October 1, 2010
Press Box: I’m Just a Girl |From Sarah Palin to Christine O’Donnell, the nauseating excuses we make for women who just don’t cut it. | more
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Oakland County: End of an Era for Pontiac, Flint|
GM’s all but total withdrawal from Pontiac and Flint marks the end of a golden age for these factory towns. | more•
September 16, 2010
Ari Adler: A Little Bird Might Sway the Vote |
Technology, particularly the use of social media, has become part of the campaign landscape. | more•
Eric Freedman: Charlie and Me |
Those were heady days when a long-haired, anti-war, freshly minted college graduate could land a job with new U.S. Rep. Charles Rangel. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Perfectly Designed to Produce Failure |
America’s education system is perfectly designed to produce failure — and it may be too late to stop the slide. | more•
Craig’s Grist: Tracing the Roots of Hyperpartisanship |
The hyperpartisanship now threatening Michigan values can be traced back to D.C. politics of the late 1980s and ’90s. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Public-Private Predicament |
Here’s the secret of success for more state university business schools: go private. | more•
Tom Watkins: Making Education Reform Happen |How to end Lansing’s merry-go-round on school reorganization. | more
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September 3, 2010
Press Box: Reckless Love Affair |The media turn teen mom Bristol Palin into America’s sweetheart, despite the alarming statistics. | more
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Detroit Prospect: Hiding the Real Problems in Education |
Taking the easy out by blaming teachers obscures the true nature of the difficulty facing our schools.
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Tom Watkins: The China Wave |A Michigan policy of whining about China while disinvesting in our people is a recipe for disaster. | more
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August 16, 2010
Rick Cole At Large: Gilt by Association |
New Kiplinger Top Ten list gives great hope for the future of the Lansing area. | more•
Craig’s Grist: New Governors Face Opportune But Bleak Times |
National pundits make a big mistake in overlooking the power of state governors. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Inspiration Point |
One of the few good things to come out of this disastrous job market is the inspiration to pursue our real dreams. | more•
August 1, 2010
Press Box: Wanted: Better B.S. Detectors |Journalists owe it to readers to separate fact from fiction. | more
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Oakland County: Sorting through the Clutter|
In the wake of the Internet’s hijacking of the news business, we’re learning to sort through the clutter. | more•
Tom Watkins: Beware the Nail that Sticks Up |What lessons can be learned from Mayor Bing’s high rate of staff turnover? | more
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July 16, 2010
Rick Cole At Large: Is It All Propaganda? |
BP’s greenwashing PR was little more than propaganda to hide its poor environmental and safety record. | more•
Craig’s Grist: Help, Please |
A plea for Dome readers to help expand my optional reading list for public policy grad students. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Inspiration Point |
One of the few good things to come out of this disastrous job market is the inspiration to pursue our real dreams. | more•
July 1, 2010
Press Box: Selective Political Correctness |Why was Helen Thomas forced out while other media types get away with murder? | more
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Detroit Prospect: Pummeled by Falling Shoes |
It is discouraging to think that the old adage is true: People get the government they deserve.
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Tom Watkins: Michigan Needs to be FIRST |Our students need to be excited and educated about the importance of science, math and technology in their lives. | more
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June 16, 2010
Rick Cole At Large: Why Baseball Needs Umpires |
There is no bigger goat in this baseball story than the rookie who ruined Armanda Galarraga’s perfect game. | more•
Craig’s Grist: Let’s Have Our Say |
The Center for Michigan gives us, the people, an easy way to set the agenda for our leaders and the candidates. | more•
Bridges: War and Transformation |
Michigan, Poland and the American South have much in common. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Children of the Spill |
Call me naïve, but I know something good will come eventually from the tragedy running amok in the Gulf. | more•
June 1, 2010
Tom Watkins: What if the Impossible…Isn’t? |Look east to see change and innovation — even in western companies. | more
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Oakland County: Dusting Off a Successful Tax Strategy|
Shifting to land-value taxation can discourage speculators, spur development and help raise a near-dead Detroit. | more•
Press Box: The Politician-to-English Dictionary |A guide to the political doublespeak that dominates the Capitol | more
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May 16, 2010
Rick Cole At Large: Kalamazoo’s Education Gene |
Here’s the rest of the story for President Obama about Kalamazoo Central High School and the Kalamazoo community. | more•
Craig’s Grist: The Power of the Visual |
Michigan needs dreamers and builders to pull us out of our petty squabbles over less and less. | more•
Bridges: War and Transformation |
Michigan, Poland and the American South have much in common. | more•
May 7, 2010
Press Box: The Closing of the Conservative Mind |More right-wingers are retreating into their own world populated with their own facts. | more
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May 1, 2010
Detroit Prospect: Cultivating the Future |
There is a certain symmetry in the idea of transforming Detroit back into farmland.
