In the movie Short Cuts, Buck Henry and his pals, while on a fishing trip, find the body of a young woman. She’s underwater and clearly dead. And, by the looks of it, she hasn’t been there long. They debate hiking back to civilization so that they can tell someone, [...]
At the University of Michigan on Monday, February 9, the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP) will be hosting a panel discussion on “Michigan’s Economy in 2009 and Beyond.” The event will feature John Austin, the Director of the New Economy Initiative for Southeast Michigan, Charles [...]
A fews days ago I put this question to a reader of this site who seems knowledgeable as to the inner workings of the City and Township fire departments. Following is his response:
Mark, I’d like to address a local topic that pops up every so often, but is in the [...]
I’m not a fan of modern country music, but I thought, given the subject matter addressed in this new song by John Rich, that I should share the video. The song is called, “Shuttin’ Detroit Down.”
The refrain, for those of you unable to listen, is:
In the real world, [...]
I’ve just been informed that I’ve been “tagged” through a social networking site, which apparently means that I have to do whatever I’m told, and then identify a number of my friends so that they can be forced to do the same. It’s like a chain letter, but somewhat more [...]
I was recently contacted by Peri Stone-Palmquist, the coordinator of the Education Project for Homeless Youth in Washtenaw County, and asked if I would mention a February sock and underwear drive being held on behalf of the young people they work with. I agreed, and took the opportunity to [...]
As we discussed here earlier in the month, a study was recently released that showed so-called “purity pledges” made by young women often had the unintended consequence of leading to unprotected anal sex. Well, sex columnist Dan Savage, perhaps best known for taking a former Senator’s name - [...]
A few days ago, I posted something here on the site about how there were more people standing on the Mall in DC for Obama’s inauguration than there are living in the entire, sprawling city of Detroit. The post itself wasn’t particularly insightful, but it led [...]
Now that Obama has proposed an economic recovery plan, and set the wheels in motion to close our secret prisons around the world, deal with the individuals being held without charges at Guantanamo and stop the use of torture, he’s moving on to the environment. Today he signed two [...]
The greatest terrorist of all time, Bill “Kill Your parents” Ayers, and his old lady, Bernadine Dohrn, surfaced in Ypsilanti this afternoon and our friend Bee had the distinction of serving them soup. Following is her report from the field.
I did get a cell phone pic AND some burgeoning young [...]
Someone told me last night that when the Ypsi Marriott changed their name to the Ann Arbor Marriott that their business increased by 30% in one year’s time. Another person at the table, who I know to be a lover of Ypsilanti, then suggested that we change the name of [...]
In spite of Obama’s near 70% approval rating, it looks like Republicans in Congress are going to fight him on his economic recovery package… unless, that is, he agrees to make Bush’s tax cuts for the wealthy permanent.
I’d like to see Obama start with some kind of [...]
Hanging out with some friends last night, the idea of a community talent show came up. We were all in agreement that it would be worth doing, and most of us, after giving it a few minutes of thought, were able to offer up ideas as to what we could [...]
Much was made this past election cycle of former Weather Underground member, Bill Ayers, and the extent to which he might have had an ongoing and significant relationship with Barack Obama. Ayers, now a college professor and a recognized authority on the subject of education, as you may recall, [...]
I’ve been hearing about the film Ladies And Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains for decades now, but hadn’t seen it until last night. I wouldn’t go so far as to say it’s great, as there are a couple of plot holes big enough to drive a bus through, and lots [...]
It just dawned on me that there were considerably more people standing on the Mall in DC yesterday than there are people in the entire city of Detroit… I find that absolutely fascinating.
[...]I’ve been out having fun, celebrating the transition of power from Bush to Obama with my friends and neighbors, so there won’t be a legitimate, full-fledged post tonight. I did, however, want to get something up, in case one or two of you out there wanted to comment on the [...]
I don’t get on Facebook too often, but, when I do, I like to leave a witty little update about what I’m doing at the moment. That’s what most folks there do, and, as I’m somewhat competitive by nature, I can’t just walk away. If my friend Pete [...]
What’s the chance that Obama’s going to throw us all a curve ball tomorrow and announce something really huge, like an immediate and thorough investigation into the criminal activities of Bush and Cheney?
