Even the minister who was elected says he receives death threats.
(I actually work a lot in Detroit's residential neighborhoods. The only safety precaution my employer allows is... a rape whistle. I get some laughs when I tell the locals that.) #charlieleduff
Edited by that ain't the way to have fun, son at 11/13/09 12:32 PM
that ain't the way to have fun, son was starred
that ain't the way to have fun, son was unstarred
I happened to meet and fall for a Detroit girl this year. I've got nothing but love for that city, and it hurts to think about what it's become. #charlieleduff
@Spirit Fingers: Baltimore is nowhere near as dangerous as Detroit. Most of the nieghborhoods around the harbor (Canton, Fells Point, Mount Vernon, Federal Hill) are very safe and popular among young professionals. Of course, the rest of Baltimore really is a shithole like Druit Hill, East Baltimore, West Baltimore. I don't think even the nice parts of Detroit are nice any more. #charlieleduff
@Spirit Fingers: i'm a current resident of the beautiful city of new orleans, which is regularly named the winner in basically every fucked up "worst city in america" contest.
the odd part is i think i've developed stockholm syndrome, and the thought of living in a place where people don't get shot in the head on my block is oddly panic inducing. #charlieleduff
@oddseth: Those neighborhoods you're mentioning as safe are a matter of blocks. Harbor area, Johns Hopkins etc...but just like that...boarded up row houses and drug fiends. And I was in Baltimore during the so called "revitalization" doing away with the high rises (Murder, I mean Murphy Homes), Camden Yards, Ravens stadium, and all that...it wasn't that long ago. So, yeah, perhaps one might feel safe, but are they really? #charlieleduff
Yep, the auto industry did a real nice number on that town. I hope we can keep propping it up because it's obviously doing so much for its own community. Jackals. #charlieleduff
@Niko Bellic: We need to stay the course. Of course the security situation is unacceptable, but there are signs of improvement. The elections may have had some irregularities and were marred by violence in some precincts, but it takes time for a country to learn democracy. Though the investment of blood and treasure has been more dear than we wanted, the long-term benefits of a stable Detroit will improve the security picture in the entire region from Chicago to Minneapolis.
When the people of Detroit can stand up, we can stand down. #charlieleduff
@IppoJ: I think we should try to win the hearts and minds of the people of Detroit.
For example: get the kids more involved in sports. They probably like soccer, right? It would be such a heart warming story if Detroit could make World Cup. It would show the whole world how generous and compassionate America is, and what it can do for the less fortunate people who've known nothing but poverty and violence their entire lives!
We enjoy prosperity and peace here in America, but let it be known that we can lead the world in helping out the places that others have forgotten about and neglected!
@Niko Bellic: If we really want to win their hearts and minds, we first have to bomb them into submission, and then drop leaflets indicating our good intentions. #charlieleduff
@Niko Bellic: Ordering the most rapid possible expansion of the Detroit National Security Force should have required no discussion. Expanding Motor City forces has been a core principle of almost every plan the president has considered seriously. Indeed, it was one of the primary recommendations of the policy review conducted this spring. And it is also, again, something that could have been turned off with little harm if a few months of review changed the president's mind.
White House preoccupation with troop levels has also hindered the development and implementation of a coherent political strategy to improve Motor City governance to match McChrystal's military strategy. The administration's response to the predictably flawed elections has been reactive and defensive. Even now that the Kilpatrick election crisis has ended, the White House appears more intent on micromanaging the deployment of forces down to the last soldier than on developing a coherent approach to improving Motor City governance. The White House is now considering three, four, or five different force-level options, depending on the (official or anonymous) source. It has yet to show that it has developed any serious options for political strategy.
In the meantime, the enemy has not been idle. Crack dealer forces throughout the south have been preparing themselves to meet an expected American counter-offensive. They have refined their propaganda messaging both within Detroit and toward the U.S. They have also taken advantage of the flawed presidential elections to expound their own political vision for the country and start actively competing with the government for legitimacy.
America has vital interests in Detroit. The White House debate has only pointed up the continued close ties between the crack dealers and the Black Mafia Family. Michigan's operations against its own internal foes have shown yet again how important it is for the U.S. to succeed on the Motor City side of the Twelfth Street Line if we are to help Michigan defeat enemies that threaten itself and the West.
The mission in Detroit remains doable. U.S. and allied forces have made some progress in areas of Motown and are engaging the enemy in parts of Livonia and elsewhere that we had previously ignored. Reinforcing those successes and giving General McChrystal the forces he needs to protect other key population centers and attack other important enemy sanctuaries offers a good prospect of neutralizing the insurgency. It will buy time for the administration to implement a political strategy in Detroit.