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Tom Watkins: Pedophilia, Lies and the Church |The response by the Roman Catholic Church to its pedophilia crisis provides lessons for leaders of any organization. | more
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April 16, 2010
Making Sausage: Constitutional Roulette|
Voting for a constitutional convention in these times is like playing Russian roulette with Michigan’s future. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Time to Get Off the Pot on Exports |
We live in a shrinking world that wants our products, and we’re not taking advantage of it. | more•
Craig’s Grist: The Ivins’ Test |
I derive a test of political slapstick from the late Molly Ivins, the acidic, left-wing observer of Austin’s shenanigans. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: All Shook Up |
A lifetime of practice gives Californians the ability to shrug off fears of the Big One. | more•
April 2, 2010
Tom Watkins: Innovate, Change…or Die |Change is hard, but holding onto the past won’t make Michigan competitive on the world stage. | more
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Oakland County: Road to Ruin|
State lawmakers seem strangely passive in the face of what one only can describe as a road-funding crisis. | more•
Press Box: The Sugar-High Story |Why the news media usually skim the surface in political coverage. | more
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March 16, 2010
Making Sausage: What a Difference a Year Makes |
Back from the dead in just a year, Republicans expect a big November. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: I’m Looking for a Lawyer |
The no-tax pledge from Americans for Tax Reform strips the next Michigan governor of constitutional authority | more•
Craig’s Grist: Call for a Constitutional Convention |
Voters should call a state constitutional convention because the opportunities far outweigh the risks. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Change Reform We Can Believe In? |
The latest Golden State political drama stars groups battling over the words “reform” and “change.” | more•
March 1, 2010
Detroit Prospect: Hard Times for Public Education |
Are we committed to providing a good education for all our children?
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Press Box: Round-the-Clock Reporting |The Information Age means there’s news to report 24/7, no matter how trivial or at what human cost. | more
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February 26, 2010
Tom Watkins: The Rodney Dangerfield of Higher Ed |Our ever-more-valuable community colleges don’t get the respect they deserve. | more
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February 16, 2010
Making Sausage: Citizens United: Is the Sky Really Falling? |
Something got horribly lost in all the hysterics over the Supreme Court’s campaign finance decision. . | more•
Rick Cole At Large: The Dirt Road Lobby |
Do we have an unjustifiable interest in leaving our children a better Michigan? | more•
Craig’s Grist: Summer Scenario |
With current leaders suddenly out of the picture, 2010-11 budget negotiations get resolved swiftly ’round the pool table. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Totally Awesome Lobbyists |
Thank your local surfer for a wave of activism aimed at cleaning up the oceans and lakes. | more•
February 1, 2010
Tom Watkins: Better City, Better Life |Sustainability issues are front and center at two intersections of my life: interacting with today’s youth and understanding China. | more
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Oakland County: Banking on Michigan|
It’s time to create a state-owned bank that would lend “Michigan money” to meet Michigan needs. | more•
Press Box: Sexual Obsession |With the breathless stories lately on Tiger Woods and John Edwards, you would think the media invented sex. | more
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January 16, 2010
Making Sausage: The Last SOS |
A sneak peek at how the governor’s last State of State Address might go. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Memo to Next Governor |
Here’s the winning strategy for winning the governor’s race and being able to govern effectively once elected. | more•
Craig’s Grist: 10 Hopes for 2010 |
Hopes and wishes for the new year and a look back at the Michigan Prophesy Contest for 2009. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Begging for Change |
California’s cows and celebrities may be breathing a little easier, but voters are agitated over Sacramento’s inability to solve epic budget problems. | more•
January 1, 2010
Tom Watkins: Jobs, Jobs, Jobs and More Jobs! |Want to get elected to office in 2010? Show us your plan for creating real jobs for real people. | more
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Detroit Prospect: A Dickens of a Situation |
Finding “best of times” opportunities in Detroit’s “worst of times” crisis.
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Press Box: Long Live the Michigan Manual! |How two veteran journalists managed to save the jewel of Michigan’s history from the budget ax. | more
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December 16, 2009
Making Sausage: ’Tis the Season to Give. Back.|
Government programs, jobs and benefits are not written on tablets of stone. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: What Would Tiger Do?|
As long as Tiger’s coming clean, how about some real-life lessons for youngsters?
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Craig’s Grist: Fusion Ballot |
Americans have evolved and so, too, should our electoral systems to provide greater choice. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: No More Clouds |
Smoke-free for more than a decade, Californians ask what took the Mitten so long. | more•
December 11, 2009
Tom Watkins: Fixing A Hole |A leaking church roof provides a dramatic reinder of what is truly important in life. | more
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December 1, 2009
Oakland County: Entering a Depression|
Badly slumping local property values help push the state into a depression . . . and local governments out of business. | more•
Press Box: Know Nothing Journalism |It would be sad to see some of the finer qualities of liberalism — a thrist for knowledge and diversity of thought — crushed by the Information Age. | more
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November 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Was 19th the Game Changer? |
The Democratic Party’s decision to hang its special election candidate out to dry could prove the turning point in the 2010 elections. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Good Guanxi|
Look out, Mario Impemba, your good guanxi might catch up with you some day.