I realize it’s probably more likely that he’d tear the Bible in half with his bare hands [...]
An amazingly prescient clip from Martin Luther King’s final speech.
How fitting that Barack Obama will be sworn in as America’s 44th President just the day after our celebration of Martin Luther King Day.
I’m tempted to drone on about how incredible of a moment in American history this is, but [...]
Over the past six years, I’ve probably asked Linette to write for this site about 700 times. Today was the first time that she said, “Yes.” We were walking through the grocery store together and I pointed out a can containing Bud Light and liquified clam, asking if [...]
I recently learned two new things from my friend Christine Hume, who is a professor of Creative Writing at Eastern Michigan University. I learned that EMU has a non-FM, student-run radio station, called Eagle Radio, which students can hear in the dorms. And, I learned that Christine has [...]
I stumbled across two things this morning as I was eating my oatmeal that I thought made nice bookends around the subject of journalism. The first is CNN video of commentator Rick Sanchez taking on “Joe the Unlicensed Plumber,” who, after taking on the career of war correspondent, has [...]
I guess I’m hopelessly out of the loop, but I didn’t realize, until looking at the New York Times photo essay right now on “Obama’s People,” that his “Special Assistant,” is a 24 year old Ann Arbor native and U-M grad, who, in 2005, ran for City Council and [...]
A creative genius that I greatly admire has died. Patrick McGoohan, the man behind the truly visionary British television program The Prisoner, and one of Columbo’s most cunning adversaries, has passed away at the age of 80.
If you’ve never seen The Prisoner, you’re in luck. For a short while, [...]
Barack Obama, in case you haven’t heard, has called for a “national day of service” on January 19, to mark the occasion of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. I know Rush Limbaugh and others will say that it reeks of Socialism, but I think it’s a damned good way [...]
I was just thinking about Jared Diamond’s book, “Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies,” and it occurred to me that we might be able to create a new game like Rock, Paper, Scissors using Guns, Germs, and Steel. I’ve got the hand movements all worked out, [...]
I was at the Brewery a few nights ago, having a beer with a friend, when Stefanos, who was behind the bar at the time, told me he hadn’t seen a lot of our coupons coming through so far. He may have just been busting my balls, [...]
Apparently, they’ve released all the names of individuals who made financial contributions to Proposition 8 - the campaign in California to prohibit same-sex marriage. You can find them all laid out on a map here. I was just reading through the comments left about this initiative on Metafilter, [...]
At the risk of driving away my last few readers by putting up yet another post about the necessity of a gas tax, I give you the following two clips.
The first comes from an editorial in the New York Times:
…During Congressional hearings last year on the automakers’ troubles, General [...]
Clementine found me working at the computer this afternoon, climbed up into my lap, and told me that she wanted to marry me. I explained that (because of the evil Republicans) we could only be married to one person, and that I was already married to her [...]
Today’s New York Times has an interesting piece on electric cars. In it, an executive from Ford is quoted as saying that the company intends to have (a paltry) 10,000 electric vehicles available for sale by 2011. And, apparently, the first one will make its debut next Sunday at [...]
Our friends a Concentrate have just rolled out a new video guide to Ypsilanti’s cafes.
So, which of the four is your favorite, and why?
And, because I like to be provocative after having a glass of red wine, why do you think it is that Ypsi cafe culture seems to [...]
Occasionally we get a comment here on the site that I feel obligated to move up to the front page. Today’s is from a person calling himself “Your Father”:
Do people actually read this shit? I stumbled upon it by accident. I was looking for a website for people with [...]
I feel like an ass. I know that I should be writing about the recent escalation of Israeli military activities in Gaza, or the brutal killing of Oscar Grant by police in Oakland, and the subsequent riots there, but somehow I [...]
A few years ago, my friend Kerri and I, and some other folks, launched a campaign on this site, and in the editorial pages of a few local papers, asking Congressman John Dingell to stop fighting fuel efficiency standards and denying the severity of global warming, and instead turn [...]
Our friend Amanda at Growing Hope has just suggested that, next Monday morning, those of us interested in local food production get together for breakfast at Beezy’s. Here’s the write-up going around through Facebook:
Bright and early on Monday morning, January 12, 7-9 am (or whenever you [...]
