Quote Originally Posted by mam2009 View Post
@ Ray1936
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They didnt have a quorum for the meeting to discuss the budget crisis plan because one was sick, three were meeting with the financial review team and one had to leave for a conference on official City business. And if they had been there, you would probably still call them idiots because you wouldn't like the solutions that they proposed for right-sizing the budget! I, for one, am quite weary of folks bashing my elected representatives without being privy to why decisions are made. When you rely exclusively on the media for information about decisions that are being made or considered by our local representative body, you will normally be given a story that is written to highlight conflict and ignore the mundane facts and nuances that lead to those policy decisions.

Why don't you just go straight to the source? My City Council members all have phones and staff; several have websites, etc. that they regularly update. They have monthly meetings in various areas around the City. The Council meetings are shown live online during the day and rebroadcast at night on Comcast and AT&T Uverse. If you want financial information, I know that the Auditor General puts all of his reports online and I think the City Council's Fiscal Analyst does the same. READ, HEAR AND SEE FOR YOURSELF. STOP RELYING ON "JOURNALISTS" WHO ARE TAUGHT IN JOURNALISM SCHOOL THAT A STORY IS NOT A STORY WITHOUT CONFLICT.
I know you addressed the post to Ray1936 but I feel the need to respond.

Right sizing the budget?? How can you right size the budget and hand out raises when you're asking everyone else to take pay cut and make concessions with their health care? Idiots and hypocrites are what they are and Ray is right.

So sorry you are feeling weary of folks bashing YOUR elected representatives, you put them in office, you are to blame for what's happening in Detroit today. Voting a criminal in as Mayor, voting a council member in because of name recognition, you have been derelict in your duties.
You make it sound so business like when in fact it's next to impossible to get in touch with any of the council members either by email, phone or in person. They are incommunicato because they feel their positions warrant a superior attitude. When Gary Brown spouts off about laying off police officers it is so obvious he has a vendetta against the police force in general...he's a turncoat. He got a raise for a member of his staff, Pugh got a raise [[6K) for his pretty boy Chief of Staff, Brenda Jones got a raise for a member of her staff. What the hell is going on with their minds. How can they justify giving raises out to people when the City is in such dire straits?
I have been retired from the City of Detroit for almost 20 years and I can honestly tell you that there has not been one time that I have called down to the CAY for information regarding my pension or my benefits that I've ever received a call back. Either the lines are all busy, the voice mails are all full, or no one answers the phone...period.

You speak of conflict....well, with all due respect, there is plenty of conflict and it's not all because of journalist. It's very obvious what's going on down there when the council members are handing out raises to their favorites and in the same breath, asking police/fire personal to take another wage concession and to pay more for their health care. There has not been a raise since 2008, they are being asked to take a total of 25% concession since then. That's why there is conflict.