Leave it to the Times to find Nightlife

So, BrooklynDodger has spent some time in Detroit, even downtown after dark. In the run up to the Superbowl, there's been news of a porn star reception at a place downtown of which the Dodger was completely ignorant, the Zoo. There was news of a Maxim reception at the Max, home of the Detroit Symphony.

Now the Times reporter identifies about 7 nightspots of which the Dodger had never heard, and one that ways known. All Downtown and pretty much in walking distance of Ford field, although pretty much no one would walk them, especially when it's 20 outside.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/29/fashion/sundaystyles/29DETROIT.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Detroit in Party Gear

WITH its neon-tinged, Art Decolike facade, velvet rope and immaculately manicured young women in low-slung jeans waiting outside, Bleu Room Experience here in the heart of downtown would be right at home on South Beach in Miami. True, it is about 40 degrees outside, and a few abandoned skyscrapers loom like hooded muggers within blocks in either direction. But Bleu Room is not alone.

In the last five years the lights have begun to shine once again in the former no-man's land of downtown.

Parochial (as in local) Interests in Homeland Security

So, it should be obvious that the Patriot Act and Homeland Security hysteriacs would extend their reach from surveilling and harrassing Islamic organizations to first peace organizations and war protesters, and then onwards.

What caught the Dodger'(s) eye in this posting was the Honey Baked Ham. The Islamic tie-in to prohibition of eating pork is pretty obvious to the Dodger, more than the Vegan end of it. Maybe the Vegans are dupes of muslim and Kosher interests?

The Honey Baked Ham is a Michigan icon. Therefore this might be an example of Federal dollars coming back to Michigan by protecting a branch store in Atlanta?

So the Dodger looked for Honey Baked Ham history. The Dodger has long wondered whether the Honey Baked Ham store on Fenkell in Detroit was the original, or near original. A google search revealed that there is a Honey Baked with 400 stores around the country, which confesses to Michigan roots but not Detroit roots.

A google search revealed:

Detroit Almanac: Christmas ham... Baked Ham, that eventually numbered more than 300 stores nationwide. In 1957, Hoenselaar (pronounced HUNS-ler) opened his first store on Fenkell in Detroit. ...
www.freep.com/news/locway/ztri21_20001221.htm - 25k - Supplemental Result - Cached - Similar pages

Delve into these Detroit delicacies to celebrate city's 300th ...... 300th birthday festivities remember to serve honey-baked ham, canned Chinese ... sold in 1957 in a store on Fenkell. ... of Faygo Redpop at Pure Detroit, a downtown ...
www.detnews.com/2001/metro/0107/05/d01-243461.htm - 26k - Supplemental Result -

[The full text was down from the freep site, likewise the nearly identical reference from the News]

The google search also revealed an "Original Honey Baked Ham" company, engaged in litigation against Glickman [Secretary of Agriculture from Kansas, former Congressman, maybe out of the same community as Senator Specter?]. The Original company is based in Georgia, and fought the Washington establishment over whether their kiosks in malls were subject to inspection.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/012706A.shtml

ACLU Releases Government Photos
WXIA TV, Atlanta

Friday 27 January 2006

The ACLU of Georgia released copies of government files on Wednesday that illustrate the extent to which the FBI, the DeKalb County Division of Homeland Security and other government agencies have gone to compile information on Georgians suspected of being threats simply for expressing controversial opinions.

Two documents relating to anti-war and anti-government protests, and a vegan rally, prove the agencies have been "spying" on Georgia residents unconstitutionally, the ACLU said.

For example, more than two dozen government surveillance photographs show 22-year-old Caitlin Childs of Atlanta, a strict vegetarian, and other vegans picketing against meat eating, in December 2003. They staged their protest outside a HoneyBaked Ham store on Buford Highway in DeKalb County.

An undercover DeKalb County Homeland Security detective was assigned to conduct surveillance of the protest and the protestors, and take the photographs. The detective arrested Childs and another protester after he saw Childs approach him and write down, on a piece of paper, the license plate number of his unmarked government car...

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

http://www.honeybaked.com/default.asp

About HoneyBaked

Over 40 years ago, Harry J. Hoenselaar began a special tradition when he opened his first The HoneyBaked Ham Company store in Michigan. He'd select the finest quality bone-in ham. Cure it in his secret marinade, and then for tenderness, he'd smoke the ham for hours over a unique blend of hardwood chips.

