Opinion: Lansing’s Ascared of Detroit

[ordinary]

No cares about the $5 dollar day, the Battle of the Bridge, the Arsenal of Democracy, the Sit-down, the this/the that.

I am so glad that somebody finally said this. We need to finally move past this. Those days are long gone and clinging to this stuff makes us look like a bunch of troglodytes.

[Detroitus]

Viewing this on going saga from afar it's sad that Detroit and the state have not moved from their ingrained distrust of each other that has been going on for at least 40 years, that being my entire life. I think many services and department, including transportation and water, should have been regionalized years ago, but as the Cobo convention hall debate showed every changed in Detroit is suspect, with the loudest voices always crying racism and an invasion and take over by outsiders. And yet some of those fears may be true as it seem neither side sees the other as an equal and a trusted partner.

But the debate and and the political dancing can't go on forever; I doubt that either side thinks they can avoid bankruptcy for more than a few months. So it comes down to either working with the State in the form of a consent agreement or without the State and go through court directed bankruptcy, like the city of Vallejo, California just did and Stockton CA is about to do. Which is why I wonder with such a important decision the Council and Mayor don't put it up to a referendum of the electorate of Detroit.