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Craig’s Grist: Appoint Judges |
Few honestly can defend Michigan’s politically charged system of picking judges. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Nuclear Family |
It’s amazing, given its star-studded, protest-laden history, that California is leaning heavily on nuclear energy. | more•
November 13, 2009
Tom Watkins: New Opening for School Vouchers |Will the historic supporters of Michigan public education end up being responsible for its demise? | more
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November 1, 2009
Press Box: Mitten State Obsession |After years of neglect, the national media suddenly can’t get enough of Michigan. | more
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Detroit Prospect: An Uncomfortable Truth |
Americans would do well to take to heart the uncomfortable truth about racism that Carter had the audacity to utter.
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October 16, 2009
Making Sausage: The Color of Jobs |
Michigan voters want jobs — and firmly believe we can have new development while protecting the environment. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Run it like a Business|
Our current strategy of attempting to cut our way to prosperity is no way to run a business, and it’s no way to run a state.
| more•
Craig’s Grist: Parliament Works Better |
A parliamentary system would produce seasoned and accountable leaders of parties. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: OC Homecoming |
Being suddenly surrounded by people from The Mitten was fun, fascinating and comforting. | more•
October 1, 2009
Oakland County: The Party’s Over|
When the Big Three automakers no longer can afford business as usual, neither can the state they made so overwhelmingly prosperous for so long. | more•
September 30, 2009
Press Box: Budget Miscues and Misinformation |Why the public doesn’t have a clue how the state is spending their money. | more
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September 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Nothing’s a Guarantee Under the Dome|
The new business group formerly known as Detroit Renaissance is going to need the help of Lansing’s entrenched business organizations. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Client for Life |
A PR pro’s 15 best tips on how to become a successful consultant — and stay on top.
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Craig’s Grist: Two Members Per Seat |
Far-reaching proposal #2 to revamp state government: elect two members in each district. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Everything Must Go! |
The Governator finally finds a role that suits him: used car salesman. | more•
September 1, 2009
Press Box: Reporter’s Guide to Covering Bunk |From “death panels” to conspiracy theories, how to write about things that just aren’t true. | more
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Detroit Prospect: Voter Responsibility |
The selection of charter commission members will test how willing Detroit voters are to pay attention and take an active role in getting the city’s government under control. | more•
August 16, 2009
Making Sausage: No Cash for this Clunker|
With the direction state government is headed, asking taxpayers to pay more would be like Michigan’s own Cash for Clunkers program. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: A Lesson Taught by a Great Reporter |
Here’s “the rest of the story” behind a 1983 front-page expose by Charlie Cain. | more•
Craig’s Grist: Abolish One Legislative Chamber |
Far-reaching proposal #1 to revamp state government: a unicameral legislature. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: California Unsalted |
Turning seawater into drinking water is practical alchemy, but what’s the real cost? | more•
August 1, 2009
Oakland County: Horse-and-Buggy Governments |
Michigan no longer needs the expense of townships and multiple school districts in each county. | more•
Press Box: Cable Queen vs. the Press Corps |Jennifer Granholm rules cable TV, but she can’t spare time for her Capitol press corps subjects. | more
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July 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Don’t Waste a Good Crisis|
Legislators have a rare second chance to make bold, fundamental changes and pump new life into Michigan. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Where’s the Leisure Time They Promised? |
What would Parkinson say about BlackBerrys and other “labor-saving devices?” | more•
Craig’s Grist: Really Big Changes |
Michigan voters will have the opportunity for a constitutional housecleaning of state government in 2010. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Broke and Broker |
Can 2010 constitutional conventions fix Michigan’s and California’s failing governments? | more•
July 1, 2009
Detroit Prospect: Pivot Man |
Facing the city’s most daunting crisis since the ’67 riots, Mayor Bing needs to lead in a highly public way. | more•
Press Box: Who Will Tell Michiganders? |
Educating the public now ranks dead last on the priority list for most newspapers. | more•
June 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Hollywood Moochers|
Michigan’s film production experiment has become a horror flick for taxpayers. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Hypocrites, Plutocrats, Poseurs and Free-loaders |
Democrats who blame conservatives for the financial mess, and Republicans who blame liberals, are all missing the point. | more•
Craig’s Grist: Good Reads |