The "Original Honey Baked," maybe an imposter:

http://pacer.cadc.uscourts.gov/common/opinions/199904/98-5244a.txt

Disinformation Debunked

A persistent rumor is that environmental concerns for asbestos lead NASA to use a weaker sealant for the Challenger. This is like to claim that lack of asbestos insulation on the WTC beams contributed to the collapse. This is just a conservative attack on environmental protection. The following account debunks the myth.

7 myths about the Challenger shuttle disaster

It didn't explode, the crew didn't die instantly and it wasn't inevitable

By James Oberg

NBC News space analyst

Special to MSNBC

Updated: 11:25 a.m. ET Jan. 27, 2006

James Oberg NBC News space analyst

Myth #5: Environmental ban led to weaker sealant
A favorite of the Internet, this myth states that a major factor in the disaster was that NASA had been ordered by regulatory agencies to abandon a working pressure sealant because it contained too much asbestos, and use a weaker replacement. But the replacement of the seal was unrelated to the disaster — and occurred prior to any environmental ban.

Even the original putty had persistent sealing problems, and after it was replaced by another putty that also contained asbestos, the higher level of breaches was connected not to the putty itself, but to a new test procedure being used. “We discovered that it was this leak check which was a likely cause of the dangerous bubbles in the putty that I had heard about," wrote physicist Richard Feynman, a member of the Challenger investigation board.

And the bubble effect was unconnected with the actual seal violation that would ultimately doom Challenger and its crew. The cause was an inadequate low-temperature performance of the O-ring seal itself, which had not been replaced.

Wasting Away in MBAville 2: Letting accountants evaluate eduction

Michigan

Big waste found at state universities

Auditors question use of taxpayer money

Go to www.audgen.michigan.gov. Click the "Complete Audit Reports" link, then within each year's index look under "Universities and Colleges."

FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

BY JOHN BEBOW

Their crimes:

Michigan's public universities have offered thousands of sparsely attended classes, allowed thousands of students to pad grades by taking the same classes over and over, and sometimes failed to monitor or correct faculty performance.

Those findings -- issued in state audits -- suggest that taxpayer-supported universities could do more to tighten operations as they battle for more government funding in dire economic times. The auditors' concerns come as students and parents face stiff annual tuition increases.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

BrooklynDodger(s) comments: Truly seat of the pants journalism. Find the website - probably tipped off - clip a few graphs, interview a random angry parent, and presto, top of the DFP website without getting up from the monitor.

So Western Michigan University gets dinged for having small classes. Never mind, you might need a small class to get some kids a required course in their major. Others get dinged for students taking courses a second time to get a better grade - if the idea were to make more money, or let students improve their chances of graduate school, what's wrong with that?

The legislature has starved university support, then turns around and complains that the universities raise tuition.

The article revealed that U of M Ann Arbor, the golden temple, has never been audited. The state plans that.

Don't take the Dodger wrong; surely there are faculty who are frauds and administrative perks which are waste. But you can't evaluate or audit against the institution when you don't share the goals.

Small is Ugly When it Comes to Employment

[This post is marginally viewable in Fire fox and impossible in IE]

Bulletin 2573 BLS
January 2005

Big may not be beautiful, but small is surely ugly when it comes to working conditions. Corporate interests, even the multi-nationals, posture behind the notion of small business beset with government regulation. It’s an excuse to oppose new safety and health
requirements – relief for small employers translates into headaches for
employees of small employers.

Periodically BrooklynDodger sees information showing how small business
exploits and mistreats employees. Generally the gap is greater in benefits than wages.

This publication extract compares union to non union facilities on benefits. The Dodger notes that benefits, where they come out of a compensation package, are pre tax costs and therefore worth more than wages.

So it turns about that Defined Benefit pensions, prior to the airline debacle, were enjoyed by 20% of American workers overall, 72% in union [usually larger employers] employment but only 15% of non union.