But the administration must also buy more time for its commander. The White House cannot sit on the general's proposals and requests for months and still expect him to meet a deadline set when he took command. It is still possible, if the White House sends General McChrystal the forces he needs, to see a significant improvement in Detroit in a year--but the year begins when the additional resources start flowing. That, in turn, means that Detroit may not seem to be doing that well next summer when both the crack dealer fighting season and the congressional campaign season are at their heights. The president has a responsibility to keep Washington politics from derailing the effort in Detroit at a critical moment next year.
One of the keys to retaining domestic political support for the Compton surge was the deliberate management of expectations by General Petraeus, Ambassador Crocker, and the administration generally. President Obama now faces a challenge at least as great. He must explain to the American people the need to fight the war, the need to send more forces, and the reasons to believe that success is possible. He must also explain realistically how long and serious the effort will be. And he must do it very soon. #charlieleduff
@NorthernLite: Thank you for that. I actually don't have a particular problem with the original post, but these 'Detroit SUcKS' news itemss always brings out a ghoulish little dance of bad "Detroit=Hell/burn baby burn!" jokes in the comments that make me stabby. #charlieleduff
@NorthernLite: Yeah! The Lions, the auto industry, the housing market, the commercial vacancies in downtown Birmingham. Feel the revival!!! #charlieleduff
@NorthernLite: what did you think of that Time magazine story about a month ago, I thought it was rather thoughtful discussing Detroit's problems, but also all the ways it's changing itself. If you haven't seen it, I'll try to find the link for you. #charlieleduff
@Richard Petty Bourgeoisie: Tell me about it. My neighborhood was built in 2005 for $269,000, we moved in 2007, and the neighbors just sold for a whopping $116,000. #charlieleduff
@Juancho: @Scooter34: The numbers for "my friend": 2005 purchase price - $405,000; 2009 sales price - $189,000. In a good suburb with a great school district. I don't think that people outside of that area understand how bad the real estate market is. The WSJ and NYT will report on $5,000 houses in Detroit, but that's easy. The real story (actually pursued by Mr. LeDuff earlier this year) is the massive depreciation in the nice 'burbs. My East Coast friends complain that they lost money on their houses because they break even after closing costs. That ain't losing money, Nillas! #charlieleduff
@Richard Petty Bourgeoisie: I've done a ton of looking at both areas lately for homes: The Cleveland market (where I live) is crazy depressed as it is, but you could probably get twice the house for the same money in Detroit.
I can't even imagine what the rental market is like. #charlieleduff
@Juancho: Since Metro Detroit's real estate decline started before the rest of the country, I think it's at bottom, BUT if Chrysler or GM liquidate, there won't be a bottom. Good luck. #charlieleduff
@Richard Petty Bourgeoisie: [And Juanco]
Well, I could go into my whole hard luck story -- plenty of un- and underemployment. Probably worse than many others have had. And it's not like I was ever rich or ever have had a great house.
And I'm not blind to the crime, tthe terrible blight of decrepit buildings, poor public schools in the city itself.
But I also think Southeast MI still has so many areas of great beauty; fantastic cultural arts institutions; three or four sports orgs that aren't the Lions; etc. I just like this state, and there's lots of other places I wouldn't want to live even if I could make a lot more money there.
Like NoelleBlue said, there's something odd about the tone/ attitude of people in other parts of the country/ world as they dissect a town many of them have never even been too or only visited very briefly. #charlieleduff
@MrInBetween: Interesting that the population numbers aren't printed on the city signage for a town known for residents being knocked off at an alarming pace. #charlieleduff
@MrInBetween: Not to get all serious, but hard not to, as a Detroit-area type - there's too many people in the city and surrounding areas who can't afford to go anywhere to call it dead, as much fun as it is to flippantly do so from the outside. That's 4 million people in the Metro Detroit area.
Calling it dead is giving up, and there's too much there to give up on. Or, at least, that's how it should be.
I think those who cheerfully dance on it's grave forget how BIG it is.
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11/13/09
[www.freep.com]
Even the minister who was elected says he receives death threats.
(I actually work a lot in Detroit's residential neighborhoods. The only safety precaution my employer allows is... a rape whistle. I get some laughs when I tell the locals that.) #charlieleduff
11/13/09
11/13/09
11/13/09
Yeah, but then you live in Detroit.
