DIA visit

My dad and I stopped by the Detroit Institute of Arts yesterday. It was packed–more packed than one would expect an art museum to be on a Friday night. A positive sign for Western culture? Perhaps.

I’ve been visiting the DIA since my days at Montessori school, but I’ve found that my ongoing study of history adds another dimension to the art and artifacts on display. Two weeks ago, for example, I had to read a few excerpts from the Roman Emperor Augustus’ Res Gestae.

Imagine my surprise when I ran into Rome’s First Citizen last night:

His nose destroyed by a unfortunate plastic surgery addiction, Augustus would only appear before the Senate wearing a surgical mask

A 3-D film installation entitled “plant” was the main reason we made the trip. I won’t try to describe it in detail (it was pretty bizarre), but essentially, its creators took thousands of photos of the decaying Packard plant and used them to build some rather trippy digital composites.

Obama, political rock star

College graduates may be slowly but surely souring on President Obama, but the Commander in Chief can still command an adoring audience in Ann Arbor.

I mingled with the crowd queued for tickets between classes this morning. At 10AM, there were hundreds of students still lined up alongside the Michigan Union. Many were wrapped in blankets; they had been there since dawn or earlier.

It's like a Star Wars premiere for Obama geeks

The masses were enthusiastic, to say the least. Even the passers by wanted to participate in the madness. I stopped to snap a few photos, and when I turned to walk away, I saw that there were six or seven others doing the same.

I won’t be at the speech tomorrow. Though I do wish that I could attend, I have a sneaking suspicion that the event will be as substance-free as his previous U-M appearance – the Class of 2010 commencement ceremony.

It will likely go something like this:

Back optimism with real economic reform

My column from the latest issue of the Michigan Review:

The 2012 North American International Auto Show was more than a razzle-dazzle display of sheet metal: it was a testament to optimism. Pundits, industry leaders, and politicians alike were quick to boast of Detroit’s roaring recovery. The oft-repeated narrative was one of relentless positivity. The Big Three had returned from the brink stronger than ever; the Motor City (and the economy of Michigan as a whole) was on the road to recovery.

It’s a lovely sentiment–one I certainly wish that I could buy into without reservation. But although surging auto sales figures seem to lend some credence to this most recent wave of enthusiasm, there is little evidence to suggest that the destructive mentality that spurred the decades-long decline of Midwestern industry has been vanquished. I’m referring to the tendency to take entrepreneurs, businessmen, and industry leaders–and the jobs and wealth they provide–for granted.

Believe it or not, this wasn't already there when Cadillac showed up

Take, for example, one of Detroit Mayor Dave Bing’s proposals intended to improve the city’s bleak fiscal situation. Despite a personal income surtax (levied on both Detroit residents and those who merely work in the city) and property taxes that are already among the highest in the state, Bing wants to nearly double the city’ corporate income tax. That proposed increase might not seem like much on paper (the rate would climb from 1 percent to 1.9 percent) but it betrays a fundamental ignorance of Detroit’s history, its downfall, and the only viable route to its recovery.

Great De Lorenzo rant at Autoextremist

Peter De Lorenzo has been offering vital, informed commentary on the auto industry in his weekly Autoextremist Rants for over a decade. His latest piece takes on the proposed Corporate Average Fuel Economy standard hike with his characteristic passion and irreverence:

Yes, they aim to have us live in a picture-perfect land of forced electrification, where even our “other” cars and trucks would get 70+ mpg while emitting only a faint whiff of espresso, complete with all the visceral appeal of a three-day-old scone, and costing so damn much that no one in their right mind will want to pay for them.

Oh, but wouldn’t our valley be green and great?

No, not really, but then again that’s beside the point. Anyone still operating under the assumption that the politicos in Washington actually have the country’s best interests in mind, well, to say you have another thing coming would be the understatement of the year.

The proles will love these things–not that they'll have a choice

He also raises the matter of UAW President Bob King’s support of the CAFE standard increase. I also called out King’s bizarre reasoning in my bit on CAFE standards; it’s nice to know I’m at least on the same wavelength as pundits with far more industry experience:

Globetrotting Mary Sue

In an editorial published in the newest issue of the Michigan Review, my colleagues and I examine University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman’s travel and expense budget. Surprise, surprise – it’s as super-sized as her salary:

University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman spent $59,553 on travel and $70,593 on meals during the 2010 calendar year, according to a report by the Detroit Free Press. It is inevitable for a university president to accrue substantial expenses while conducting official business. Yet Coleman’s $130,146 in spending seems all the more extravagant when it is compared to that of other university presidents.

More ammuniton for Fed skeptics

It used to take a special kind of kook to criticize the Federal Reserve System (or more generally, the very concept of central banking). Mainstream economists looked down on them; they were derided as tinfoil hatters or conspiracy theorists when they were acknowledged at all.

A central banking system might use its political influence to strangle mainstreet and enrich its Wall Street cronies? Poppycock!

No matter that their criticisms of the Federal Reserve–that it completely failed in its stated objectives while enabling both wanton government spending and empowering special interests–have been borne out by history time and time again.

The day I learned “Bad Medicine” topped charts when I was born was the day it all started to add up

That day was yesterday. I’m still enjoying the heightened state of awareness.

I basically came into this world backed up by a sick party mix

So long as you were born after mid-1958, you too can discover what was popular when you made your grand entrance. Just go here and hit “View Chart Archives.”

If nothing else, you just found yourself a theme song. Mileage may vary; you’re basically walking on a minefield if you were born after the mid-80s.

Coming soon…

Just made dinner with Nina. Cheesy tater tots, an unusual spring salad (avocado, strawberries, asparagus), panini (cherry-flavored crasins are not a good substitute for dried cherries). Too focused on eating to take pictures, go figure.

Been real busy with Michigan Review content and more over the past few days, so keep an eye out for:

- Auto show coverage with an focus on cars for first-time buyers.

- Column on entrepreneurship and the future of Michigan.

- Michigan Review editorial on U-M President Coleman’s recent travel expenses. Hint: they’re higher than any other university president in the state.

- Breakdown of my Monster Jam experience. It was everything I dreamed it would be. And more. I also got some great pictures. Sneak peak:

Full. Throttle.

Schumpeter, don’t take my Kodachrome away

There’s nothing particularly exotic about bankruptcy. Untold multitudes of individuals, small businesses, and corporations undergo the process during a prosperous year–let alone the period of borderline malaise we are enduring at the present.

Yet when Kodak filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy this Thursday, people took notice.

Some brands, like Kodak, have become a part of our national identity. We don’t want to see them disappear.

Thanks, Paul, for forever planting this aged photographic medium in my mind

Perhaps Kodak can beat the odds and emerge from its Chapter 11 proceedings leaner, meaner, and more ready than ever to prosper in the digital age. Perhaps Kodak will die, leaving its profitable divisions to be snapped up by competitors.

No matter the outcome, we should set aside our collective attachment to an iconic brand long enough to behold the process of creative destruction in action.

Obesity warriors trample parents’ rights

Imagine this: elementary school students are forced to wear digital health monitors and report daily to their teachers, who download the data and upload it to a central database for analysis.

It certainly sounds like a scenario from George Orwell’s 1984, which was set in a late-20th century totalitarian dystopia. Yet for a group of New Jersey students, it isn’t fiction.

A picture like this is obligatory in every piece about child obesity

One would expect such a monitoring program to be optional. It might even be helpful. Parents could opt into the program to monitor the health of their child. Kids might even embrace it as a fun experiment – a cool, digital way of monitoring physical activity and promoting good health.

But parents were never given the option of participation. From the article: