Happy Holidays

In the spirit of the season...

I had the opportunity last week to attend an all school Christmas sing-along at the Beautiful Boy's elementary school, and other than the usual kicking myself (deservedly so) in the fanny for spending too much time at work and missing too many of such things for my two lovely older children, it was one of those sweet moments when you realize how really precious life is. I spend an awful lot of time whining in this blog about how much better we could have it (and will continue to do so), but, truth be told, we as a nation are very blessed.

To wit: I stood in the school's cafeteria with the Beautiful Girl and watched as the children sang carol after carol with gusto, with sheer joy, and with the abandonment only five to ten-year-olds can have. Watching the excitement on their faces--Christmas is only days away, Winter Break starts in a few minutes, they're juiced on the sugar from their class parties--was a wonderful sight to behold, reminding me that America still has grand promise, and as long as we keep breeding (doubt that one's going away), we always will. Toward the end of the program, as the students and teachers were singing an increasingly disorganized "Twelve Days of Christmas," it dawned on me that at that moment, I had not a care in the world. It also dawned on me that, though not all of these children will succeed in life, the vast majority will, and for some odd reason this comforted me. Because some day these kids will take my place, and my neighbors' place, and my co-workers' place, and you know what? America will keep going, and though not all of them will, I'm sure there will be enough of them who will keep fighting the good fight that so many do to make this an even better country, an even more righteous country, and to look out for the least of their brothers. And that is a very good, and very hopeful, notion.

So...in the words of the jolly fat man in the red suit, "Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night."

Peace,
emaycee

Ghosts appear and fade away

It's not that I don't think the Kwame Kilpatrick saga is one of the most important stories in recent Detroit history. It's not that I don't think The Detroit Free Press did one hell of a job in rooting out the the story and making it public--and doing one hell of a service for the city of Detroit. It's not even that I don't think this week's story about the charges levelled at Kilpatrick and his cronies by U. S. Attorney Barbara McQuade doesn't merit the front page coverage it received.


But it reaches a point where you wonder what is overkill and what, if any, good all of the coverage (five full pages worth) does. Kwame Kilpatrick is already out of office. Kwame Kilpatrick is already in jail. I suppose that if all or some of McQuade's charges result in conviction, Kwame Kilpatrick will spend more time in jail. His cronies will also spend time in jail. And this will accomplish...what? It's not that I don't think they deserve it, but I don't think more jail time on top of time already being served is worthy of five pages of coverage. And the time Kilpatrick serves will be as big of a deterrent to future Detroit politicians as...the death penalty is to future murderers. Everyone thinks they will be the one to get away from it.

And...one wonders what five pages of coverage would have done to educate people about healthcare reform. Or five pages on the Bush tax cuts. Or five pages on the candidates we recently elected. I just don't see where the Free Press' recent coverage of the charges levelled against Kilpatrick and his cronies does all that much to make the lives of ordinary people better, how it is anything more than one of those "ooh, this will win us some newspaper award for hard hitting coverage that covers next to nothing" pieces. A page or two would have been fine. The rest is overkill, taking space (and one would assume resources) that might actually make a difference in people's lives.

It's a good story. It's a safe story. But in the end, I don't think it's going to add one iota to make Detroit a better city or Michigan a better state.

Peace,
emaycee

Oxymorons

So my congressman, Mike Rogers, R-MI, has been named to head the House committee on Intelligence. Considering that every word he utters is like watching an episode of "Idiots on Parade," isn't Mike Rogers, Intelligence Committe Head, a bit of an oxymoron?

Yeah, it's a cheap shot, but a well-deserved cheap shot.

Peace,
emaycee

Trust me, sweat the small stuff

This piece was little more than a blurb regarding Unions protesting PulteGroup (the company name sounds like something out of 1984, doesn't it?) events ostensibly to force congressional hearings on how PulteGroup used federal money. It ends up reading like what it basically is: a corporate press release. The CEO, Richard Dugas, didn't show up to speak at the Detroit Economic Club luncheon because he had a "business conflict" (read: too chickenshit to face the protestors). The company spokesman said the unions were waging a "campaign of intimidation and false information against PulteGroup...." (read: we know the republican playbook well--make a generic accusatory claim because the press is too lazy to actually check it out). The piece closes with the usual, PulteGroup bemoaning that unions are actually trying to make employees lives better (read: can you believe the gall? they actually want decent wages and benefits!).

