Next up: Inkster: State officials are reviewing the finances of the city of Inkster — the first step on a path that could lead to appointment of an emergency manager. The 30-day review under the state’s toughened emergency manager law for local governments and school districts began last week, said Terry Stanton, a spokesman for the Treasury Department. ~SNIP~ Inkster […]

Working America, a community affiliate of the AFL-CIO, has created a Job Tracker that allows you to identify companies are not doing their part to help our country and our economy. Find out which companies in your area are exporting jobs, laying off workers, endangering workers’ health or involved in cases of violations of workers’ rights. The database contains information […]

NOTE: you can UPrate this story at Reddit HERE. Early this month, I wrote about how a move by the Snyder administration to through over 10,000 Michigan families off the welfare rolls had been temporarily halted by a U.S. District Court judge. A federal judge in Michigan today smacked down a new Republican-passed law that will throw tens of thousands […]

Last month, I wrote about an attempt to privatize the nurse aides at a veteran’s health care facility in Michigan. A plan to privatize nurses aides at a state-run veterans health care facility is drawing sharp criticism from unions as well as patients at the facility. At a Michigan Civil Service Commission (MCSC) hearing this week, Commissioners heard from a […]

This past Friday, U.S. President Barack Obama and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak visited a GM plant in Lake Orion, Michigan. The visit was, in part, a celebration of a new trade pact between our countries. Unlike previous free trade agreements, Democrats were able to win protections for American workers that will help guard against the types of abuses that […]

Only a handful of mayors have voiced support of the hundreds of Occupations going on across the country. Most have been on the west coast. The mayor of Arcata, California, for example, joined protesters. Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn is “being patient” with protesters although has tried to get them to move to City Hall. They have not done this, however […]

A friend of mine at Venice for Change has put together a rather interesting idea. Her group has obtained the contact information of a significant number of high level executives at the major banks (Wells Fargo, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, etc.) Their new website allows you to send your personal story directly to one of these executives to let them know […]

Kona the blind, nearly-deaf diabetic Everyready Doggerz:

I’ll be live-blogging the Occupy Lansing event in Lansing, Michigan today. One thing that sets this particular event apart from many of the others is that the mayor of Lansing, Virg Bernero, is in total support of it. He has sent portable toilets, garbage dumpsters and given the protesters a permit without an expiration date to protesters at Reutter Park […]

Seriously, if you haven’t read “An open letter to that 53% guy”, you need to do so. And then share it far and wide. It’s the most cogent explanation of why #occupywallstreet is happening right now in this country. Period. P.S. it’s officially the most viral and widely-shared post ever to appear on Daily Kos. That’s saying more than most […]

Here are a couple of early photos by my wife Anne C. Savage from a visit to Michigan today by President Obama and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak. They were visiting GM’s Orion Assembly Plant, in part to tout the new trade agreement passed by Congress this week. Also, the President Obama told the crowd that, unlike Republicans, he believes […]