Benefit	All	Union	Non Union
Any Retirement	49	83	45
Defined Benefit	20	72	15
Medical Care	53	82	50
Life Insurance	47	61	46
Short term disability	37	68	34
Long Term disability	28	27	29

New York Times' Unconscious Attack on Unions

Any Science at Davos Is Anything but Dismal

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/25/business/worldbusiness/25davos.html

by MARK LANDLER

Published: January 25, 2006

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan. 24 - Klaus Schwab, the Swiss professor-cum-event-planner who runs the World Economic Forum, is not about to complain, but the Bush administration has done him few favors lately...

Besides, Davos remains a high-altitude schmooze-fest of rare quality, with 2,340 people from 89 countries expected - among them a dozen heads of state, 77 cabinet ministers, 23 religious leaders, 13 union bosses, 735 chairmen or chief executives and Angelina Jolie.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

BrooklynDodger was sufficiently outraged to email the public editor. Why are union leaders, usually elected, canonically "union bosses," while actual bosses such as chairmen and chief executives never call bosses?

A search of the Times website got 135 hits for "union bosses" and 89 for "union boss." There was no overlap in the top five, suggesting that canonically there are no individual bosses where there is a group of them.

This is a double stylistic and political sin, one for the reporter who wrote it, one for the editor who didn't edit it out.

Ottoman Empire

History is one damn thing after another. [The Dodger gave up trying to find the origin of the aphorism.]

Twice in a week, BrooklynDodger(s) came up against the Dodger's ignorance of the Ottoman Empire. Both contacts involved the "Young Turks" and the Armenian Genocide. Over the last decades, everything seems to flow from the Ottoman empire - Palestine, Bosnia, Iran, Iraq... Yet the Dodger got through many years of education knowing little more than the name.

What was the political economy and governance of the Ottoman empire in the later 19th century? An inquiring mind(s) wants to know.

Paid Note Takers

Education

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5162955

Group Offers Money for Reports on Left-Wing Faculty

by Elaine Korry

Morning Edition, January 19, 2006 · A conservative alumni group is offering to pay students at the University of California-Los Angeles to monitor professors who have been branded as left-wing radicals. Faculty at UCLA are alarmed over what some are calling a campus witchhunt.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

This goes back to a previous post. The Dodger hopes the link goes back to the actual story in oral form.

This is facism, in the same way the attack on persons who might criticize Israel in the Columbia middle eastern studies department was facism.

Nevertheless, it's kind of funny. Somebody else paying students to enroll in your course probably doesn't hurt faculty productivity. Somebody taking really good notes might help transforming a course into a book. Getting the student's questions down right might also help a scholarly endeavor.

The damaging thing is to actually read a transcript of what you've said. The Dodger has read court depositions as well as transcripts of the Dodger's legislative and rulemaking testimony. Somehow, a discussion that sounded ok going out, where people seemed to listen and nod their heads in understanding, looks nearly incoherent when the actual words are written. Maybe the same would be true of these lectures.

There was a tradition in Berkeley of transcribed lecture notes being sold in the bookstore, the Dodger remembers they were called Phi Bates [the street was Bates].

A New Word

Main Entry: pre·ter·nat·u·ral
Pronunciation: "prE-t&r-'na-ch&-r&l, -'nach-r&l
Function: adjective
Etymology: Medieval Latin praeternaturalis, from Latin praeter naturam beyond nature
1 : existing outside of nature
2 : exceeding what is natural or regular : EXTRAORDINARY preternatural acuteness by the debates -- G. L. Dickinson>
3 : inexplicable by ordinary means; especially : PSYCHIC <preternatural phenomena>

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

A puff piece in the Times described a British actress as having "preternaturally" "glowing" skin. The Dodger had seen that word before as an adjective intensifier, but finally was spurred to look it up because of posting material needs.

On balance, the Dodger rejects this word, and its usage in this context. It's a pretentious version of "unbelievably?" Anyway, what's glowing skin?

Thug Etymology

Now that Mayor Bloomberg has placed "thug" in play, it's time to talk about origins of the word. The Dodger remembers Thug from a Sherlock Holmes novel. Many Holmes stories feature intrusion of the colonies into London society. The colonials are evil doers. The Dodger can't remember which one had a Thuggee from India as a participant. In Study in Scarlet, the back story and the bad guys are Mormons from Utah.

