Michigan Rising: Aiming to Recall Snyder—While Disgruntled Former Volunteers Target Michigan Rising
by Chris Savage
Michigan Rising, the group formerly known as the Committee to Recall Rick Snyder (CRRS), was unsuccessful in its bid to recall Michigan's governor last year. The challenges the group faced, discussed in my previous piece,…
Head of AATA Admits in Email That “Many Folks” Prefer That Millage Money Fund Existing City-Wide Transit, Not Proposed County-Wide Plan
by P.D. Lesko
In September 2011, former Ann Arbor News reporter Tom Gantert did what he does best: published the truth. In point of fact, writing for Michigan Capitol Confidential, Gantert published information about the pay of staffers at…
Politico Who Understated City Debt By $215,000,000 In Open Letter To Newspaper Complains About “Misinformation”
by P.D. Lesko
Fifth Ward Council member Mike Anglin sent out an email on January 15, 2012 in which he urged Ann Arbor residents to vocally oppose John Hieftje's proposal that Ann Arbor enter into a regional transportation agreement under…
Via Email Blast Local Politicos Urge Public To Rise Up & Stop Mayor’s Anti-Democratic Scheming
by P.D. Lesko
In 2004, the Ann Arbor News Editorial Board published an endorsement of Hieftje's mayoral opponent that included this zinger, preserved for posterity by Google:
“Hieftje’s largest failure is not one of vision, but leadership.…
The Culture Vulture: Movies That Deserve A Sequel
by Nick Leshi
Entertainment Weekly had a cool little article about movies that were produced full of potential to become huge franchises, but plans for sequels fizzled with their miniscule box-office performance. It lists Dune, …
The Parent Trap: Mom As The Non-Custodial Parent
by Sophia van Buren
For the past eight years, I’ve adopted and grown into both the idea and reality of being a role reversal model of the mother as the non-custodial parent, but if current trends continue, the percentage of non-custodial…
Whirlpool Corp—A Michigan Job Creation “Success Story”: Dodging Taxes & Profiting from Poverty
by Chris Savage
I have been following and writing about Public Act 4, the Emergency Manager law, since it was passed in March of 2011. The first impacts of the changes made by this law hit in Benton Harbor, Michigan. A tiny town on the…
How The 1 Percent Create Jobs: Officials Dump Millions In Public Money Into Local Job Creation & Exercise Little Oversight
by P.D. Lesko
Michigan has bled jobs, and the state's residents have suffered Depression-era unemployment levels.
The Detroit Free Press recently concluded in its report card evaluation of Governor Rick Snyder that Snyder's first year in…
The Parent Trap: This Year Is Going To Be Better…Really
by Betsy McMillin
Happy 2012 to all my readers!
When another year approaches, parents always look ahead with a fresh, new perspective, hoping that the New Year will bring better parenting. More patience, more fun times together, more…
Urban Exile: Head of Shelter Association Claims Homelessness Is A “Lifestyle”
by Erika McNamara
Detroit organizations that assist the homeless in the city report that the number of homeless individuals is on the increase and the shelters are at over capacity. The number of people requiring assistance this year is…