Commentary: After the water crisis and the pandemic, what’s next?
Jul29

Commentary: After the water crisis and the pandemic, what’s next?

By Paul Rozycki It looked like the Flint water crisis was over…and it wasn’t. It looked like the pandemic was over…and it wasn’t. The water crisis In Flint, as July ended, nearly all of the lead pipes in the city had been replaced, a court settlement was on track, lead levels were at record lows, and it seemed that the seven years of the Flint water crisis might be behind us.  Then the newly installed pipes on Court Street began...

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Village Life:  Viral time revisited, 2021 — personal panic, wine, and the witching hour
Jul09

Village Life: Viral time revisited, 2021 — personal panic, wine, and the witching hour

By Teddy Robertson We were all so new at balancing mortal threat and daily life. Inept, but resourceful. That’s how it felt a year ago this May when East Village Magazine staff shared their first experiences of the COVID pandemic. That’s odder than you might think—reporters usually don’t want to be part of a story. I can hardly recall the details of Spring 2020 now; I had to look them up. Each new order blotted out  memory of...

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Commentary: For the Aug, 3 city council primary, take the time to learn about your candidates, and vote!
Jun21

Commentary: For the Aug, 3 city council primary, take the time to learn about your candidates, and vote!

By Paul Rozycki They typically have eight- or ten-hour meetings that often last until dawn. They spend hours bickering and attacking each other personally. They failed to approve the current city budget on time, a violation of the city charter. Only after the city faced the prospect of a shutdown was the budget finalized.  Some have faced personal threats. They have become the poster child of dysfunctional local government in Genesee...

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Commentary: The right to vote — It’s not just about Democrats or Republicans. It’s about democracy.
May28

Commentary: The right to vote — It’s not just about Democrats or Republicans. It’s about democracy.

By Paul Rozycki Guess what?  There was cheating in the 2020 election.  And guess what? There was so little of it, in a nation of 330 million, that it scarcely mattered.  And from what we know, there were both Republicans and Democrats doing it.  According to a Washington Post survey, there were 16 cases of cheating last year—about one for every 10 million votes cast. Even the Republican leaning Heritage Foundation claimed to have...

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Commentary: A visionary plan to revive Flint Community Schools — “Let’s make this work.”
Apr28

Commentary: A visionary plan to revive Flint Community Schools — “Let’s make this work.”

By Paul Rozycki Are you ready for some good news for Flint and its students? We all know this has been a year of bad news that included a national pandemic, statewide infection spikes, racial division, daily mass shootings, a rash of fires in Flint, bears in our backyards, and chaos at city council meetings. But on top of all those problems, we’ve seen a dramatic decline in the number of students in Flint Community Schools and a...

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Education Beat Op-Ed:   Put Flint kids first — say YES now to Flint Education Continuum
Apr23

Education Beat Op-Ed: Put Flint kids first — say YES now to Flint Education Continuum

By Harold C. Ford ‘”Noli equi dentes inspicere donate.” (“Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth”) …Latin text of St. Jerome, The Letter to the Ephesians, circa AD 400 “Shame on you, Mr. Ford.” …Laura MacIntyre, treasurer, Flint Board of Education (FBOE), Apr. 21, 2021 I am a progressive. My 56-year resume of social justice activism is lengthy and legitimate. But here is where I part ways with some of Flint’s progressives, many of...

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