Wikipedia enlightens us:

Thuggee (or tuggee) (from the Sanskrit root sthag (Pali, thak), to conceal, mainly applied to fraudulent concealment) was an Indian cult, operating from the 13th to the 19th centuries, worshipping Kali whose members were known as Thugs. It was allegedly a hereditary cult with both Muslim and Hindu members that practiced large-scale robbery and murder of travellers by strangulation. Induction was typically passed from father to son, with the women of the household being kept ignorant of the cult activity.

...

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Allegedly" hides lack of sourcing.

Higher Class Adult Entertainment for SuperBowl

Porn star will host XL party

No nudity, she says, but it'll be $500 to go

BY KELLEY L. CARTER

FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

Vivid/ClubJenna Bowl Party

• 9 p.m. Feb. 3

  Featuring Jenna Jameson, Briana Banks, Savanna Samson, Krystal Steal, Ashton Moore and Sophia Rossi
  

  Zoo Bar

  415 E. Congress, Detroit
  

Add another famous face -- and a few other famous body parts, for that matter -- to the list of celebrities who will be hosting Super Bowl-timed fiestas in Detroit next month.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

BrooklynDodger previously posted festivities: patrons flocking to the "Windsor Ballet," [only 487 hits on google when phrased], Maxim holding its party at the Detroit Symphony. The Zoo Bar seems to be an adult downtown venue which can't stay open as a strip club. At least the Zoo seems to be in walking distance from Ford Field.

Thought Police

NPR this morning described a conservative student group at UCLA who published a list of [they say] leftist faculty - the "Dirty Thirty" and who are advertising to pay students to tape the lectures of these faculty members.

The story is not yet up on npr.org.

One of the targets likened it to Eastern Europe in the old days, which I think was a cheap shot and the wrong appeal. It sounds more like the Islamic fundamentalists during their takeover in Iran, as described in "Teaching Lolita in Teheran." Teaching is a great book; Bagdhad Burning is a great blog describing similar events in real time.

Motown No More

The Dodger's "Urban Desolation Tour" will be one feature short, thanks to the SuperBowl. The Dodger has always pointed out the blue clad former Motown headquarters, busted up and abandoned, at the corner of the Fisher Freeway and Woodward. Now it's going to be torn down for parking in conjunction with the Super Bowl [although, it's a fair hike from there to Ford Field.] There's lots more history in the full article.

When they finally can afford it, show biz people would rather live in LA. At least we have Martha Reeves on the Detroit City Council.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Saturday, January 14, 2006

Motown Center could still move forward, despite demolition

Donovan Building, former home to Motown offices, to be razed, but project leader holds out hope

Susan Whitall / The Detroit News

A s the wrecking ball tears into the old Donovan Building on Woodward Avenue next week, the question remains: Is there nothing in the old Motown Center's future but a gravel parking lot?

The Donovan Building, which sported distinctive blue panels in its later years, and an attached building, an old Sanders shop, were headquarters for Motown's business offices from 1967 to '72, before the company moved to Los Angeles. Both buildings are being razed and will be used as parking during the Super Bowl.

Does that kill the much-vaunted Motown Center project, which would create an expanded, additional Motown Museum (apart from Hitsville, the Motown Historical Museum on West Grand Boulevard) and give Motown Records a presence downtown as a reminder of an earlier golden age of Detroit music?

Tanya Heidelberg-Yopp, who has helmed the Motown Center project for Berry Gordy Jr. and other investors, has said in the past that they could proceed either with the renovation of the existing buildings, or with new construction.

About the teardown, Heidelberg-Yopp says, "I think that everyone is interested in seeing Detroit in the best possible shape in time for the Super Bowl, moving Detroit forward in every way."

If nostalgia for the Donovan is muted, it may be because, despite some press reports, no recording was ever done there...

Pill Splitting vs. Pill Popping

BrooklynDodger expects that Big Pharma will close this loophole pretty quick. The real story is that the pricing per pill rather than per milligram means that the cost of the actual physical drug is a minimal part of the price of the medicine. To this point it hasn't been worth Big Pharma's time to bargain with the pharmacy companies or the insurance providers over the medicine quantities. To the pharmacies, the cost of the product is really to cost of putting pills in bottles, not the weight of the pills.