Crack pipe... Literally in this case. Probably a pile of used ones on every-other-corner.
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Has anyone even been to Baltimore? #charlieleduff
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Reppin' Cleveland here. #charlieleduff
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11/13/09
the odd part is i think i've developed stockholm syndrome, and the thought of living in a place where people don't get shot in the head on my block is oddly panic inducing. #charlieleduff
11/13/09
11/13/09
I should not be exposed to news about Detroit at this time of the month. #charlieleduff
11/13/09
11/13/09
11/13/09
When the people of Detroit can stand up, we can stand down. #charlieleduff
11/13/09
11/13/09
For example: get the kids more involved in sports. They probably like soccer, right? It would be such a heart warming story if Detroit could make World Cup. It would show the whole world how generous and compassionate America is, and what it can do for the less fortunate people who've known nothing but poverty and violence their entire lives!
We enjoy prosperity and peace here in America, but let it be known that we can lead the world in helping out the places that others have forgotten about and neglected!
11/13/09
11/13/09
11/13/09
White House preoccupation with troop levels has also hindered the development and implementation of a coherent political strategy to improve Motor City governance to match McChrystal's military strategy. The administration's response to the predictably flawed elections has been reactive and defensive. Even now that the Kilpatrick election crisis has ended, the White House appears more intent on micromanaging the deployment of forces down to the last soldier than on developing a coherent approach to improving Motor City governance. The White House is now considering three, four, or five different force-level options, depending on the (official or anonymous) source. It has yet to show that it has developed any serious options for political strategy.
In the meantime, the enemy has not been idle. Crack dealer forces throughout the south have been preparing themselves to meet an expected American counter-offensive. They have refined their propaganda messaging both within Detroit and toward the U.S. They have also taken advantage of the flawed presidential elections to expound their own political vision for the country and start actively competing with the government for legitimacy.
America has vital interests in Detroit. The White House debate has only pointed up the continued close ties between the crack dealers and the Black Mafia Family. Michigan's operations against its own internal foes have shown yet again how important it is for the U.S. to succeed on the Motor City side of the Twelfth Street Line if we are to help Michigan defeat enemies that threaten itself and the West.
The mission in Detroit remains doable. U.S. and allied forces have made some progress in areas of Motown and are engaging the enemy in parts of Livonia and elsewhere that we had previously ignored. Reinforcing those successes and giving General McChrystal the forces he needs to protect other key population centers and attack other important enemy sanctuaries offers a good prospect of neutralizing the insurgency. It will buy time for the administration to implement a political strategy in Detroit.
But the administration must also buy more time for its commander. The White House cannot sit on the general's proposals and requests for months and still expect him to meet a deadline set when he took command. It is still possible, if the White House sends General McChrystal the forces he needs, to see a significant improvement in Detroit in a year--but the year begins when the additional resources start flowing. That, in turn, means that Detroit may not seem to be doing that well next summer when both the crack dealer fighting season and the congressional campaign season are at their heights. The president has a responsibility to keep Washington politics from derailing the effort in Detroit at a critical moment next year.
One of the keys to retaining domestic political support for the Compton surge was the deliberate management of expectations by General Petraeus, Ambassador Crocker, and the administration generally. President Obama now faces a challenge at least as great. He must explain to the American people the need to fight the war, the need to send more forces, and the reasons to believe that success is possible. He must also explain realistically how long and serious the effort will be. And he must do it very soon. #charlieleduff
11/13/09
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11/13/09
11/13/09
11/13/09
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I can't even imagine what the rental market is like. #charlieleduff
11/13/09
11/13/09
Well, I could go into my whole hard luck story -- plenty of un- and underemployment. Probably worse than many others have had. And it's not like I was ever rich or ever have had a great house.
And I'm not blind to the crime, tthe terrible blight of decrepit buildings, poor public schools in the city itself.
But I also think Southeast MI still has so many areas of great beauty; fantastic cultural arts institutions; three or four sports orgs that aren't the Lions; etc. I just like this state, and there's lots of other places I wouldn't want to live even if I could make a lot more money there.
Like NoelleBlue said, there's something odd about the tone/ attitude of people in other parts of the country/ world as they dissect a town many of them have never even been too or only visited very briefly. #charlieleduff
11/13/09
11/13/09
11/13/09
11/13/09
Calling it dead is giving up, and there's too much there to give up on. Or, at least, that's how it should be.
I think those who cheerfully dance on it's grave forget how BIG it is.
11/13/09
04/02/09