Have you heard enough about the royal larva about to be squirted out?  Do I sound uncaring?  I am!  We fought a revolution so I do not have to be concerned with what the royalty is doing….and I exercise my right!

By now you have heard about the bankruptcy of the city of Detroit…….whether you got it from MSM or papers or gossip….the statement is true….Detroit is in deep doo-doo……but what happened to force this decision…..and there are many…….

Detroit’s bankruptcy may not have surprised many people—“this has been coming for ages,” one pained city worker tells the New York Times—but it does have everyone talking. What went wrong? What happens next? We’re glad you asked.

What happened:

• Much of the problem stems from the decline in the auto industry, which, according to The Week’s timeline, began in the ’70s, when the gas crisis spurred interest in more efficient imports. But things really sped up around 2000. Since then…
• Unemployment has tripled, peaking at almost 28% in 2009. Today it’s at about 16%.
• Crime has spiked, with homicide rates now at historic highs, USA Today reports. Police take an average of 58 minutes to respond to calls.
• Many residents, particularly middle class ones, have fled in response; the city’s population has dropped 25% since 2000. That exodus has left 78,000 city structures abandoned.
• All of which has led to a 30% plunge in tax revenue over a decade.
• That’s made city services even worse. “There’s no way Detroit can afford to service 140 square miles anymore,” economist Eric Scorsone tells NBC News. “So for parts of the city if your streetlight’s out, they’re not going to fix it.” Indeed, 40% of the city’s streetlights don’t work.
• And hanging over the city are massive unfunded pension obligations, currently totaling $18 billion, or $25,000 for every resident. The city’s top two creditors are its General Retirement System and Police and Fire Retirement System, the Detroit Free Press reports.

What’s next:

• City officials have insisted that day-to-day city business will go on unimpeded; they’re free to use their cash on hand to fund public works.
• Detroit will get an automatic stay on all its bills and all lawsuits against it, though it’ll still have to pay secured creditors, according to USA Today.
• A judge will have to agree that things are bad enough to warrant bankruptcy. Assuming that happens, the city will craft a reorganization plan, hopefully with the support of creditors.
• That will surely involve cuts to pensions, something the unions are staunchly against.
• Whatever happens will be watched closely. “Everyone will say, ‘Oh well, it’s Detroit,'” Scorsone says. But “it’s the same in Chicago and New York and San Diego and San Jose. … They may not be as extreme as Detroit, but a lot of them face the same problems.”

Detroit is in deep doo doo…….but there may be a slight hiccup in the filing for bankruptcy…….for all you pseudo-constitutional wiz kigs…it could be…..wait for it…….unconstitutional!

One little snag emerged today regarding Detroit’s bankruptcy filing: A county judge declared the move unconstitutional and ordered the bankruptcy withdrawn, reports the Detroit Free Press. Judge Rosemary Aquilina also slammed the “rush to bankruptcy court” as unfair to the city’s pension boards, which were in the process of trying to block such a filing—in Aquilina’s own court. The judge said she’s worried that a federal bankruptcy judge, unbound by state law, will slash pensions, prompting this exchange:

• “We can’t speculate what the bankruptcy court might order,” said an assistant attorney general.
• “It’s a certainty, sir,” said Aquilina. “That’s why you filed for bankruptcy.”

The judge promised to make sure that President Obama sees her ruling, and she thinks he will make sure that existing pensions were honored. “I know he’s watching this.” Immediately after her ruling, the state’s attorney general filed an appeal with the Michigan Court of Appeals, reports the Detroit News. A quick decision is expected. It’s also possible that a federal bankruptcy judge will weigh in—even though the city filed for Chapter 9, a bankruptcy judge still must determine whether the city qualifies.

We can blame many things and most people do…..depending on your political orientation…..one of the most outstanding reasons at least in my mind is the……automobile!  Kinda ironic, huh?  And let’s not forget the American Dream also contributed…….I cannot wait for all the mental midgets that will take exception to this statement….I look forward to it!  Basically, Detroit suffered from mismanagement and a victim of its own success.

Let me qualify my assertions.  The auto industry made Detroit and most of Michigan…..it gave the people a good well paying job…..which in turn gave them more disposable income and that is where the American Dream kicks in….a house in the suburbs, 2 cars in the garage and a better life…….so basically, the auto made Detroit and is now killing it……..the people tool flight from the city in search of a better life and the auto made it possible…..so the auto help make them a better life and in turn they drove away from the city for the suburbs.  Thus slowly but slowly the quality of life in the city began to worsen to the point it is today.

I listed many things that contributed to the decline of Detroit….but to me it was the auto that drove (pun intended) the final nail in its coffin……..once revenues decline any city, even yours, can face the music of decline.

Part 2 of this post will be the solutions….at least as I see them…….please be patient as it is a doozy of a problem….;it make take a couple of days before the post….