This is a market with a monopoly seller [Big Pharma patentate], oligopolistic buyers [drug store chains or wholesalers], big third party payers [insurance companies], and non-paying prescribers. Physicians don't compete based on who prescribes the cheapest medicine.




>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
U-M pill-splitting plan could be big cost saver

January 14, 2006

BY KATIE MERX

FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER

• Aceon, hypertension
  
• Atacand, hypertension
  
• Avapro, hypertension
  
• Benicar, hypertension
  
• Cardura, hypertension
  
• Celexa, depression
  
• Cozaar, hypertension
  
• Crestor, high cholesterol
  
• Diovan, hypertension
  
• Klonopin, panic disorder, epilepsy
  
• Lexapro, depression
  
• Lipitor, high cholesterol
  
• Mavik, hypertension
  
• Paxil, depression
  
• Pexeva, depression
  
• Pravachol, high cholesterol
  
• Valtrex, herpes
  
• Viagra, erectile dysfunction
  
• Zestril, heart failure, high blood pressure
  
• Zocor, high cholesterol
  
• Zoloft, depression
  
• Zyprexa, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder

• Retail costs for the drugs

  
  
• At www.walgreens.com, 30 tablets of Lipitor cost $115.99 whether a patient needs 20mg, 40mg or 80mg tablets.
  
• At www.drugstore.com, 30 tablets of Zocor cost $135.99 for 20mg and $129.99 for 40mg.
  
• At www.CVS.com, 30 tablets of Pravachol cost $102.99 in a 20mg dose and $147.99 in a 40mg dose.
  

The University of Michigan could save $1.3 million and its health-plan members could save $190,000 this year if 45% of eligible members join a new and controversial pill-splitting program.

U-M started its pill-splitting program Jan. 1 to save money with plans to share the savings with its health-plan members by lowering co-pays. The program is voluntary and, at this point, includes three drugs that the university says can be safely split: Lipitor, Pravachol and Zocor.

The savings come through a quirk in the drug-pricing system that makes many prescription tablets available at the same or nearly the same cost whether patients buy them in low doses or high doses. Thirty tablets of Lipitor, for example, cost $116 at Walgreen Co. whether a patient buys 20mg, 40mg or 80mg tablets.

Reckless Endangerment

January 12, 2006 latimes.com : California Print E-mail story Most e-mailed Change text size

Gov. Won't Get a Ticket for His Ride, Police Say By Andrew Blankstein, Times Staff Writer Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will not receive a citation from police for his motorcycle accident in Brentwood on Sunday that left him sporting 15 stitches on his upper lip, authorities said Wednesday. Los Angeles police spokesman Jason Lee said no officers observed Schwarzenegger riding the motorcycle so the department would not issue a citation >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> BrooklynDodger Comments: The scofflaw attitude toward traffic rules by law and order types is breathtaking. Here's a dude, without a license to drive a motorcycle, and a second license to drive a motorcycle with a sidecar, with a 12 year old son in the side car, who cracks up the bike. It didn't say whether they had helmets. And, he had a police escort. The Governator said that a woman driver saw him coming, but pulled out of her driveway in front of him so as to cause the collision.

Democrats Exit Strategy

Bush is attacking elected Democrats criticism of the invasion and occupational of Iraq as unprincipled, since they voted for the war. Kerry and Clinton. It's kind of half right.

First, in the Dem's defense, they voted to authorize Bush to go to war if he so decided, not that he should go to war. Second, they can rightly say that they voted to authorize because they believed Bush's lies, and more convincingly, Colin Powell's lies; or at least they couldn't call those guys liars at the time.

However, it looked at the time, and still looks mainly like they caved in to an aggressive war they wouldn't have initiated themselves. Bush won the 2004 election because voters wanted an aggressive war, and because key media opinion leaders, including Judy Miller and Tom Friedman at the times shilled for the war. At the time, there was no practical difference in the Iraqification policies of Kerry and Bush.

Now the Dems could maybe hide behind Murtha's skirts and go for 6 month "redeployment" [who said, declare victory and go home from Vietnam. Except Bush already declared victory, suggesting this is a new war]? Obviously there's no difference between 6 months and immediate.

So what about "chaos" and "civil war?" It's already there, and will stay as long as American troops stay.

