Reply #35: Well aren't you a bundle of sunshine [View All]

[Susang]

If your name is any indication, you live in Kalamazoo. Well guess what? I lived there for awhile too, even graduated from WMU and K'zoo ain't no Paris either.

"Detroit, Kalamazoo-Battle Creek and Flint had the highest rate of violent crime in the state."
http://www-stu.calvin.edu/chimes/2001.11.02/cmm2.html

"WELL, SO MUCH for the idyllic memories of our youth. FBI statistics prove that our once-glorious hometown of Kalamazoo, Mich., (as the T-shirt said: "There's nothin' to do in Kalamazoo") is a more crime-prone place in which to live than -- wait for it -- New York."
http://www.benkepple.com/archives/000483.html

Also, this quote is from your feral dog story link, (which was from 1998, I might add):

"And it's not just in Detroit. In March, an Illinois farmer received $1,300 from the state, compensation for 26 pigs killed in 1993 by a pack of wild dogs. Dogs killed two ostriches in Oregon, fatally attacked a $15,000 horse in Tennessee and joined coyotes in killing livestock and pets in Colorado.

In the past year, a small pack of stray dogs attacked and injured a Massachusetts boy on his way to a school bus stop. In Oklahoma City, front-porch mail delivery in some neighborhoods was halted after dogs attacked several carriers. Postal Service spokesman Mark Saunders says dogs attack 2,700 letter carriers across the country each year, costing taxpayers about $25 million for medical expenses and substitute carriers. He didn't know how many of those attacks were by wild dogs. "

Also, did you happen to notice that the Angelfire site you linked to used pictures from the Detroityes site that I had already linked to? A site that is actually a huge supporter of the city of Detroit? Or didn't you bother to research that far? Why don't you link to the actual front page of that site, you know, the one that lists all of the cities that he has pictures of? Here, I'll do it for you: http://www.angelfire.com/nv/207/

Your child homicide link is over two years old, Chicago currently is considered to have the highest child homicide rate in the country, though the 2004 data is not completed. Child homicide and fatality is a severe urban problem affecting Detroit, New York, LA, Miami, Baltimore, New Orleans; anywhere there is poverty and lack of support services. Detroit is hardly alone in this. Your other links are also old, dealing with statistics from 2002 and 2003. I cannot comment on the statistics from 2004, as the reports on them have not been released as of yet.

As for Detroit's school system, yes, it's in disarray. Unfortunately, so is Chicago's. They closed many schools last year and are considering huge cuts in the coming year. So are many other major cities. How does Detroit's school crisis make it any different from the rest of the country?

The DSO is still going strong at Orchestra Hall, so I don't know what you're talking about there. It was in trouble about 15 years ago, but it's doing okay now. Here's a couple links to help you out there: http://www.freep.com/entertainment/music/max22_20030922.htm
http://www.detroitsymphony.com/

The DIA is also doing okay and is actually undergoing a massive renovation to modernize and expand their gallery space. Their Weekends at the DIA program has been hugely successful, as has the Detroit Film Theatre. http://www.dia.org/

I don't know what Detroit ever did to you, but seriously dude, the city's a blast if you give it a chance. Some of the best art and music in the world was created there and Detroiters are some of the most amazing and tenacious people that I've ever met. I'm proud to be a native Detroiter.