Posted on 07/24/2013 7:22:46 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
I’m sad. Detroit is my native city. It’s decline from being arguably the world’s richest city to being America’s “first Third Word city” is tragic, politically criminal, and a warning to other Americans.
The official declaration of Detroit’s bankruptcy last week could not have come as a surprise to anyone familiar with the Motor City’s atrocious financial condition. The city had no hope of ever recovering from its colossal over-indebtedness, and without a central bank standing by to create fiat credit to augment its insufficient revenue—the scheme that is the only thing keeping the even more colossally over-indebted national government solvent—the only question was when someone would pull the plug.
Fiscally speaking, Detroit had been in the “walking dead” category for years. Last Thursday’s announcement by Detroit’s emergency manager, Kevyn Orr, finally acknowledged the inescapable facts.
Clearly, some Michiganders are still in denial and refuse to face those facts. Last Friday, Ingham County Circuit Judge Rosemarie Aquilina insisted that the Chapter 9 bankruptcy declaration be withdrawn, stating the Michigan constitution forbids any action that would decrease the pension benefits of public employees. In the first place, Judge Aquilina should read my article about will and abandon the delusion that a constitution can alter reality by making nonexistent funds magically appear; in the second, it is an unjust constitution that confers a protection on public employees that private-sector employees don’t have. A sounder constitution would have prohibited the city government from gaining control of employees’ retirement funds contributions and instead have mandated that those contributions all go into a private fund in the workers’ names where the city couldn’t touch them.
(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...
I do not expect Harvard/Oxford graduates to be perfect by any means, but I would hope (especially from Oxford—I have less faith in Harvard) that they might express their ideas, be they good or bad, at least clearly. Two of my relatively young colleagues (including the head of our English department) are Oxford educated, and they can write and express themselves.
I know people make mistakes—I do so myself frequently enough—but a grammatical mistake of this sort in the opening paragraph of an article in a reputable magazine is not something that should get a free pass.
I think the Red Wings are safe... I heard, they have EXCELLENT grammar! ;-)
For many years now, I’ve driven through Detriot on my way to Canada, for business. It always SEEMED like a pretty nice place... from the freeway.
But, on one trip... the freeway was closed for construction, and I got detoured onto Michigan Ave. It was HEARTBREAKING to see. A HUGE road, nice and wide with a central median. But, on both side was row after row of closed businesses and abandoned buildings. The ONLY things open were: Stip Joints, and Rental furniture stores. And, both of them had BARS on the doors and windows.
I would have felt threatened... except, it was around noon. So, NO ONE was on the road except me.
I was sorely tempted to put an apostrophe in “Red Wings” just to set the cat amidst the pigeons...
lol...
Don't you mean, "pigeon's"??
I guess so.
It's not only "unjust," but it's a violation of the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution. (Notice the proper application of the apostrophes.)
Oh, like attorneies?
[Ducking!]
Bitching and hijacking this thread over an inconsequential typo accomplishes absolutely nothing. Except irritating those of us who came here to read the article.
By all means, upchuck, please feel free to ignore any of my comments that constitute "bitching" in your estimation.
I belong to an earlier generation that was taught in high school intelligent people express themselves intelligently. Do please forgive me for not hobbling off stage more quickly.
No, wannabe smartass, because attorney ends in EY, not a consonant and a Y.
I don’t think that was a very nice thing to call me, azzhat. As soon as you find yourself a rope, feel free to urinate up it.
If you can’t take a smartass comment, then I encourage you to make a list of everybody on this thread and make a mental note to not talk to any of us.
“It’s decline from being..."
The above apostrophe denotes the possessive case. Flunk for apostrophe abuse.
Can’t a little oversight be made sometimes?
Thirty years ago, I would have wholeheartedly agreed with you, but today there's a raging epidemic of lousy English usage. This is why you're seeing so many people comment on it. Our native tongue is going to hell, and some of us object to that loss.
If you want total perfection, you have to find it in some other dimension.
I suspect that YOU TOO have made similar mistakes in your life ( especially when you type ).
What I object to is hijacking this thread and making it a forum for discussing apostrophes.
Oh, I absolutely have, and the off topic conversation about my goof ends abruptly when I thank my fellow Freeper for pointing it out to me.
One never knows where FR threads will lead. Relax and enjoy the ride :-)
Mine was an article about seatbelts that turned into a lengthy and heated debate over whether a fat man could split open "like a watermelon" if he fell from a height of a few feet.
RipSawyer, do you remember that? I think it was you who told the story of the guy who fell off his tractor which sent the thread rocketing off in that crazy direction. This must have been about six years ago but I can remember it like yesterday. It was so gloriously absurd. I've tried to google the thread but it seems to have gotten lost in the ether, which makes me a little sad.
some of the older threads are gone, its a true pity
It is a pity. That thread should have been one for the ages.
cool
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