Urban Exile: “Curbing” the Panhandling “Epidemic” Gets Sexy
A2PNotes: In 2010, John Hieftje and First Ward Council member Sandi Smith both ran for re-election and patted themselves on the back for "doubling beds at the homeless shelter." If you count a chair as a bed, Hieftje and Smith were…
The Politics of The Plan: The Michigan Republican Wish List Starts With Stabenow’s Senate Seat
On March 14, 2011 the Michigan 15th District Republican Party held a fundraiser in the heart of Ann Arbor, at Weber's. The sold-out event, attended by some 385 people, was organized by 15th District Republican Party Chair Margy Van Houten,…
A Descent Into The Maelström: Public School Confidential (Student Discipline)
A2PNotes: Ann Arbor is home to some 16,000 public school students. Those students are parented by tens of thousands of women and men who haven't a clue about what their kids really do at school all day, not because they don't want to know.…
The Parent Trap: Spending Quality Time With A). My Kids or B). The Turtle.
This isn't the first time it crossed my mind to write about parenting, but the first time I embraced the opportunity seriously. Whenever I would read about parents who blogged, I had one thought: You people are writing about what you're…
The Culture Vulture (Books): The Oxymoronic Book Club Culture: A Society Populated by Socially-Stunted Introverts
What is culture? I guess you could define it as high-brow, artsy stuff, but the sociologist in me thinks of this concept more as it applies to society—a cohesive unit in which the members work together for their own individual benefit or…
Weekly Whopper: "Ann Arbor’s Long Term Debt Has Increased from in $119M in 1999 to $246M in 2010."
On March 3, 2011 Council member Christopher Taylor sent out an email to Ward Three constituents that purported to "explain" the extent and reasons for the city's ballooning debt load. AnnArbor.com published Taylor's assertions in its print…
The Politics of Spin: U of M President Touts Belt-Tightening to State Lawmakers
Dr. Mary Sue Coleman is smart. That goes without saying. She does have a Ph.D., after all. She's also clever. Her recent act in front of the Michigan State Legislature was a performance that the Academy should recognize next year with a…
Urban Exile: Common Courtesy & Every Day Strangers
A2PNotes: In 2010, John Hieftje and First Ward Council member Sandi Smith both ran for re-election and patted themselves on the back for "doubling beds at the homeless shelter." If you count a chair as a bed, Hieftje and Smith were telling…
The Politics of Oops: Council Member Email “Explanation” of City Debt Includes Factual Errors & Omissions
AnnArbor.com's political repeater Ryan Stanton struck again last week. This time, Stanton and AnnArbor.com simply "repeated" incomplete and incorrect information presented in a constituent email sent to the paper by Third Ward Council…
The Parent Trap: Can We "Please" Teach Manners? "Thank You!"
I told one of my readers that I would try my best to not be preachy, but I might cross the line this time. So if you think (grudgingly) that this title may apply to you and you have no desire to fix a possible problem, or you don't want…