A lot of us were disappointed a few weeks ago to hear that Obama had chosen former Iowa governor Tom Vilsack to serve as Secretary of Agriculture. We had been hoping for someone a little less factory farm, and a little more localvore - a little less Monsanto, and [...]
From an editorial in today’s Detroit Free Press:
The coal industry has launched a nationwide “coal rush” and Michigan sits at its heart, with eight new coal plants proposed for construction. As medical doctors conducting health research at Michigan State University and the University of Michigan, we feel compelled to [...]
Legendary Stooges guitarist Ron Asheton was found dead in his Ann Arbor home this morning of an apparent heart attack. He was 60, and, by all accounts, a good man. So here, in honor of the first punk rock guitar player, I’d like to ask you to join [...]
Our friends at the fledgling media empire known as Issue Media Group, who publish the weekly online magazine Concentrate, are in the process of rolling out an “Insiders’ Guide to Ypsilanti,” along the lines of those that they’ve previously created for Ferndale and Royal Oak. And, they’ve [...]
This guy I kind of know has a new Porsche… Well, I’m proud to say, that he and I raced down Huron River Drive this morning, and my little Honda Civic Hybrid beat him handily. I was listening to the Scorpions, which helped. And then there was the fact that [...]
Last summer, I mentioned something here about Rob Hopkins and his Transition Town sustainability initiative in Europe. And, since then, a lot has happened. Most notably for us in the U.S., a number of North American towns, like Boulder, Colorado, have started the process of becoming “transition certified,” [...]
As I’ve mentioned here before, the good folks at Pfizer, before packing up their Global R&D facility and leaving Ann Arbor for good, gave $1 million dollars to the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation with the stipulation that it be spent within one year’s time on high-impact projects. [...]
OK, it’s the first of the month, and you know what that means - a new coupon from MM.com. This month, it’s the Corner Brewery, where our friends are offering a half-price beer for every one bought at the regular price. So, if you’ve been meaning to come to Ypsi [...]
I have my doubts as to how real this is, but someone just sent me a link to a discussion board where folks are talking about a 1996 Engorgement Study supposedly conducted at the University of Georgia. I think the following quote is probably the best thing I’ve read [...]
The folks at the Dreamland Theater are now 4 hours into their 24-hour puppet show marathon. The footage shown here was taken about 3 hours into the masochistic spectacle of puppetry endurance. I’m sorry the video so shaky, but I was terrified by the Michigan-shaped ghost and the [...]
The most recent flare-up between Israel and the Palestinian territories has been going for four days now. According to recent United Nations reports, 4 Israelis and more than 350 Palestinians have been killed. Of those, it looks like 3 Israelis and 60 Palestinians were civilians. And, to make matters [...]
So, how was your Christmas, Kwanzaa, Chanukah, Festivus, or whatever it was that you celebrated? Anything worthy of note? Anything you think the rest of us might find of interest?
Anything you’ve been wanting to share, holiday-related of not?
If there’s something bugging you, you might want to get it off [...]
…but I just found out about something happening tonight that sounds pretty cool.
The folks at Beezy’s, in celebration of the annual cultural happening known as Mittenfest, are opening up late tonight. They’ll be open from 1:00 AM to 4:00 AM, running something they’re referring to as “Beezy’s Tantalizing [...]
Clementine was concerned that Santa might think that we wanted for him to take the plate too, in addition to the cookie and the carrot, so she wanted to write a note.
[...]A few days ago, I mentioned the mysterious death of a former Bush administration IT person recently subpoenaed to testify about vote rigging in Ohio during the 2004 presidential election. I challenged readers of MM.com to come forward with a more comprehensive post on the subject, and our resident [...]
[...]“What does it mean that the sponsored ads on your blog are three books about global warming, and Calvin Klein Men’s Steel Cotton Gripper Trunk as the fourth?”
-Amanda Edmonds
According to news reports coming out today, due to the recent drop in gas prices, and generous financial incentives put forward by the auto industry, sales of SUVS and trucks are back up, and the sales of hybrids are down. Needless to say, this is a bad thing, and [...]
Here’s hoping the Krampus doesn’t eat your plump, delicious little children this holiday season.
[This terrifying holiday greeting comes courtesy of our friends at Beezy’s, where, I should point out, you only have a few more days to take advantage of the Mark Maynard dotcom coupon.]
