Can Vicki Barnett Beat LBP for Oakland County Executive?

[Calltoaction]

Racism and egomania have been the foundation of Brooks' entire political career, the man was against desegregation of schools. He only keeps us in the past.

[GMan]

My biggest gripe about Patterson is how his us-vs-them mentality has contributed to depress metro Detroit as a whole. I wish more people in Oakland County realized how much regional macro economics affect them too. Finest cabin in a listing ship. I hope he's voted out.

That was the prevailing mentality in all of S.E. Michigan back then. C.A.Y. did his part to contribute to that view. LBP had money on his side at the time back then and could turn his back on the city. Now everybody is competing for a smaller pool of businesses and O.C. is suffering too.

[softailrider]

Did you ever think that in spite of all his foibles and baggage, he keeps being re elected because he consistently does a good job for the county who pays his salary? I really don't think there's any other reason.

[Cincinnati_Kid]

That was the prevailing mentality in all of S.E. Michigan back then. C.A.Y. did his part to contribute to that view. LBP had money on his side at the time back then and could turn his back on the city. Now everybody is competing for a smaller pool of businesses and O.C. is suffering too.

CAY was treating LBP just as he was treating him. It goes both ways, Bud... LBP steered everything away from Detroit, to promote Oakland County. He was never about working together for the good of SE Michigan, he was all about Oakland County, and to a lesser degree, Macomb County. Anybody but Wayne County. Heard he about shit his pants when he found out, the Pistons are moving back downtown. It's all academic now anyway, he's back in the big chair for another term, hopefully his last...

[GMan]

CAY was treating LBP just as he was treating him. It goes both ways, Bud... LBP steered everything away from Detroit, to promote Oakland County. He was never about working together for the good of SE Michigan, he was all about Oakland County, and to a lesser degree, Macomb County. Anybody but Wayne County. Heard he about shit his pants when he found out, the Pistons are moving back downtown. It's all academic now anyway, he's back in the big chair for another term, hopefully his last...

That's what I was saying, it went both ways. It's not like CAY or LBP would extend an olive branch to the other. LBP just had cheap land and taxes as a ace in the hole to lure those businesses, CAY didn't.

[Cincinnati_Kid]

That's what I was saying, it went both ways. It's not like CAY or LBP would extend an olive branch to the other. LBP just had cheap land and taxes as a ace in the hole to lure those businesses, CAY didn't.

Ok, I misunderstood you, thanks for clarifying.

[Bham1982]

That's what I was saying, it went both ways. It's not like CAY or LBP would extend an olive branch to the other. LBP just had cheap land and taxes as a ace in the hole to lure those businesses, CAY didn't.

I don't think "cheap land and taxes" has anything to do with it. Most former downtown businesses that relocated from Detroit to Oakland chose some of the highest tax/highest land value jurisdictions in Michigan.

[GMan]

I don't think "cheap land and taxes" has anything to do with it. Most former downtown businesses that relocated from Detroit to Oakland chose some of the highest tax/highest land value jurisdictions in Michigan.

In the mid 70's land value was not as inflated as it is now. Couple that with tax breaks to move the business, it made more sense to re-locate than re-investing in the old facility. This increased Oakland counties tax base and resulted in the values we see today.

[Danny]

No he won't, Vicki can win if enough people vote. There's a much larger pool of young forward thinking voters in Oakland.

L.B. Patterson wins the election once again. Oakland County, get use to four more years of his racist cussing and anti-regional attitude. Deal with it.

[Danny]

Racism and egomania have been the foundation of Brooks' entire political career, the man was against desegregation of schools. He only keeps us in the past.

When I see black folks hit north of 8 Mile Rd. Southfield, Oak Park, Lathrup Village and Royal Oak TWP. and Pontiac. Desegregation of any services in the O.C. became the reality.

What L.B.P. is going to do? Blame Detroit! blame Coleman Young or blame the ethnic Jews who once lived in those areas, sell their properties to black folks and move on.

[emu steve]

And gee whiz, baby boomers remember Orville Hubbard in Dearborn.

So Oakland County to the north, and Dearborn to the west.

At least the Detroit River never elected an anti-Detroit pol.

[gnome]

Brooks became OC Executive in 1992

Coleman retired in 1994 and for the last two years of his term he rarely left Manoogian and rarely got out of his pajamas.

You folks have imagined big fights between Brooks and Colemen. It is akin to having a serious discussion over who would win an egg rolling contest: Batman or Superman.

[GMan]

Brooks became OC Executive in 1992

Coleman retired in 1994 and for the last two years of his term he rarely left Manoogian and rarely got out of his pajamas.

You folks have imagined big fights between Brooks and Colemen. It is akin to having a serious discussion over who would win an egg rolling contest: Batman or Superman.

The love fest started before he was OC exec. Here's an excerpt from a Newyorker article:

At one point, Young, who had already irritated Patterson by referring to Oakland County as “the cornfields,” called him a racist for having represented the anti-busing organization. Patterson fired back on the op-ed page: “If favoring the neighborhood school and opposing the attempt to make schoolchildren pawns of the federal court social experiment makes me a racist, then I plead guilty. If opposing Coleman Young’s $600 million Detroit subway, an extravagant and ineffective testament to his ego, makes me a racist, then I plead guilty. . . . If publicly stating . . . that future economic bailouts for Detroit are at an end until Detroit gets its own fiscal house in order makes me a racist, then I plead guilty.”

