This Associated Press story highlights the problem of fire – by arson or by accident – in vacant homes, increasing as does the foreclosure crisis.
It focuses on the sad story of one homeless man squatting in one vacant home in Flint.
-KG
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This Slate piece was written by a Flint native returning to his hometown in search of affordable housing, driven out of San Fransisco by obscenly high housing costs.
It’s an interesting and well-written story.
Thanks to Rust Wire reader Claudia Raleigh for bringing it to my attention.
-KG
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  We all knew it was coming and now it has: GM is bankrupt.
  The quintessential American automaker entered Chapter 11 this morning. It is $172 billion in debt, according to The New York Times.

  GM has announced plans to close 12 factories in Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Delaware and Tennessee.
  The government’s going to give GM another $30 billion to get it through what President Obama hopes will be a quick restructuring.
  Mercifully, at least GM has promised to keep its headquarters in Detroit, The Times reports.
  Chrysler, meanwhile, is expected to emerge from …

The Tax Bias Against Cities
Not that long ago, I couldn’t imagine a more boring topic than taxes. Then I saw this documentary about how regressive state taxes in Alabama were enriching the wealthy at the expense of the state’s poorest residents. The documentary featured people that literally did not have indoor plumbing but were carrying the state government on their backs while many wealthy residents of the state were entirely exempt from paying state taxes. This is because Alabama has a regressive state income tax policy that lets residents write …

So the big news today is that the Obama Administration is conducting a forced “reorganization” of General Motors (R.I.P. Pontiac).
The Plain Dealer reports that GM will cut 21,000 jobs and close 42 percent of its dealerships. A lot of bond holders are angry with the deal and feel they’re being shortchanged. Meanwhile, retiree healthcare benefits are in jeopardy if the company enters Chapter 11, which is a real possibility.
Rather than blast Obama, The Detroit News today writes about the efforts the president is making to soften the blow for Michigan.
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So the big news today is that the Obama Administration is conducting a forced “reorganization” of General Motors (R.I.P. Pontiac).
The Plain Dealer reports that GM will cut 21,000 jobs and close 42 percent of its dealerships. A lot of bond holders are angry with the deal and feel they’re being shortchanged. Meanwhile, retiree healthcare benefits are in jeopardy if the company enters Chapter 11, which is a real possibility.
Rather than blast Obama, The Detroit News today writes about the efforts the president is making to soften the blow for Michigan.
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Rust Wire was able to sit down last week with the very busy Rhoda Matthews, executive director of Flint Club, a Flint, Michigan-based group working to improve the city and reaching out to the large group of Flint natives who no longer call the Vehicle City home.
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The Environmental Defense Fund has launched a new ad with Braddock Mayor John Fetterman, claiming carbon caps could offer relief to former steel towns.

Wow.
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Check out this video and story by one of my favorite Detroit News writers, Charlie LeDuff.
He visited what was left of the Automotive Components Holdings plant in Ypsilanti, Mich., which made parts for Visteon and Ford.
LeDuff writes, “You can now watch the liquidation of the American Dream in real time.”
He continues, “Any given week, the guts of a whole factory are auctioned off. Its contents are sold piece by piece and taken away for scrap or antiques or resale to foreign companies. Men with blowtorches and trucks haul off tool-and-die …

Monday’s L.A. Times has an interesting article about how President Obama will have to tread lightly for fear of alienating auto workers and auto retirees in the auto swing states of Ohio and Indiana.
“…politics could prove unavoidable, given the president’s ties to the UAW and his election campaign’s reliance on auto-heavy states such as Ohio, Michigan and Indiana.”
The story goes on to add, “White House officials have moved in recent days to minimize future strains on union ties by offering at least supportive words for the UAW’s arguments. An administration …