[...]Everyone seems to be focusing on the fact that, during last night’s 60 Minutes piece, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said that he’d like to see the law changed so that he, as a foreign-born U.S. citizen, could run for President. I guess that’s newsworthy, but I was much more [...]
As we mentioned a week or so ago, according to new census data, it looks as though the population here in Ypsi is growing. Or at least it was as of 2007, when the data was collected. Apparently, however, the rest of Michigan hasn’t fared so well. According to [...]
OK, I’m heading up to bed. If one of you could write something about the curious death yesterday of Michael Connell, a senior Bush administration IT consultant who had been implicated in the Ohio vote tampering that won Bush the White House in 2004, I’d appreciate it.
Really, I [...]
Local solar guru, Dave Strenski, just sent me this new image showing the total flow of U.S. energy in 2006. We had been talking about waste inherent to the system, and Dave offered this as proof of the fact that currently more energy is wasted than is actually used. As [...]
Clementine took a ball of wool into the magpie’s nest we call her office this morning, and came out a little while later with a few wisps of wool wound up in wire and twist-ties. I asked her want it was, as she went running by, waving it in the [...]
The journalists at the Ann Arbor Chronicle, in a pathetic attempt to unseat me as the most powerful man in Washtenaw County, have set out on a shameless campaign of lies and innuendo. On their website today, they’re running the following photo of me.
Do you see [...]
In a comment left yesterday in a thread about a new, local initiative to organize communities of faith around the subject of public transportation, a reader calling himself j7uy5 made mention of an organization of planners and policy types known as America 2050. Well, I’ve just spent [...]
A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned here on the site that some folks were setting out to build a grassroots coalition of regional public transportation users. Well, since then, the group has met once in Ypsi, and, while I wasn’t able to attend the meeting, I know someone [...]
I haven’t been watching it so closely these past few days, but my sense is that Bush is backtracking on his offer to help the Big Three. Earlier this week I believe he was suggesting that a bailout was imminent, but now it seems as though he’s more in the [...]
This is the letter sent out to University of Michigan staff and students this evening.
To the Campus Community:
The University of Michigan has taken a critical step in advancing our work in health, biomedical sciences and other disciplines with today’s decision by the Board of Regents to purchase the [...]
ArbCamp 08 begins in two minutes. Right now, I’m hiding at the back of the room, hoping that no one talks with me, and pondering what it means that UM bought the Pfizer campus today.
6:00: This is my first experience with the Open Meeting process. It’s [...]
The Detroit News and Free Press today announced today that, in addition to letting go up to 9% of their workforce, they would be cutting home delivery to three days a week. Given the rising cost of newsprint, dwindling ad sales, and the fact that more people are getting [...]
When I saw this photo on the web today, my first impulse was to send my cousin Shane a letter of congratulations. That’s him, on the left, with the whistle in his mouth. After years of paying his dues and officiating high school basketball games in front of mobs of [...]
It’s being reported today that Peter Falk, a man whose work I greatly admire, has fallen victim to Alzheimer’s disease. Falk’s daughter, Catherine, has filed papers in Los Angeles asking that a conservator be appointed for her 81 year old father, who can no longer recognize friends and loved [...]
You’ve no doubt heard by now about the the Ponzi scheme being run by former NASDAQ chairman, Bernard Madoff to the tune of $50 billion. Well, it seems as though one of the groups to fall victim to the crooked money manager was the newly launched local non-profit, the [...]
I’ve said on this site a number of times in the past that Phoenix should not exist. We shouldn’t, in my opinion, be expending energy cooling homes in the desert when there’s land that will actually support human life elsewhere. I know it may sound harsh, but I really don’t [...]
I just received an email from Brandon Zwagerman, the fellow behind the annual musical extravaganza known as Mittenfest (not to be confused with muttonfest, which is a little different). He wanted me to know that a writer for the University of Michigan’s student paper, The Michigan Daily, was [...]
One wonders if all the dads taking their daughters to creepy father-daughter ”purity” balls, know that by denying them comprehensive sex education and having them sign virginity pledges, they’re just making it more likely that they’ll engage in unprotected anal sex?
update: I should point out that [...]