Some summer reading to remind you that reading is a pleasure. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Don’t Blame It on the Rain |
California’s failure to protect its most valuable resource — the ocean — is difficult to swallow. | more•
June 1, 2009
Oakland County: In the Shadow of a Giant |
A lot of us in Oakland County have lived to see a day we never expected — announcement of the final days of the Pontiac automobile. | more•
Press Box: The J-School Influx Paradox |
The newspaper industry is dying, but enrollment in journalism programs is soaring. | more•
May 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Winds of Change |
The election of Dave Bing as mayor signals a new direction for Detroit. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Diminishing Democracy |
Why do the greatest advocates for limiting legislative terms in office call themselves Conservatives? | more•
Craig’s Grist: Wild About Government |
A trip to the local post office drives this columnist postal. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Down the Drain |
The Mitten can’t keep some college grads from leaving — but it can lure them back. | more•
May 1, 2009
Detroit Prospect: Reading a Classic |
Forget the national characterizations. Detroit is The Great American Novel. | more•
Press Box: Ban the Beat-Sweetener! |
The silly, trumped-up outrage against profiling the powerful. | more•
April 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Up for Grabs |
With 18 months to go, here’s how the race for governor is shaping up. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: The Bird and The Gov |
Always unscripted, Mark “The Bird” Fidrych came to the aid of his state. | more•
Craig’s Grist: Why Not Enjoy the Absurd? |
The theater of the absurd merits a comeback — on Broadway, in D.C., in corporate boardrooms, state capitols, county courthouses, and entertainment media. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: A Demographic of One |
You think the mitten has problems? The Golden State’s economy is also really blue. | more•
April 1, 2009
Oakland County: Automation Alley |
Here’s what the nonprofit economic development organization really does to help create new businesses and jobs. | more•
Press Box: Goodbye to Great Expectations |
Forget Dickens. For journalism students today, it’s a Brave New World. | more•
March 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Spring Break |
Michigan needs a fresh start — and stimulus dollars won’t pave over all the financial potholes of the past six years. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Why Are Kids Flunking Writing? |
Is the writing of college graduates really getting worse all the time, or is that simply the talk of a bunch of old fogies? | more•
Craig’s Grist: Too Much of Too Much |
3,000 units of government and 22,000 elected officials produce inefficiency. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Look to the Cookie |
Look to the cookie for an important lesson in fundraising. | more•
March 1, 2009
Detroit Prospect: Post-Racial America? Not Where I Live |
Rejected Cobo deal shows how southeastern Michigan’s history still weighs us down. | more•
Press Box: Journalism’s Loss is Politics’ Gain |
It’s no surprise journalists are leaving the declining business for government jobs. | moreFebruary 16, 2009
Making Sausage: The Path Unfortunately Still Taken |
What started out as an effort to stimulate the economy has turned into a trillion-dollar Obamaboondoggle. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Hail, Chief! Lose the Barackberry |
Irrational decisions get made on instant “deciding devices.” | more•
Craig’s Grist: Hope |
We must grasp our deep-rooted hope, not others’ clichés about Michigan. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Power of the Mouse |
It’s not magic that there’s still a magic place where recessions can’t ruin your mood. | more•
February 1, 2009
Oakland County: Patterson for Governor |
We could at long last have an executive capable of pulling Michigan government back from the brink of fiscal disaster. | more•
Press Box: Reviving Your Right to Know |
The Freedom of Information Act is the public’s last line of defense. | more•
January 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Put Your Money Where Your Heart Is |
The one thing we can all do to help fix this economic mess is buy more from Michigan businesses. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet |
Just when you thought you had seen it all, something jumped up in 2008 to remind you that “you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.” | more•
Craig’s Grist: Michigan Prophet of the Year |
Enter the contest to be crowned Michigan’s best soothsayer for 2009. | more•
A Young Life: Puppy Love |
The DC-jaded cynic becomes a believer in miracles — at least miracles of the canine variety. | more•
January 4, 2009
Press Box: Reader Rage |
It’s not “democratizing” the news, it’s unleashing the mob. | more•
Tie Bar: Five Stages of Lame-Duck Grieving |
Lame duck can be magical or, more often, humiliating. | more•
December 16, 2008
Making Sausage: Bailout Mania |
A look at the future Senate Banking Committee hearing when Michigan comes calling for a bailout. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Can Obama Change Republicans Back? |
Sometime around the beginning of the Reagan Revolution, Republicans changed. | more•
A Young Life: Run Over by the Auto Bailout |
I’ve become a natural target in the raging national debate over aid to the Detroit 3. | more•
December 1, 2008
Oakland County: Road Taxes Now! |
Michigan’s roads need immediate action, not prolonged debate. | more•