Polling Tolling

The most discouraging result here is that while 42% think that most representatives don't deserve to be re-elected, 60% think their own rep deserves to be re-elected. Not surprising, given the majority voted them in, and maybe upwards of 55% margin. It will be very difficult to unseat incumbents and will the congress back for progressives.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
USA TODAY/CNN GALLUP POLL

Results are based on telephone interviews with 1,003 national adults, aged 18+, conducted Jan. 6-8, 2006. For results based on the total sample of National Adults, one can say with 95% confidence that the margin of sampling error is +/-3 percentage points.

3. Please tell me whether you think each of the following political office-holders deserves to be reelected, or not. How about?

A. The U.S. Representative in your Congressional District

	Yes, deserves	No, does not	No opinion
National Adults
2006 Jan 6-8	60	27	13
2005 Oct 21-23	63	24	13
2004 Oct 14-16	62	21	17

B. Most members of Congress Yes, deserves No, does not No opinion National Adults 2006 Jan 6-8 42 47 11 2005 Oct 21-23 45 44 11 2004 Oct 14-16 51 33 16 2003 Oct 10-12 51 35 14 2002 Sep 20-22 57 28 15 2002 Apr 29-May 1 58 22 20

Victory for People Only Born Once, and not Born Yesterday

You now you're in trouble when...GM is a bastion taking a hit for diversity and ecumenicism. You may recall recent press coverage of worksites where management publically leads employees in group prayers [probably not ecumenical either] so management can see who joins and who doesn't.

This AP story slants to evangelical extremism. Decent reporting would have included a sentence about the rights conferred on an affinity group, and maybe another sentence on the logic of the program. Three minutes of google search [including bringing up the program] got the following account:

http://www.gm.com/company/gmability/workplace/400_diversity/460_partnerships/

And the following unconsciously? racist commentary:

"Want to start a group for Hispanic employees at General Motors? No problemo, amigo. Just follow these few steps and you’ll be recognized as an official “affinity group,” a sanctioned network of GM employees. As such, you’ll be able to use the company’s facilities for meetings and social events, you’ll be able to use official communication channels like our newsletters, and you’ll be able to collectively advance your agenda within the company, whatever it may be."

http://www.regent.edu/acad/schbus/

First, "christians" means all those denominations, not just evangelical fundamentalists. Second, the majority in power is not oppressed by the minority.

Court finds no bias on faiths in GM program

BY CHARLES WILSON

ASSOCIATED PRESS

INDIANAPOLIS -- A General Motors program that allows Hispanics, blacks or lesbians -- but not Christians -- to organize in employee groups is not committing religious discrimination, a federal court ruled.

GM's Affinity Group diversity program does not discriminate against Christians because it treats all religions equally, the 7th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Chicago ruled Thursday.

The court upheld a decision by a federal judge in Indianapolis, where the original lawsuit was filed by John Moranski, a born-again Christian who works at GM's Allison Transmission plant in Indianapolis.

Moranski applied in December 2002 to start an interdenominational Christian employees group as part of the diversity program, according to court documents.

GM rejected the application because program guidelines do not allow Affinity Groups to promote religious positions, the documents state. Moranski filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and then filed a federal lawsuit claiming that the denial constituted illegal religious discrimination.

Judge David Hamilton dismissed the suit, holding that Moranski had failed to state a claim for the court to consider.

The appeals court agreed. "The allegations in Moranski's complaint make clear that General Motors would have taken the same action had he possessed a different religious position," Judge Ann Claire Williams wrote in its opinion.

Moranski argued that the guidelines treat religious groups less favorably than nonreligious groups, but the appeals court disagreed. The guidelines, the court said, prohibit the forming of Affinity Groups based on any religious position, including atheism.

"Simply stated, General Motors' Affinity Group policy treats all religious alike -- it excludes them all from serving as the basis of a company-recognized Affinity Group," Williams wrote.

GM corporate diversity spokeswoman Crystal Hickman said the company was pleased with the decision.

According to GM's Web site, the company recognizes nine Affinity Groups -- ones for people with disabilities, gays and lesbians, women, Hispanics, veterans, and four groups for people of African or Asian ancestry.

Moranski could not be located for comment.