It's probably seems petty, but what bothers me most about the piece is that PulteGroup, through its spokesman, is actually given a face, while unions are basically a generic boogeyman. And this is a narrative that's been going on a long while, and one that if we don't change, our economic well-being is only going to worsen.

Peace,
emaycee

Class Warfare III

At least this one isn't a surprise. The Detroit News proudly bills itself as a conservative stink tank.... Apparently old Nolan thinks (if you can call what he does "thinking") that the public sector unions should follow the suit of certain private sector unions and sell out their brothers and sisters so the rich can get richer, and the rest of us can continue to fall farther and farther behind. Thanks, but no fucking thanks. All unions need to stay strong and not accept bad deals from greedy corporations whose wants will only continue to grow if they don't. There is nothing good that comes from unions accepting job cuts, wage cuts, or benefit cuts--and it only empowers corporations that don't have to deal with unions to offer their people the same bad deals. This is not, as Finley claims, a matter of profits. Frankly, it is a matter of needs versus wants, with the needs being jobs, decent wages, and good benefits, and the wants being unadulterated greed. Public sector employees need to start reminding the people of this country that they provide valued and vital services, and that they're worth every penny of what they get paid. Can you afford private school for your kids? Can you afford a private security detail? Can you afford to pave the roads you drive on? If not (about 95% of us), then sit the fuck down and shut the fuck up. Game, set, match...emaycee. Peace, emaycee

Class Warfare II

Swear to God, I woke up this morning and it was raining bullshit...from the pages of the Free Press.

In fairness to Wonk, he makes a a valid point: while the auto industry's comeback is very welcome news, we can no longer depend on it here in Michigan (or any other community dependent upon the auto industry) to be the cureall it once was. But then...but then...he has to get into the beltway conventionalism, which in short means "survival of the fittest" which is really short for the wealthy elite, which leaves somewhere around 95% of us fucked. He says Michigan has to switch from "big" to "smart" (good luck with that, considering we just elected the republicans to overwhelming majorities, and if you look up stupid in the dictionary there's a picture of the gop elephant next to it). Here's how he defines "smart": "more people will be left to their own devices" (what the fuck?...is this a nation or Robert Redford in Jeremiah Johnson?), "government will be doing less" (again, what the fuck?...with their utter incompetence--and even more important, their complete lack of concern for the welfare of others--the private sector makes the public sector look like an anal retentive book collector , I somehow doubt most Americans want to end up like some third world nation with children starving in the streets), and "the most dramatic cuts in public employment and services are yet to come"(ditto...why is it always the middle class and the poor who are expected to accept job losses and cuts in needed services? for what, so we can give out more corporate welfare? for what, so the wealthy can put more money in the bank?).

Over the years I've learned that you can't argue with stupid, but when it comes to defending the middle class you can't give up, either.

Peace,
emaycee

Class Warfare I

More brilliant analysis from the pages of the Free Press...shocking. Tax-cut deal "should" (quotes mine) help Michigan, Susan Tompor tells us. How does she figure this? Well, we're a state that sells stuff, so people having more money in their pockets is good for Michigan. (Cue incorrect answer buzzer) Wrong! Since the tax rates are already in place, you will be taxed at the same rate as before. You will not be taking home any more money. The payroll tax decrease will probably bring an extra tank of gas a month (half a tank if you drive an SUV)--and this will stimulate what? Will bring in how many jobs? And as for the wealthy, well they just put their money in the bank and history shows tax cuts have never done anything to stimulate the economy. And the kicker? If you make less than $20,000 dollars a year (roughly one in three American workers) you will likely see a tax increase. But never fear, Tompor cites several financial analysts who are more than happy to continue their roles as toadies for wall street and tell you how good this tax cut will be for stimulating Michigan's economy. And these people are right about as often...as the doofuses who write the paper's daily horoscope column. Good times...if you're wall street, a corporation, or a trust fund baby. Just more horseshit from our mainstream media. Peace, emaycee