Press Box: Punditry 101 |
A quick spin through the rules of political commentary. | more•
November 16, 2008
Making Sausage: End of an Era |
No longer can Michigan’s Republican leadership live off the successes of the Engler era. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Seven Deadly Sins Revisited |
The cause of the global financial crisis is far more basic than subprime mortgages. | more•
Craig’s Grist: None Dare Call It Socialism |
Beyond partisan gains and a fiercely populist mood, global markets and corporate competitiveness drive America toward democratic socialism. | more•
A Young Life: Kahliefohnya |
Why was the Terminator waking me up and talking politics? | more•
November 1, 2008
Tie Bar: Slacker Lobbyist |
Jean Doss takes a day off. | more•
Press Box: Ode to Newspapers |
Death of newspapers shifts greater power to politicians. | more•
October 16, 2008
Making Sausage: A Look Ahead — and Back — at Campaign 2008 |
With all the focus on national issues, is anyone paying attention to Michigan’s future? | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Better Buy a Thermos |
A healthy dose of pondering how medical insurance is about to change. | more•
Craig’s Grist: What Does a 91-Year-Old Know? |
A person living through 91 years of intermittent hells doesn’t deserve 2008’s economic train wreck. | more•
A Young Life: On the Road Again |
After three exhausting years of gaining “real life experience” in DC, I was about to realize my childhood dream. | more•
October 1, 2008
Oakland County: Playing Budget Defense |
Lansing’s red-ink finances hurt locals who don’t know what’s coming. | more•
Press Box: Palin’s Pyongyang-Style Press Policy |
McCain-Palin antics show contempt for the media and utter disdain for the public. | more•
September 16, 2008
Making Sausage: Slash this Hockey Mom at Your Own Risk |
Sarah Palin has changed the nature of this campaign because the personal attacks on her have backfired. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: I Finally Saw Obsession |
Mass distribution of the Obsession “shock-umentary” raises suspicions and basic issues. | more•
Craig’s Grist: The Year of Authenticity |
Voters are on higher-than-normal alert to the genuine and the fake. | more•
A Young Life: A Foot Out the Door |
A heavy door to a committee hearing room provides a moment of career clarity. | more•
September 1, 2008
Tie Bar: Granfalloons and the Sacred Pilgrimage of Door Knocking |
Door knocking — what it reveals about a campaign and ourselves. | more•
Press Box: Sex Sells (and Sells Readers Short) |
Where should journalists draw the line on reporting sex scandals? | more•
August 16, 2008
Making Sausage: Reefer Madness in Michigan? |
Are we about to open a Pandora’s pot box we won’t be able to close? | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Unsung Heroes of MET |
Looking back at the birth of the nation’s first state-run tuition pre-payment fund. | more•
Craig’s Grist: Ban the Banal |
The seven words and phrases we should ban in politics. | more•
A Young Life: Eye-Opening Tour |
Not even a cheat sheet could save this doomed tour of the Capitol — my first. | more•
August 1, 2008
Press Box: All News Ain’t Local |
Reducing coverage of state government is no way to cure what ails newspapers across Michigan. | more•
Oakland County: Filling the Leadership Pothole |
Impatient with the state’s road mess and leadership vacuum, Oakland County wants Lansing’s okay to raise new funds. | more•
July 16, 2008
Making Sausage: Constitutional Con Job |
The “Reform Government Now” proposal isn’t about reform — it’s all about control. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Dump the Eggs in a Dumpster? |
The right to life debate is open again and bound to carve another deep scar in the back of otherwise civil neighbors across Michigan. | more•
Craig’s Grist: Mayhems vs Miracles |
Michigan’s rival populaces battle it out for the heart, soul — and future — of Michigan. | more•
A Young Life: Trying to Be a Tourist in My Own Town |
The heat and humidity of the swamp that is Washington have claimed many a victim. Unsuspecting tourists are especially vulnerable. | more•
July 6, 2008
Tie Bar: Abortion…Or Why I Don’t Hate P.L. |
For pro-choice lobbyist, not all enemies are created equal. | more•
Press Box: Campaigning 101— Pile on the Press |
Both presidential hopefuls are walking a tightrope with the press corps. | more•
June 16, 2008
Making Sausage: Fieger — Dumb Like a Fox? |
Ignorance is not only bliss, but also apparently a good enough excuse for breaking the law. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Maybe Obama Can |
Obama’s win is liberating for all ages, races, religions and economic classes.
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Craig’s Grist: ‘Endowded’ Wisdom |
The American mood, the darkest since 1974, coincides with the potential of the nation’s fourth transformation. | more•
A Young Life: Making a Difference…the Mumps Way |
My mystery ailment, not bio-terrorism, threatened to shut down the U.S. Congress. | more•
June 1, 2008
Press Box: Little Piggy Who Cried Wolf |
Recall crusader’s fall from grace provides valuable lesson for news media. | more•
Oakland County: Staring Inefficiency in the Face |
‘Pride of place’ no obstacle to eliminating proliferation of local governments. | more•
May 16, 2008
Making Sausage: Desperate in Michigan |
The only taxes involved in the new film rebate program are those of Michigan taxpayers. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Putting the Marble on the Green |
A jar of marbles helps keep you focused on the really important things in life.