[canuck]

The love fest started before he was OC exec. Here's an excerpt from a Newyorker article:

At one point, Young, who had already irritated Patterson by referring to Oakland County as “the cornfields,” called him a racist for having represented the anti-busing organization. Patterson fired back on the op-ed page: “If favoring the neighborhood school and opposing the attempt to make schoolchildren pawns of the federal court social experiment makes me a racist, then I plead guilty. If opposing Coleman Young’s $600 million Detroit subway, an extravagant and ineffective testament to his ego, makes me a racist, then I plead guilty. . . . If publicly stating . . . that future economic bailouts for Detroit are at an end until Detroit gets its own fiscal house in order makes me a racist, then I plead guilty.”

Funny. I just think of all the money and effort that went into these postwar missile defense systems both in Detroit and adjacent cornfields. How extravagan t! Coleman woulda put a subway in Detroit and he's still seen as a shill for promoting all that is bigoted and incendiary and counterproductive in metro Detroit. Mr Patterson continues as the undisputed king of Sprawl. Why should he change his recipe of countering the core city's effort at centering itself as the naturally occurring hub of the region? People keep voting him in...

Your post illustrates beyond question the dismal condition of Detroit's situation in the region when political forces refuse to acknowledge the preeminence of the central city. It has hurt the economic and social cohesion in many ways and undermines cultural destiny in a city that might have proved a model in diversity if the cards had been dealt fairly early on.

[GMan]

Funny. I just think of all the money and effort that went into these postwar missile defense systems both in Detroit and adjacent cornfields. How extravagan t! Coleman woulda put a subway in Detroit and he's still seen as a shill for promoting all that is bigoted and incendiary and counterproductive in metro Detroit. Mr Patterson continues as the undisputed king of Sprawl. Why should he change his recipe of countering the core city's effort at centering itself as the naturally occurring hub of the region? People keep voting him in...

Your post illustrates beyond question the dismal condition of Detroit's situation in the region when political forces refuse to acknowledge the preeminence of the central city. It has hurt the economic and social cohesion in many ways and undermines cultural destiny in a city that might have proved a model in diversity if the cards had been dealt fairly early on.

No it doesn't illustrate beyond question that the condition of Detroit is because Coleman didn't get a subway.
Detroit had it's share of federal dollars for projects that went to friends of the mayor. Building that subway wouldn't have changed the fact that people were still moving out. Schools were in a decline. Crime was ramping up. Arson was Detroit's favorite pastime. If I had a dollar for every time I heard: if we just build this stadium, it will bring jobs and people back to Detroit.
Meanwhile we couldn't get a policeman to our neighborhood unless we threatened to take matters into our own hands. Street lights out, too bad.
Sewers plugged. Your on the list
Basically if the subway would have been built, Detroit would've had a hole in the ground. Maybe that could have been an attraction.

[canuck]

No it doesn't illustrate beyond question that the condition of Detroit is because Coleman didn't get a subway.
Detroit had it's share of federal dollars for projects that went to friends of the mayor. Building that subway wouldn't have changed the fact that people were still moving out. Schools were in a decline. Crime was ramping up. Arson was Detroit's favorite pastime. If I had a dollar for every time I heard: if we just build this stadium, it will bring jobs and people back to Detroit.
Meanwhile we couldn't get a policeman to our neighborhood unless we threatened to take matters into our own hands. Street lights out, too bad.
Sewers plugged. Your on the list
Basically if the subway would have been built, Detroit would've had a hole in the ground. Maybe that could have been an attraction.

Only problem is if you meant to discount Patterson's avowed racism and substitute it with common sense arguments, it doesn't fly.

The truth is Young wasn't there long enough to have had a cultural economic decline caused by his leadership, and a black urban majority alone. The lack of gelling in the metro community at large is to blame. It had more to do with uncooperative behavior on all counts. You can of course make a point for the African American community's lacking in business and other skills for many social ailments. Historically, you would need to agree to a shared responsibility on the part of whites and blacks for racist and unprogressive agendas that plumbed Detroit. Why not recognize the faults amd move toward betterment? Why harken for a time of miserable conditions by voting for neanderthals like Trump and Patterson? Coleman Young was bitter, but he had more reason to be than any other mayor in the USofA at that time.

[GMan]

Only problem is if you meant to discount Patterson's avowed racism and substitute it with common sense arguments, it doesn't fly.

The truth is Young wasn't there long enough to have had a cultural economic decline caused by his leadership, and a black urban majority alone. The lack of gelling in the metro community at large is to blame. It had more to do with uncooperative behavior on all counts. You can of course make a point for the African American community's lacking in business and other skills for many social ailments. Historically, you would need to agree to a shared responsibility on the part of whites and blacks for racist and unprogressive agendas that plumbed Detroit. Why not recognize the faults amd move toward betterment? Why harken for a time of miserable conditions by voting for neanderthals like Trump and Patterson? Coleman Young was bitter, but he had more reason to be than any other mayor in the USofA at that time.

Young inherited a declining city but instead of reaching out for a solution, used the caustic situation to further his power and attempt to line his pockets.
Brooks is guilty of using the same situation to build up his county. He was just in a better position to do it at the time. C.Y. had less money to play with and Brooks had a growing revenue base. Can you blame people for wanting to live where they get the services they paid for.
Couple that with other social ailments and you get a bankrupt Detroit.
Pump all the federal dollars you want into it but it was what it was.
I always believed the neighborhoods would save Detroit. But once drugs and other crime invaded those havens, people said ENOUGH is ENOUGH and out they moved. Who cared if a new sports arena was built or if the People mover was built or if Cobo was expanded. Detroit was just a nice place to visit. Not to live.