Tag Archives: Pontiac

White people, seeing Emergency Managers in their future, begin to demand change

By Mark | May 21, 2012

The Detroit Free Press, in an editorial yesterday, suggested that maybe, now that predominantly white cities, like Allen Park, are beginning to stagger toward financial collapse, and state takeover, our elected officials in Lansing might be willing to look at the underlying structural issues which are pushing our communities, one after the other, toward catastrophic [...]

Posted in Economics, Michigan, Politics | Also tagged Allen Park, Andy Dillon, Benton Harbor, budget deficit, deficit, Deficit Elimination Plan, Ecorse, Emergency Financial Manager Act, Emergency Financial Manger, Flint, Headlee Amendment, Paul Tait, Proposal A, race, Rick Snyder, SEMCOG, tax policy | 111 Comments

Rachel Maddow on the dismal track record of Michigan’s Emergency Managers and the threat they pose to Democracy

By Mark | May 1, 2012

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy [note:I don't know if it happened for everyone, but, when I watched this, it was preceded by an ad for Goldman Sachs, which I found somewhat ironic.]

Posted in Detroit, Media, Michigan, Politics | Also tagged Benton Harbor, Ecorse, Emergency Financial Manager, Emergency Financial Manager Act, foreclosure, Hamtramck, Highland Park, Michael Stampfler, Pastor David Bullock, Rachel Maddow, revenue sharing, Rick Snyder, Silverdome, threats to Democracy, Voting Rights Act | 9 Comments

Pontiac teacher, Brooke Harris, fired for helping 8th graders to raise money for the family of Trayvon Martin

By Mark | April 10, 2012

The firing of Pontiac charter school teacher, Brooke Harris, is making the national news. As you may have heard, she was fired last week, after working with her students to establish a fundraiser for the family of Trayvon Martin. The following comes by way of the Southern Poverty Law Center. What do you do with [...]

Posted in Education, Michigan | Also tagged at will, Brooke Harris, charter schools, fundraisers, George Zimmerman, getting fired, Jacqueline Cassell, Pontiac Academy for Excellence, Southern Poverty Law Center, teachable moments, Trayvon Martin | 19 Comments

ALEC, the move to codify the extremist Republican agenda, and the Michigan connection

By Mark | March 26, 2012

Reading a column by Paul Krugman just now on the role of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) in pushing so-called “Stand Your Ground” legislation around the country, I was reminded by a recent article in Mother Jones about how ALEC, working through the Mackinac Center, played a role in passing Michigan’s Public Act 4, [...]

Posted in Civil Liberties, Michigan, Politics | Also tagged ALEC, American Legislative Exchange Council, Amway, anti-immigration, Brit Satchwell, Center for Media and Democracy, collective bargaining, conservative legislation, crony capitalism, Dick DeVos, Emergency Financial Manager Act, Emergency Financial Manger, Exxon Mobil, gun laws, Jonathan Williams, Koch brothers, Local Government and School District Fiscal Accountability Act, Louis Schimmel, Mackinac Center for Public Policy, Paul Krugman, privatization, Progress Michigan, Public Act 4, Rick Snyder, stand your ground, tax the rich, the growing gap between rich and poor, Trayvon Martin, union busting | 9 Comments

Protecting Ypsilanti’s community-owned assets from the Emergency Financial Manger… Have we done everything that we can to prepare?

By Mark | March 3, 2012

A little while ago, in an exchange with Jill Morey, the director of the Ypsilanti District Library, the subject came up of what would likely happen to the downtown library building, should an Emergency Financial Manager be appointed to takeover the City of Ypsilanti, and charged with liquidating our communal assets. Thankfully, we were told [...]