I'm not at all sure what the tragic story in the original post has to do with raising kids in Detroit or Highland Park. It sounds like one sick individual doing something awful. Whatever you think of parents in the city, I don't think outright torture of children by their parents is any more common here than anywhere else.

I grew up on the east side [[in Indian Village) went to public schools, and have survived to a productive adulthood - as has my sister, my cousins, and many of my friends. My parents, who still live in the IV area [[as do I) are far from "doofuses," and I can't think of a single one of our neighbors who fits that description, so I really think you have no idea what the hell you're talking about.

Raising children in the city no doubt has some special challenges, but lots of people seem to manage it [[including my sister before her job moved her south). Although it seems to have been a somewhat different experience than that of friends of mine who grew up in the suburbs, my life has certainly been richer for having been raised in an urban environment here in the City of Detroit.