Does Michigan Really Need A State Poet?

With everything else facing this state, do we need to spend $67,000 for a post of State Poet Laureate, when the post has not even been filled?

Apparently the state has already budgeted or spent that amount for the position (hard to tell as the article is behind a paywall), and this is of course an excellent example of wise government spending. Not.

Of course, the choice of poet laureate, once the choise is made, if ever,  will be political.  Given our current governor, who is in charge of appointing such a useless position,  most likely it will be some woke poet that checks required diversity boxes that no typical Michigander has even heard much less read.

Of course, state poet laureates have a tradition of such worthlessness on the public dime. Indded, many seem paid to denigrate those who appointed them.

New Jersey appointed Amir Baraka as poet laureate and that worked out just great.  Not only did he bless the state with his misogynistic, anti-American, and Anti-Semitic poetry, but he was a 9/11 Truther with a capital "T" as well. That state sure got it's money's worth.

Expect a similar outcome if Michigan wastes the money to appoint our own poet laureate.

It's a pity we can't instead, if we have to spend money on figureheads, use the money to appoint Mike Rowe as the State's Skilled Tradesman Laureate. 

Given the need for skilled trades in this state, appointing him as such and having him go around promoting it would be better for Michigan than some poet laureate with a chip on their shoulder that no one has even heard of at all. 

Michigan doesn't seem to have a detectable poetry deficit at the moment, but we could sure use more skilled tradesman and tradeswomen.