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Craig’s Grist: A Kinder, Gentler Year? |
How current political comparisons compare to Peggy Noonan’s immortal words. | more•
A Young Life: Singin’ the Dues-Payin’ Intern Blues |
The glamorous aspects of the Hill provided an ironic contrast to our utterly banal duties. | more•
December 11, 2009
Tom Watkins: Fixing a Hole |A leaking church roof provides a dramatic reminder of what is truly important in life. | more
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December 1, 2009
Oakland County: Entering a Depression |
Badly slumping local property values help push the state into a depression … and local governments out of business. | more•
Press Box: Know Nothing Journalism |It would be sad to see some of the finer qualities of liberalism — a thirst for knowledge and diversity of thought — crushed by the Information Age. | more
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November 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Was 19th the Game Changer? |
The Democratic Party’s decision to hang its special election candidate out to dry could prove the turning point in the 2010 elections. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Good Guanxi|
Look out, Mario Impemba, your good guanxi might catch up with you some day.
| more•
Craig’s Grist: Appoint Judges |
Few honestly can defend Michigan’s politically charged system of picking judges. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Nuclear Family |
It’s amazing, given its star-studded, protest-laden history, that California is leaning heavily on nuclear energy. | more•
November 13, 2009
Tom Watkins: New Opening for School Vouchers |Will the historic supporters of Michigan public education end up being responsible for its demise? | more
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Press Box: Mitten State Obsession |After years of neglect, the national media suddenly can’t get enough of Michigan. | more
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Detroit Prospect: An Uncomfortable Truth |
Americans would do well to take to heart the uncomfortable truth about racism that Carter had the audacity to utter.
| more•
October 16, 2009
Making Sausage: The Color of Jobs |
Michigan voters want jobs — and firmly believe we can have new development while protecting the environment. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Run it like a Business|
Our current strategy of attempting to cut our way to prosperity is no way to run a business, and it’s no way to run a state.
| more•
Craig’s Grist: Parliament Works Better |
A parliamentary system would produce seasoned and accountable leaders of parties. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: OC Homecoming |
Being suddenly surrounded by people from The Mitten was fun, fascinating and comforting. | more•
October 1, 2009
Oakland County: The Party’s Over|
When the Big Three automakers no longer can afford business as usual, neither can the state they made so overwhelmingly prosperous for so long. | more•
September 30, 2009
Press Box: Budget Miscues and Misinformation |Why the public doesn’t have a clue how the state is spending their money. | more
•
September 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Nothing’s a Guarantee Under the Dome|
The new business group formerly known as Detroit Renaissance is going to need the help of Lansing’s entrenched business organizations. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Client for Life |
A PR pro’s 15 best tips on how to become a successful consultant — and stay on top.
| more•
Craig’s Grist: Two Members Per Seat |
Far-reaching proposal #2 to revamp state government: elect two members in each district. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Everything Must Go! |
The Governator finally finds a role that suits him: used car salesman. | more•
September 1, 2009
Press Box: Reporter’s Guide to Covering Bunk |From “death panels” to conspiracy theories, how to write about things that just aren’t true. | more
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Detroit Prospect: Voter Responsibility |
The selection of charter commission members will test how willing Detroit voters are to pay attention and take an active role in getting the city’s government under control. | more•
August 16, 2009
Making Sausage: No Cash for this Clunker|
With the direction state government is headed, asking taxpayers to pay more would be like Michigan’s own Cash for Clunkers program. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: A Lesson Taught by a Great Reporter |
Here’s “the rest of the story” behind a 1983 front-page expose by Charlie Cain. | more•
Craig’s Grist: Abolish One Legislative Chamber |
Far-reaching proposal #1 to revamp state government: a unicameral legislature. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: California Unsalted |
Turning seawater into drinking water is practical alchemy, but what’s the real cost? | more•
August 1, 2009
Oakland County: Horse-and-Buggy Governments |
Michigan no longer needs the expense of townships and multiple school districts in each county. | more•
Press Box: Cable Queen vs. the Press Corps |Jennifer Granholm rules cable TV, but she can’t spare time for her Capitol press corps subjects. | more
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July 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Don’t Waste a Good Crisis|
Legislators have a rare second chance to make bold, fundamental changes and pump new life into Michigan. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Where’s the Leisure Time They Promised? |
What would Parkinson say about BlackBerrys and other “labor-saving devices?” | more•
Craig’s Grist: Really Big Changes |
Michigan voters will have the opportunity for a constitutional housecleaning of state government in 2010. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Broke and Broker |
Can 2010 constitutional conventions fix Michigan’s and California’s failing governments? | more•
July 1, 2009
Detroit Prospect: Pivot Man |
