Anti-Climacus

LINK: Like all former Michigan residents, I have something of a love-hate relationship with my state (an attitude picked up, at least somewhat, in Grosse Pointe Blank, though the Michigan references are somewhat minimal): on the one hand, beautiful (I like to think our sand dunes are bigger than the Outer Banks, and they probably are), with an interesting and proud history. When it comes to music (very important to me) I think Michigan easily surpasses every place in the U.S. that's not New York or Los Angeles, and probably spans more genres: the MC5, the Stooges, ? and the Mysterians, and everything Motown has to offer--right there Michigan is top-5, at least.

However, no one who lived in or has cared at all for Michigan can be blind to its weaknesses, exemplified by Flint, the first of the automotive cities to fail. A man I knew from central Michigan was returning with his wife to Saginaw (she had a post-MD job up there), which has apparently declined rapidly since I was last there. And Detroit, well, Detroit is a tragedy. First because there was so much beautiful and vibrant there once, and its hard not to still see that; also because it often seems so close to coming back, but never quite makes it. As much as I rag on my home state (and think the auto bailout is a horrible idea), I want it to do as well as it deserves.

So this story from the Weekly Standard hit all the right notes. I sent the link to Becky, who complained about the factual inaccuracies on the first page, but by the second we were both engrossed. It's a hard city to love sometimes (it doesn't make it easy), but you love it anyway.