Cheap Posting - Watch TV

The Dodger was short on ideas. So here's a site for watching John Stewart and South Park:

http://taytv.blogspot.com/

Read it and Weep

From the cyber poll, the Dodger sees little to cheer about. There's a 68% right wing majority for issues they couldn't get from a decade of John Engler and republican legislature. A case needs to be made for why affirmative action is in interest of white men in particular, and white married people in general. These demographics are confounded with higher economic status, but probably act independently.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Put it to a vote?

Michigan citizens and special interest groups, weary of seeing their top issues sidetracked [sic] in the state capital, are increasingly willing to submit their pet concerns directly to voters, resulting in a crowded ballot. Which issue would you most like to see on the ballot next year?

Banning affirmative action in government hiring and contracting	56.72%
Raising the minimum wage	9.04%
An abortion ban	6.59%
A ban on dove hunting	1.16%
Hiring preferences for veterans	1.55%
Strengthening private property rights	11.24%
Safeguarding state conservation and environmental funds	3.49%
Guaranteeing school funding increases	7.36%
Relaxing legislative term limits	2.84%

Airline Falls Out - Independence

There's got to be a real cost to running an airline. With Northwest, United, Delta in bankruptcy, and with the frequent collapses of the predatory non-traditional airlines, it's clear that the "market" hasn't found what it is.

Maybe the business model here is for executive-investors to borrow a bunch of money, or sell a bunch of stock. The "entrepreneurs" pocket their money up front. They lease airplanes, lease unused gates at airports, contract with a maintenance firm and a baggage handling firm [notice the uniforms?], hire some pilots from the pool of displaced pilots, flight attendents and some ticket people. They run for a while, until the debt payments get so high they can't pay for fuel and salaries, then they go bankrupt. The entrepreneur pockets their upfront, collects fees for admnistering the bankrupt entity.

When it's over, the planes, pilots, flight attendents go back into the pool, the maintenance company looks for a new customer.

Meanwhile, the "traditional" carriers stay in bankruptcy. Under the old system, the FAA set the fares and allocated the routes for stable operations. Now, the bankruptcy court divides assets between workers and lenders.

It remains to be seen how this affects air fares to NY, BOS and DC

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Jan 2, 10:41 AM EST

Independence Air to discontinue flights

CHANTILLY, Va. (AP) -- FLYi Inc., parent of low-fare airline Independence Air, said Monday it will discontinue flights after Thursday evening because of its continued financial challenges.

The company had warned last week that it would cease operating Jan. 7 if it was unable to find a major investor or buyer.

FLYi, which filed for bankruptcy protection in November, said it is now seeking bankruptcy court approval to automatically refund customers with reservations for flights scheduled to depart beyond Thursday at 7 p.m.

"While we've been clear in reminding everyone that this was a possibility, we remained optimistic that there would be a way to avoid reaching this juncture," Independence Air Chairman and Chief Executive Kerry Skeen said. "To date there has not been a firm offer put forward that meets the financial criteria necessary to continue operations as is."

Advertisement

Independence Air began service in June 2004 and currently offers more than 200 daily departures to 37 destinations.

Is there such a thing as "safe" sex?

Detroit voted in Casinos after Windsor opened its casino, and Detroit residents saw the lines at the border to give away money. The Dodger wonders how the heavy protestant influence in Canada gave in to sin in this way. Although, maybe it's that Anglicans are not "christians" like we know them to be in the US.

Rumors of legalized marijauna in the future would greatly improve Detroit as a US tourist spot.

The Dodger predicted that the Super Bowl would bring a much higher class of adult entertainment to downtown Detroit. The Detroit News suggests that it's so Downtown it's south of the border in Canada.

The article recognizes the "Windsor Ballet," which the Dodger doesn't remember in print before.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Super Bowl Countdown

Is Windsor the Super Sin City?

Canadian town's sex trade may lure game revelers to cross border.

Louis Aguilar / The Detroit News

Steve Perez / The Detroit News

WINDSOR -- The testosterone-charged throngs of Super Bowl XL may temporarily turn this pleasant border town into Sin City North.

There are things you can get in Windsor that you cannot legally get in Metro Detroit. Cuban cigars. All-nude strip clubs. Sex for money.

All legit here. And the providers of such goods and services expect booming business during Super Bowl week...