Facing the city’s most daunting crisis since the ’67 riots, Mayor Bing needs to lead in a highly public way. | more•
Press Box: Who Will Tell Michiganders? |
Educating the public now ranks dead last on the priority list for most newspapers. | more•
June 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Hollywood Moochers|
Michigan’s film production experiment has become a horror flick for taxpayers. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Hypocrites, Plutocrats, Poseurs and Free-loaders |
Democrats who blame conservatives for the financial mess, and Republicans who blame liberals, are all missing the point. | more•
Craig’s Grist: Good Reads |
Some summer reading to remind you that reading is a pleasure. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Don’t Blame It on the Rain |
California’s failure to protect its most valuable resource — the ocean — is difficult to swallow. | more•
June 1, 2009
Oakland County: In the Shadow of a Giant |
A lot of us in Oakland County have lived to see a day we never expected — announcement of the final days of the Pontiac automobile. | more•
Press Box: The J-School Influx Paradox |
The newspaper industry is dying, but enrollment in journalism programs is soaring. | more•
May 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Winds of Change |
The election of Dave Bing as mayor signals a new direction for Detroit. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Diminishing Democracy |
Why do the greatest advocates for limiting legislative terms in office call themselves Conservatives? | more•
Craig’s Grist: Wild About Government |
A trip to the local post office drives this columnist postal. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Down the Drain |
The Mitten can’t keep some college grads from leaving — but it can lure them back. | more•
May 1, 2009
Detroit Prospect: Reading a Classic |
Forget the national characterizations. Detroit is The Great American Novel. | more•
Press Box: Ban the Beat-Sweetener! |
The silly, trumped-up outrage against profiling the powerful. | more•
April 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Up for Grabs |
With 18 months to go, here’s how the race for governor is shaping up. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: The Bird and The Gov |
Always unscripted, Mark “The Bird” Fidrych came to the aid of his state. | more•
Craig’s Grist: Why Not Enjoy the Absurd? |
The theater of the absurd merits a comeback — on Broadway, in D.C., in corporate boardrooms, state capitols, county courthouses, and entertainment media. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: A Demographic of One |
You think the mitten has problems? The Golden State’s economy is also really blue. | more•
April 1, 2009
Oakland County: Automation Alley |
Here’s what the nonprofit economic development organization really does to help create new businesses and jobs. | more•
Press Box: Goodbye to Great Expectations |
Forget Dickens. For journalism students today, it’s a Brave New World. | more•
March 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Spring Break |
Michigan needs a fresh start — and stimulus dollars won’t pave over all the financial potholes of the past six years. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Why Are Kids Flunking Writing? |
Is the writing of college graduates really getting worse all the time, or is that simply the talk of a bunch of old fogies? | more•
Craig’s Grist: Too Much of Too Much |
3,000 units of government and 22,000 elected officials produce inefficiency. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Look to the Cookie |
Look to the cookie for an important lesson in fundraising. | more•
March 1, 2009
Detroit Prospect: Post-Racial America? Not Where I Live |
Rejected Cobo deal shows how southeastern Michigan’s history still weighs us down. | more•
Press Box: Journalism’s Loss is Politics’ Gain |
It’s no surprise journalists are leaving the declining business for government jobs. | moreFebruary 16, 2009
Making Sausage: The Path Unfortunately Still Taken |
What started out as an effort to stimulate the economy has turned into a trillion-dollar Obamaboondoggle. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Hail, Chief! Lose the Barackberry |
Irrational decisions get made on instant “deciding devices.” | more•
Craig’s Grist: Hope |
We must grasp our deep-rooted hope, not others’ clichés about Michigan. | more•
Foreign Correspondent: Power of the Mouse |
It’s not magic that there’s still a magic place where recessions can’t ruin your mood. | more•
February 1, 2009
Oakland County: Patterson for Governor |
We could at long last have an executive capable of pulling Michigan government back from the brink of fiscal disaster. | more•
Press Box: Reviving Your Right to Know |
The Freedom of Information Act is the public’s last line of defense. | more•
January 16, 2009
Making Sausage: Put Your Money Where Your Heart Is |
The one thing we can all do to help fix this economic mess is buy more from Michigan businesses. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet |
Just when you thought you had seen it all, something jumped up in 2008 to remind you that “you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.” | more•
Craig’s Grist: Michigan Prophet of the Year |
Enter the contest to be crowned Michigan’s best soothsayer for 2009. | more•
A Young Life: Puppy Love |
The DC-jaded cynic becomes a believer in miracles — at least miracles of the canine variety. | more•
January 4, 2009
Press Box: Reader Rage |
It’s not “democratizing” the news, it’s unleashing the mob. | more•
Tie Bar: Five Stages of Lame-Duck Grieving |
Lame duck can be magical or, more often, humiliating. | more•
December 16, 2008
Making Sausage: Bailout Mania |
A look at the future Senate Banking Committee hearing when Michigan comes calling for a bailout. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Can Obama Change Republicans Back? |
Sometime around the beginning of the Reagan Revolution, Republicans changed. | more•
A Young Life: Run Over by the Auto Bailout |
