ThinkTank Says Bankruptcy Not As It Appears

[Det_ard]

My favorite argument is that the state should have stepped in sooner and fixed Detroit's finances, but they didn't and that's why Detroit is heading to bankruptcy now.

Paradoxically, this argument seems to be made by the same people who were fiercely against any previous state "interference" in Detroit's sovereign governing affairs, and who now are the loudest critics of the state "denying democracy" to the citizens of the city.

[corktownyuppie]

All non-partisan means is that a group does not affiliate with a party. It does not mean that they don't have and advocate a point of view. I am right wing, but I am not a Republican. Technically, I am non-partisan. But I generally advocate for conservative candidates.

I am non-partisan, but I generally vote center-left.

After having read the report, I notice that it addresses the cash-flow crisis but not the service crisis. Now yes, it does talk about how increased revenue sharing will go to improved services, but let's be honest...the long-term population drop is more than 10 years old.

Even when the city was fiscally "healthy", 15 years ago, services will still a disaster by any modern standard, and population losses go back 60 years.

And let's not forget crime. Even before the money problems, the crime problems were horrible and driving population to move away.

So while I'm generally sympathetic to the idea that on a numbers-alone basis, there may be some creative ways that we could turn the clock back to where we were in 2002, let's not kid ourselves. 2002 wasn't sustainable either...we would just end up right back here in 5 years as population numbers plummet and create another cash-flow problem.

Duggan is smart about this. He says the #1 criteria for whether or not he's a successful mayor is whether or not the population grows. That simple. The problem with the Demos study is that none of its proposed solutions address that problem. And it's the one which will inevitably drive us into bankruptcy in the long run.

[BankruptcyGuy]

What I meant to say is that the report has several glaring inaccuracies.

First, it's not particularly relevant what the City actually contributed to the pension funds. What matters is what they were supposed to contribute. They covered over the absence of cash flow by failing to make contributions. The personal parallel would be a guy paying the minimum on his credit card and thinking that the balance would never be due.

Second, they argue that debt is not relevant, only debt service payments. Again, that presumes that the payments being made will be made forever. They won't. Bonds will come due, and it is difficult to refinance them.

Third, they try to spin off the DWSD debt, while including the DWSD surplus payments to the City. You can't have it both ways.

I could go on, but it's not really worth it.

[Wesley Mouch]

I nominate corktownyuppie for mayor of detroityes.

[That Great Guy]

The State of Michigan built vast freeways enabling people to flee to the far out suburbs instead of fixing Detroit. Please see this same post in the freep link at the top of this thread

[corktownyuppie]

I nominate corktownyuppie for mayor of detroityes.

Damn, son, am I getting passed over for the Emergency Manager position?

[Wesley Mouch]

Damn, son, am I getting passed over for the Emergency Manager position?

Yep, no power for you. The man has decided no power for you.

But you'll be pleased to know that BankruptcyGuy is in the running for EFM of DY.

[JBMcB]

The State of Michigan built vast freeways enabling people to flee to the far out suburbs instead of fixing Detroit.

They built vast freeways because they thought it *would* fix Detroit. Central planning at it's finest. Throw on a few decades of worthless urban planning on top of the pile, and you have where we are today.

[BankruptcyGuy]

Yep, no power for you. The man has decided no power for you.

But you'll be pleased to know that BankruptcyGuy is in the running for EFM of DY.

corktowntyuppie, please report to my office. We need to talk about your compensation package.

[That Great Guy]

They built vast freeways because they thought it *would* fix Detroit. Central planning at it's finest. Throw on a few decades of worthless urban planning on top of the pile, and you have where we are today.

search The abolition of state revenue sharing for mass transit in Michigan

[Cliffy]

Detroit is bankrupt but the right wing vultures fly in and immediately point the finger at the little people that get health care or a pension and its all because of that. Republicans don't want people to have health insurance or retire so they want to take that away and have the guy making $8 an hour up in arms at Walmart to take away everything the common man gets because he doesn't get it at Walmart. Its a vicious cycle because 50% of this country is dumb.

[Wesley Mouch]

search The abolition of state revenue sharing for mass transit in Michigan

I did. I agree with you on the need for transit. However democracy led us to a different result. The voters spoke in Livonia [[for example). Sorry it wasn't your choice. Wasn't my choice.

But when voters don't agree, you don't just go and find another way to fund your idea of progress. And then complain that its somehow unjust to defund transit. Or you can just decide its a vast right-wing conspiracy.

As you wish.