More fark round up:


2005-02-08 05:33:58 PM
CruiserTwelve

I'm a former Detroit cop, and here are my thoughts. Detroit started going downhill rapidly in the early 70s with the advent of forced school busing. The white people on the fringes of Detroit didn't want their kids bused to the inner city, so they fled to the suburbs. It's decline was hastened by the sudden invasion of cheap, well-built Japanese cars that caused the American automakers to lay people off and close plants. Then the crime rate skyrocketed, particularly the homicide rate, and Detroit became "Murder City." It was during the Murder City years that I worked there. I got the hell out in 1978 when I was facing a layoff. That's right, they layed off cops when the crime rate was at its worst. They also had a residency requirement that prevented qualified people from applying, so when they finally started to hire new cops they had to lower their standards and start hiring people that were virtually criminals. Coleman Young was the worst person you could possibly have in charge of Detroit during this time, yet the people kept re-electing him. He did nothing to prevent the businesses from moving out except whine and complain it was racism. When the Lions and Pistons fled to the city, he claimed the "white suburbs were stealing Detroit's jewels," yet he did nothing to prevent it. The city is incredibly bad. I go back at least once a year to visit, and there are buildings that burned down thirty years ago when I worked there, and they're still just sitting there as burned out hulks. There are entire neighborhoods of vacant homes, and where they have torn down the homes there are acres of open land in the middle of an urban area. It's unbelieveable unless you see it yourself. The "good" parts of Detroit aren't even in Detroit. If you go 20 minutes north, you'll find some of the most beautiful suburbs of any large metropolitan area. There's no reason for anyone to go into the city any more.To the guy that mentioned Dearborn: Dearborn has the largest population of Middle-Eastern people in the world outside of the Middle-East itself. Not a bad thing, but strange given Dearborn's history as a place where white people fled to in the 60s and 70s. Orville Hubbard was the mayor then, and he was about the most racist guy you could imagine.Detroit is making an attempt to renew itself. They're building a new downtown and they've got casino gambling now. I have my doubts this will succeed. My sisters, who still live just outside of Detroit, still go the the casinos in Windsor. One of my sisters told me she went into a Detroit casino, and some drunk black woman yelled at her for being in a "black casino." Everyone around just laughed. She'll never go back. /competing in longest post contest


I like how it is 'whining' to point out the problem. I mean, that's such blatent ass racism. I mean, why do white folks expect us to somehow have magic powers to fix THEIR problems? I know we're a creative people, but come the fuck on. And I agree with residency requirements. If you are so racist that the specter of little Johnny going to school with a GASP black person causes you to move, how can we trust you in a black city?

2005-02-08 06:29:16 PM
Geotpf

Look at arpwatch's chart: http://www.bestplaces.net/crime02/crime_study3.aspIt states that Detroit has less crime than the average large city! It has a "crime index" of 4,297.9 (lower is better). Chicago is 4,367.0. Dallas is 5,879.3. Phoenix-Mesa is 6,846.6. Miami is 7,170.6. Memphis is 7,224.6. Tucson is 7,543.0.Basically, Detroit has fixed thier crime problem. In the 70's and 80's and early 90's, yeah, it was freaking Beruit, with the added fun of an actual holiday just for setting buildings on fire. But they fixed this, probably by adding lots of cops-but the rep for being a high crime city was so bad that it still sticks today.However, Detroit's other problems (corruption and red ink in the city government (and school district), high unemployment, low levels of income of those who actually have jobs, racist suburbs (resulting in reverse racism inside the city itself), high taxes, high red tape, and, most of all, a rapidly declining population) are systemic and probably unfixable. I would have thought the population would have stablized by now, considering the crime decrease.

Yea, 'reverse racism' is really a problem. I never got the concept. I mean, it's not NICE to dislike white people, but white people expect to do dirt and not be disliked for it. I mean, if you say you can't even stand to live near us, yes, you will be resented a bit. Either suck it up or change your attitude. I don't get the idea that whites can't be held responsibile for their racial behavior- isn't that sort of insulting to the whites who got their shit together?

Like somehow all the whites get credit for their stuff- even though the other whites spent their time watching American Dad or some shit instead of reading a fucking book or even Colorlines on the toilet. I think I'd feel a lot more sympathy for racist white people if I wasn't surrounded by so many rich folk. Like I can feel more sympathy for the downtrodden mother of three or something who works two jobs than some rich college kid who could learn something if they put down the god danm blunt for two seconds.


2005-02-08 07:02:15 PM
Geotpf

2005-02-08 06:55:00 PM tommyjeffersonFor those numbers to be useful, you are going to have to show income rates.Here's my theory:Rich whites move out when crime rates increase, leaving poor blacks behind. That is, crime is correlated with income, not skin color, and, due to lingering racism, especially during the 50's, 60's, 70's, and 80's, blacks were poorer than whites. Therefore, a city with more blacks has more crime, not because they are black, but because blacks are more likely to be poor, and poor people (of all skin colors) are more likely to commit crimes.Prove me wrong.

This is also my theory. Also, the poverty is very *dense* too. It's not like you're the one poor white guy, eating gov't cheese in the neighborhood with mixed classes or that you're like out in the boonies with your meth lab(don't do it, people!). The more people there are, the more crime.


2005-02-08 09:12:29 PM
SpshulEd

http://forgottenmichigan.com/gallery/albums.phpthere ya go, all the great ruins of detroit photographed at different times of the day, behold its glory.on another note, it isnt half bad in the day, ive explored alot of the abandoned buildings and walked the streets for my urban design class. Night isnt too bad, but you make sure you know where you are. Greektown kicks butt.

Pictures!