A few days ago, the folks at Dreamland Theater put on a shadow puppet version of the popular television show, America’s Next Top Model. A friend of mine, risking her life, smuggled a video camera in and shot this footage. I plan to spend the weekend trying to make sense [...]
To his credit, Obama’s choice for Secretary of Energy, announced today, isn’t a politician, but someone who not only understands the science of global warming, and comprehends its severity, but also knows what needs to be done if we’re to avoid extinction. Assuming he’s confirmed, our new Secretary of Energy [...]
I wonder what happens to an avatar who rejects the Muslim faith in this new virtual Muslim world… Seems like someone should try.
[...]The following comes from the office of Carmine Palombo, the Director of Transportation Programs for SEMCOG (Southeast Michigan Council of Governments).
Ann Arbor-Detroit Commuter Rail Project
Progress Report
December, 2008The following summarizes the current status of activities related to the Ann Arbor-Detroit Commuter Rail Project:
1. SEMCOG announced the location of the [...]
At last Saturday’s Shadow Art Fair, my friends Melissa, Jennifer and I unveiled a new enterprise called Hugs n’ Gumbo. I think it’s pretty self-explanatory, but, for those of you who can’t figure it out, we sold hugs, along with gumbo. For $5 you got a bowl of [...]
I have to watch it again, but I don’t think Olbermann even mentions the fact that Bush wanted to move all of our Social Security money into the stock market… I can’t even begin to imagine how much worse our current situation would be had he been successful.
[...]A few years ago, the U.S. Census Bureau introduced what’s called the American Community Survey (ACS), which is a rolling demographic survey meant to augment the ten-year census we’re all accustomed to.
The 2005-2007 ACS data was just released, and there are a few welcome surprises concerning Ypsilanti.
SURPRISE [...]
Some crazy shit is going on around the Senate seats vacated by Hillary Clinton of New York, and Barack Obama of Illinois. In New York, it looks like the vacant seat may go to either John F. Kennedy’s daughter, Caroline, who has never served in politics, or Fran Drescher, [...]
Over the past week or so, I’ve been exchanging notes with Susan Lackey, the executive director of the Washtenaw Land Trust. Here, with her permission, is our conversation. As it pertains to food security, local organic growing, and a number of other things we discuss here on the site [...]
OK, there’s a lot of stuff I want to mention, but I don’t really have time to get into any of it in any detail right now, so I’m just going to leave it with you like a baby on your doorstep, and let you do with it as you [...]
In Ypsi, on New Year’s Eve, loveable local miscreant, Patrick Elkins, will be presiding over what’s being called a “24-Hour Puppet Show” at Ypsilanti’s premier venue for disturbing puppetry, the Dreamland Theater (which is conveniently located within lunging distance of a tattoo parlor, a strip joint, and the [...]
I’ll give you my thoughts later, but I was wondering what you made of yesterday’s event… Did you have fun? Did you buy things? Did I hug you? Did you visit any other shops and restaurants in Ypsi while you were here? Any suggestions for next time? [...]
I went out and had beers tonight with a lot of the folks that are going to be in Saturday’s Shadow Art Fair. One of the people I had an opportunity to talk with was a fellow who will be writing haikus during the event. He’s like an Olympian of [...]
6 in 10 Americans don’t feel as though the Big Three should be bailed out, and, according to Harry Reid, it looks as though they might get their wish. Reid says they don’t have the votes in the Senate to make the bailout happen. So, it looks as [...]
I’ve got stuff I want to write about tonight, but I’m busy churning out new products for Saturday’s Shadow Art Fair. Here, in lieu of a new post, is some video shot by the guys at Concentrate a year ago this week, at the last Winter Shadow. The interview with [...]
I posted something here a few days ago asking you to consider making a donation to one of our great local non-profits, like SOS Community Services, or Growing Hope. As budgets are tight right now, I realize this isn’t something that all of us can do, but here [...]
For the past 30-some years I’ve been searching for the perfect analogy to describe my time here on earth. Well, I think I may have finally found it.
[...] This month, you’re in for a special treat, my friends. Two-for-one breakfast items at Beezy’s (between 7:00 and 9:00 AM), or a free espresso drink with the purchase of a salad or sandwich (between 2:00 and 5:00 PM). All you have to do is print this handy coupon, [...]