I’ve become a natural target in the raging national debate over aid to the Detroit 3. | more•
December 1, 2008
Oakland County: Road Taxes Now! |
Michigan’s roads need immediate action, not prolonged debate. | more•
Press Box: Punditry 101 |
A quick spin through the rules of political commentary. | more•
November 16, 2008
Making Sausage: End of an Era |
No longer can Michigan’s Republican leadership live off the successes of the Engler era. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Seven Deadly Sins Revisited |
The cause of the global financial crisis is far more basic than subprime mortgages. | more•
Craig’s Grist: None Dare Call It Socialism |
Beyond partisan gains and a fiercely populist mood, global markets and corporate competitiveness drive America toward democratic socialism. | more•
A Young Life: Kahliefohnya |
Why was the Terminator waking me up and talking politics? | more•
November 1, 2008
Tie Bar: Slacker Lobbyist |
Jean Doss takes a day off. | more•
Press Box: Ode to Newspapers |
Death of newspapers shifts greater power to politicians. | more•
October 16, 2008
Making Sausage: A Look Ahead — and Back — at Campaign 2008 |
With all the focus on national issues, is anyone paying attention to Michigan’s future? | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Better Buy a Thermos |
A healthy dose of pondering how medical insurance is about to change. | more•
Craig’s Grist: What Does a 91-Year-Old Know? |
A person living through 91 years of intermittent hells doesn’t deserve 2008’s economic train wreck. | more•
A Young Life: On the Road Again |
After three exhausting years of gaining “real life experience” in DC, I was about to realize my childhood dream. | more•
October 1, 2008
Oakland County: Playing Budget Defense |
Lansing’s red-ink finances hurt locals who don’t know what’s coming. | more•
Press Box: Palin’s Pyongyang-Style Press Policy |
McCain-Palin antics show contempt for the media and utter disdain for the public. | more•
September 16, 2008
Making Sausage: Slash this Hockey Mom at Your Own Risk |
Sarah Palin has changed the nature of this campaign because the personal attacks on her have backfired. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: I Finally Saw Obsession |
Mass distribution of the Obsession “shock-umentary” raises suspicions and basic issues. | more•
Craig’s Grist: The Year of Authenticity |
Voters are on higher-than-normal alert to the genuine and the fake. | more•
A Young Life: A Foot Out the Door |
A heavy door to a committee hearing room provides a moment of career clarity. | more•
September 1, 2008
Tie Bar: Granfalloons and the Sacred Pilgrimage of Door Knocking |
Door knocking — what it reveals about a campaign and ourselves. | more•
Press Box: Sex Sells (and Sells Readers Short) |
Where should journalists draw the line on reporting sex scandals? | more•
August 16, 2008
Making Sausage: Reefer Madness in Michigan? |
Are we about to open a Pandora’s pot box we won’t be able to close? | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Unsung Heroes of MET |
Looking back at the birth of the nation’s first state-run tuition pre-payment fund. | more•
Craig’s Grist: Ban the Banal |
The seven words and phrases we should ban in politics. | more•
A Young Life: Eye-Opening Tour |
Not even a cheat sheet could save this doomed tour of the Capitol — my first. | more•
August 1, 2008
Press Box: All News Ain’t Local |
Reducing coverage of state government is no way to cure what ails newspapers across Michigan. | more•
Oakland County: Filling the Leadership Pothole |
Impatient with the state’s road mess and leadership vacuum, Oakland County wants Lansing’s okay to raise new funds. | more•
July 16, 2008
Making Sausage: Constitutional Con Job |
The “Reform Government Now” proposal isn’t about reform — it’s all about control. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Dump the Eggs in a Dumpster? |
The right to life debate is open again and bound to carve another deep scar in the back of otherwise civil neighbors across Michigan. | more•
Craig’s Grist: Mayhems vs Miracles |
Michigan’s rival populaces battle it out for the heart, soul — and future — of Michigan. | more•
A Young Life: Trying to Be a Tourist in My Own Town |
The heat and humidity of the swamp that is Washington have claimed many a victim. Unsuspecting tourists are especially vulnerable. | more•
July 6, 2008
Tie Bar: Abortion…Or Why I Don’t Hate P.L. |
For pro-choice lobbyist, not all enemies are created equal. | more•
Press Box: Campaigning 101— Pile on the Press |
Both presidential hopefuls are walking a tightrope with the press corps. | more•
June 16, 2008
Making Sausage: Fieger — Dumb Like a Fox? |
Ignorance is not only bliss, but also apparently a good enough excuse for breaking the law. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Maybe Obama Can |
Obama’s win is liberating for all ages, races, religions and economic classes.
| more•
Craig’s Grist: ‘Endowded’ Wisdom |
The American mood, the darkest since 1974, coincides with the potential of the nation’s fourth transformation. | more•
A Young Life: Making a Difference…the Mumps Way |
My mystery ailment, not bio-terrorism, threatened to shut down the U.S. Congress. | more•
June 1, 2008
Press Box: Little Piggy Who Cried Wolf |
Recall crusader’s fall from grace provides valuable lesson for news media. | more•
Oakland County: Staring Inefficiency in the Face |
‘Pride of place’ no obstacle to eliminating proliferation of local governments. | more•
May 16, 2008
Making Sausage: Desperate in Michigan |
The only taxes involved in the new film rebate program are those of Michigan taxpayers. | more•
Rick Cole At Large: Putting the Marble on the Green |
A jar of marbles helps keep you focused on the really important things in life.
| more•
Craig’s Grist: A Kinder, Gentler Year? |
How current political comparisons compare to Peggy Noonan’s immortal words. | more•
A Young Life: Singin’ the Dues-Payin’ Intern Blues |
The glamorous aspects of the Hill provided an ironic contrast to our utterly banal duties. | more•
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