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Detroit: The Triumph of Progressive Public Policy
Michigan Capitol Confidential ^ | 7/30/2014 | Jarrett Skorup

Posted on 07/31/2014 6:24:18 AM PDT by MichCapCon

FLASHBACK STORY FROM BEFORE DETROIT'S BANKRUPTCY

Imagine a city where all the major economic planks of the statist or "progressive" platform have been enacted:

A "living wage" ordinance, far above the federal minimum wage, for all public employees and private contractors.

A school system that spends significantly more per pupil than the national average.

A powerful school employee union that militantly defends the exceptional pay, benefits and job security it has won for its members.

Other government employee unions that do the same for their members.

A tax system that aggressively redistributes income from businesses and the wealthy to the poor and to government bureaucracies.

Would this be a shining city on a hill, exciting the admiration of all? We don't have to guess, because there is such a city right here in our state: Detroit

Detroit has been dubbed "the most liberal city in America" and each of these "progressive" policies is alive and well there. How have they worked out?

(Excerpt) Read more at michigancapitolconfidential.com ...


TOPICS: Government
KEYWORDS: detroit

1 posted on 07/31/2014 6:24:19 AM PDT by MichCapCon
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To: MichCapCon

Reminder: Detroit is a toilet.


2 posted on 07/31/2014 6:33:55 AM PDT by YourAdHere (Barack is the wife.)
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To: MichCapCon

Detroit has been dubbed “the most liberal city in America” and each of these “progressive” policies is ....defunct.

“Detroit-the ultimate end of Progressive Government”

Coming soon to a major city near you, if you let it.


3 posted on 07/31/2014 6:48:49 AM PDT by kempster
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To: MichCapCon

IMO merely a reflection of the typical Detroiter’s economic viewpoints developed while living a few decades in an unsustainable Never Never Land created by the UAW.


4 posted on 07/31/2014 6:52:08 AM PDT by Buckeye McFrog
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To: MichCapCon

Obviously all of those ‘rat initiatives to transform society would have worked if it weren’t for racism.


5 posted on 07/31/2014 6:57:18 AM PDT by Paladin2
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To: MichCapCon
The UAW successfully extracted wages and benefits estimated at $73 per hour before the recent shake-ups began.

That is about $116,160 per year before taxes. Rookie firefighters in Los Angeles get that same amount.

One of the reasons for the city of Detroit's demise is the fact that a lot of people moved to the suburbs, where Michigan is thriving.

6 posted on 07/31/2014 7:00:05 AM PDT by Slyfox (Satan's goal is to rub out the image of God he sees in the face of every human.)
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To: kempster

Progressive and liberal are two different animals. Things like gay rights and environmentalism find some pretty barren ground in Detroit and have never been able to take root. On the flipside its probably the most pro gun city in the country.


7 posted on 07/31/2014 7:24:18 AM PDT by cripplecreek (Remember the River Raisin.)
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To: Slyfox

Downtown is thriving because the big players can afford the regulation or at least afford to pay off the right people. What really builds the rest of a city is all those little neighborhood businesses. Detroit crime rates are in free fall so the only thing preventing small entrepreneurship is rooted in city hall.


8 posted on 07/31/2014 7:35:18 AM PDT by cripplecreek (Remember the River Raisin.)
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To: cripplecreek
Then, you remember Coleman Young. People on this site have argued with me that I am not correct. It is my contention that for 20 years he did not allow any whites to open businesses within the Detroit city limits. So they moved their businesses to the burbs taking their employees with them depleting the neighborhoods and making it difficult for young blacks to find jobs. So yeah, city hall run by democrats have done this to Detroit.

When Detroit, and Flint for that matter, had Republican mayors both cities were top notch.

9 posted on 07/31/2014 7:45:37 AM PDT by Slyfox (Satan's goal is to rub out the image of God he sees in the face of every human.)
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To: MichCapCon

They do have a gigantic pawn shop with well mannered customers.


10 posted on 07/31/2014 7:50:20 AM PDT by dainbramaged (Get out of my country now)
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To: Slyfox

There is no reason Detroit shouldn’t be booming right now aside from Democrat city government.

Unfortunately even Michigan conservatives opposed a much tougher emergency manager law that would have given Rick Snyder the power to fire city council members, force Detroit to tax at reasonable rates in line with the rest of the state, and eliminate massive numbers of city employees.

On the other hand, much of the bad news is actually a sign of things getting done. For instance, the screeching over water cutoffs is a result of increasing privatization which will lead to better service and more reasonable rates.

Rick Snyder is a long way from my ideal but he did stop kicking the can down the road with Detroit. In fact, Detroit probably has a lot brighter future than many American cities who are still building mountains of debt and whistling past the graveyard.


11 posted on 07/31/2014 8:01:11 AM PDT by cripplecreek (Remember the River Raisin.)
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