Image of Detroit in the national press

[renf]

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/07/fa...-stories-below

The lead article in the style section of the morning paper is focused upon "Detroit Cool" and Shinola. It is a balanced essay with a rather positive description of Detroit and Shinola. I did not realize that 55% of the components of GM pick-up trucks are made outside North America.

[Honky Tonk]

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/07/fa...-stories-below

The lead article in the style section of the morning paper is focused upon "Detroit Cool" and Shinola. It is a balanced essay with a rather positive description of Detroit and Shinola. I did not realize that 55% of the components of GM pick-up trucks are made outside North America.

You probably didn't realize 55% of the components of Shinola's watches and bicycles are made outside of North America.

[emu steve]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifes...2a1_story.html

[emu steve]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/natio...612_story.html

Bottom line: The stories about Detroit nationally seem to be getting a lot better.

Still remember when Morning Joe show came to Detroit to tout the turnaround...

Hell, even the image of Detroit is getting better in Detroit [[S.E. MI).

http://www.freep.com/story/money/bus...roit/78371892/

[bust]

I'm encouraged there has been so much recent progress. It's clear to me things are improving.

Having grown up there and since lived elsewhere, I don't know the city like those who never left. But if I lived my whole life immersed in Detroit in decline I suspect I'd have a harder time recognizing many of the positive changes, and even a harder time believing them. It makes sense that so many years of overwhelmingly bad news would exact a psychological burden on me.

Like you probably do, I take outside perspectives with a grain of salt, or three. But outside perspectives can offer useful insights, especially when they come unburdened by expectations what to see. And perceptions are important. Even more, momentum is key.

Bankruptcy is behind Detroit, businesses are returning to the city, new ones are starting, properties are getting renovated, new ones are being built. Detroit still has dire problems, but there are good reasons to be optimistic -- now more than in a long time.

There are lots of opportunities in Detroit. It will take optimism to invest and make them real. And that will create the momentum Detroit needs to succeed. Today it seems the deficit is still in optimism, not opportunity. And smart optimism will be rewarded handsomely.

Let's motivate to repair and create a new Detroit, learn from past mistakes, and make smart decisions to build for the long-term health of the city and good of the community.

I'll fully admit it: this comes from someone whose lack of optimism about the city was many years ago part of my decision to flee. I'm happy Detroit is improving. No thanks to me.

[illwill]

Many of us had to flee. The time away rejuvenated my attitude towards the city and I've since returned and bought in the city. After living in other cities I realized they have the exact same issues that we have. Except our dirt made national headlines. I no longer wanted to spend my time & money fixing up someone else's city when I could contribute to my own. Not to mention that after a hard days work I can slide into any Detroit pub and watch my teams play with people who love the city's teams like me. Can't do that in other cities. Detroit is a special place but we're down on ourselves. Sometimes you have to get away to realize it. We certainly have our fair share of problems but we have great people in our region compared to many other places.

I'm also aware that i have to be more involved than just living here. I have to be HEAVILY involved in the community throughout the entire city. Detroit has been left so far behind that we all must do more than living, investing and working here. We need to be involved in the root problems.

[Király]

You probably didn't realize 55% of the components of Shinola's watches and bicycles are made outside of North America.

It's a little unrealistic to expect every component and subcomponent of a Shinola watch or bicycle to be made locally, right down to locally made gears and sprockets made from locally smelted steel made from locally sourced iron, manganese, and molybdenum ore mined from local Michigan mines.

[G-DDT]

^^^unless you got Victoria Jackson celebrating Christmas on a deserted island with Paul Simonhttps://vimeo.com/54214852.

Anyway, thanks for the first article, Emu Steve. I've said it before, not too many places in my travels have the same food situation that Detroit [[nay, Michigan) has. We serve hearty food, in big portions [[with plenty of leftovers), at a cheaper price [[unless you are in Corktown).

Also, in my travels, I've learned any chance folks can take making a swipe at another region, they most definitely will. Part of it is the way the prevailing competitive sports mentality has made this country sublimely divisive. So, naturally, folks from Ohio got ugly things to say about Michigan [[anyone pulled over by an Ohio State Trooper understands this). Though, some Ohio folk will come up here to party; while other Ohians [[much like our neighbors in Indiana, whom some of us regard well if you are Notre Dame fans) will come up to party and find that the women are not as friendly as they expected [[or maybe not as compliant and as ditsy as they had hoped).

I've also seen regions that swipe at other states for issues that they had even worse [[Cincinnati folks chiding Kentucky for lack of teeth, when I saw differently. Kentucky folks making jokes about West Virginia folks as being incestuous, when parts of Kentucky are pretty bad about that. Typical human mechanisms of projection.).

Even before the topics of Detroit even get presented in the company of folks from Boston or the Chicago [[or entire Mid-Illinois region, for that matter), I find that they are personalities of a similar rude and bullying nature [[in fact it was two months into my anguished time in Boston, that I got re-assurance from a couple leaving a Hanneford's to go to their car with a U of M sticker and Michigan plates that had lived there for a while, that other states will refer to folks from Massachusetts as "Mass-holes"). When the topic of my origin comes up around such personalities, they snarl upon [[with little respectful regard) "how bad Detroit and how it is an abandoned garbage heap that should be burned down" [[where as, Chicago folks seem to hate the Pistons more than anything). Remember when the mayor of Boston, "Mumbles" Menino, attacked Detroit? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/0...n_3862375.htmlHeck! I almost got assaulted by a Boston mail carrier for wearing a Yankees hat on 9/11. So, anyone can have a gripe about any region they feel threatened by or appear #2 in comparison to.

I can't say how Cleveland folks deem us [[some are real big Ford Mustang fans), but Pittsburgh seems cool with Detroit [[it's not like they have any stiff competition to threaten their Steelers, but Penguins fans will turn on ya'.).

Otherwise, places like Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Rhode Island, Rochester, NY, Louisville, Iowa City, Albany, even Madison seem to have no lasting ill impression of Detroit as a whole. I'm sure there are a lot of folks from Tennessee and Florida who were former Michigan residents.

Usually, it's issues of our musical culture or racial diversity [[with a blind-eye to our prevailing suburb-to-city style segregation) that hold us in high esteem with others. That is, unless it's because you ran into someone who happens to be quite the auto-phile gearhead.

[bust]

It's a little unrealistic to expect every component and subcomponent of a Shinola watch or bicycle to be made locally, right down to locally made gears and sprockets made from locally smelted steel made from locally sourced iron, manganese, and molybdenum ore mined from local Michigan mines.

Of course, I agree. I wouldn't expect that. But I'm happy to say I definitively know that many of the tiny little gears and sprockets that go into Shinola watches are in fact made locally. I was told by the supplier who makes them.