Stateside: 40 days on the UAW picket line; controlling light pollution; term limit reform

Today on Stateside, on the same day the UAW announces that the new GM contract will be ratified, we hear from a Michigan plant that voted against the deal. Plus, the ban on baiting deer and how it will affect hunting in the state.

Listen to the full show above or find individual segments below. 

Forty days on strike with UAW Local 167

• The longest General Motors strike since 1970 has come to an end. Workers at two large GM plants voted in favor of ratification Friday, which gave the "yes" votes a majority. Workers went out on strike to put an end to concessions that divided the union: an expanded use of temporary workers, and a tiered wage structure. As members get ready to head back to work, Dustin Dwyer gives us a deeper look at one GM plant in Wyoming, Michigan where workers make a lower tier wage and feel let down by how the strike has played out.

Controversial deer bait ban will help slow the spread of chronic wasting disease, expert says

• One of the big issues this deer hunting season is about the ban on baiting deer. Ted Nugent testified before the state Legislature earlier this year saying the ban on baiting would essentially be the end of family hunting in Michigan. Amy Trotter is the executive director of the Michigan United Conservation Clubs. That organization represents some 200 hunting, fishing, and other types of groups. She talked about the ban, and the connection between deer baiting and the spread of chronic wasting disease.

How light pollution impacts human health and the world around us 

• Light does not get much attention as a pollutant. But some Michigan municipalities have passed ordinances aimed at reducing light pollution. Right now the city of Ann Arbor is considering such an ordinance. Sally Oey is a professor in the University of Michigan Department of Astronomy. She is an organizer of the Michigan Dark Skiesgroup and chair of a working group currently drafting a lighting ordinance for the city’s consideration. We talk to her about the impact of light pollution, and what can be done to reduce it. 

So-called “energy freedom” bills work their way through the Michigan legislature

• For the fourth time, legislators in Lansing are considering so-called “energy freedom” bills. The idea is to give utility customers greater leeway to install community solar or micro-grids for a neighborhood. Andy Balaskovitz with Midwest Energy Newshas been reporting on this topic and went in-depth into what these bills might look like. 

Roundup: Reforming term limits makes for strange bedfellows 

• Michigan's legislative leadership has approached Voters Not Politicians – the group that successfully backed a ballot measure to end gerrymandering – to consider a joint effort to eliminate term limits, or at least lengthen the amount of time someone can hold office. We discuss with our Friday political commentators.
• TJ Bucholz is president of Vanguard Public Affairs, a progressive political strategy firm. Ken Sikkema is senior policy fellow for Public Sector Consultants, and a former Republican Majority Leader of the Michigan Senate. 

Cheers! A whiskey drink for people who think they don't like whiskey

• Tammy Coxen of Tammy’s Tastings whipped up a whiskey drink for those who don’t think they like whiskey. Listen to hear how Coxen makes her version of "The Long Arm of the Law."

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