, ZIP Codes were introduced, although many large cities were divided into zones 20 years earlier. At the same time, the Post Office introduced two-letter abbreviations for the states, to accommodate space for the ZIP Codes.

The ones for the letter M tell stories about the states:

MA – Massachusetts. The mother of the country. Where the Pilgrims landed – on Plymouth Rock, and where the American Revolution was fomented, at the Boston massacre, then the tea party, and finally with the battles of Lexington and Concord. The second and sixth Presidents, both named Adams, were born there.

MD – Maryland. Home of Johns Hopkins Hospital and the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, plus other facilities with doctors.

ME – Maine. Rugged individuals, who wear clothing from L.L. Bean of Freeport, founded 100 years ago by Leon Leonwood Bean. It was part of Massachusetts until it became a state as a result of the Missouri Compromise of 1820, when it was admitted as a free state, as Missouri joined as a slave state.

MI – Michigan. A state which suffered greatly during the recent recession (oh, mi), but which appears to be coming back strong, with improved auto sales leading the way (oh, mi!)

MN – Minnesota. M and N are adjacent letters, nearly twins in the cursive. Likewise, the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul are related, yet quite separate cities.

MO – Missouri. The big mo, or momentum towards the Pacific Ocean, Missouri was the starting point of the Pony Express and is considered the Gateway to the west; thus the arch. It’s also the home of the defending World Series champions, the St. Louis Cardinals, who, after their 130th game of the 2011 season on August 24, were 10 1/2 games behind the Wild Card leading Atlanta Braves, with only 32 games remaining. They went 23-9 to finish 90-72, a game ahead of Atlanta’s 89-73, the largest comeback in history after 130 games.

MS – Mississippi. Ole Miss went feminist to become a Ms. Also, ms is the abbreviation for manuscripts, and there is a strong tradition of Mississippi writers, including John Grisham, William Faulkner, Richard Wright, Tennessee Williams, Eudora Welty, and many more.

MT – Montana. Of course, mt is the abbreviation for a mountain, and the Big Sky State is in the Rocky Mountains.

OBVIOUSLY, the Post Office was thinking about these things when they assigned the two-letter state designations almost a half-century ago.