The Ann Arbor Independent Editorial Team 2257 posts 224 comments

OFFICIALS IN THE Michigan Department of State determined that “WAR SUX” is a vanity plate request that is “offensive to good taste and decency.” David DeVarti, an Ann Arbor resident, former City Council member and former member of the…

Please note: This piece was corrected to reflect the fact that Ward 2 Council member Sally Hart Petersen was not seated on Ann Arbor City Council until November 2012. THE ANN ARBOR INDEPENDENT recently reported that 76 percent of city…

STATE APPROPRIATIONS TO the University of Michigan dropped from $320,662,000 in 2005 to a projected $279,108,700 in 2014, a loss of a total of 12.9 percent over the past descade—some $41.5 million dollars. Drops in state appropriations to…

Dr. Pescovitz owns shares in the company worth $385,000 and accumulated additional shares days before the October 2013 Board of Regents meeting at which the contract between UMHS and Life Technologies was granted approval.  IN THE…

On a path where politics and principles meet.  AT POLITICAL GATHERINGS, Washtenaw County Commissioner Yousef Rabhi is often the tallest man in the room and at 24-years-old, often the youngest. He is serving as the Chair of the BOC, one…

Brought manufacturing back to the United States from overseas. Provided dozens of jobs for area teen workers. IT’S 2013, AND there are 2.5 million Americans ages 16 to 19 who are out of work or underemployed. This group includes teens…

Dr. Mary Sue Coleman was appointed as the 13th president of The University of Michigan in 2002. According to The Chronicle of Higher Education, university presidents, on average, stay in their jobs 8.5 years. Coleman, then, in keeping her…

Crowd funding for medical research? Introducing the WellSpringboard Site. Crowd funding is all the rage these days, with everyone from charities to start-up companies offering ways for masses of people to kick in small amounts of money…

Who says nice guys finish last?   Brady Hoke is a nice guy. His players like him, and he is a Michigan man through and through despite having been born in Ohio and having played football for Ball State University.  According to Hoke’s 18…

Friends say: He’s measured.  Collegial. A leader. Detractors say: He’s a DINO. Anti-everything. Bad for Ann Arbor.    Jack Eaton speaks slowly, so slowly that sometimes you wonder how he doesn’t nod off in the middle of a sentence.…