Monthly Archives: February 2013

Mouth-watering muskrat

Posted on February 25, 2013 by admin

By Joel Thurtell Another rat story. This one from the July 8, 2007 Detroit Free Press. Rat nostalgia. The world described in this article no longer exists. It’s Lent 2013, but you can’t go to a restaurant and order traditional … Continue reading →

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Stick-up at UM

Posted on February 24, 2013 by admin

By Joel Thurtell Two ways to make it big. There’s singer Petey Pablo‘s way: Put the money in the bag before I blow your head off. And there’s University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman’s way: Parley your fancy title … Continue reading →

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The ex-slave who endowed a church for whites

Posted on February 23, 2013 by admin

By Joel Thurtell Born a slave, put Parisian chefs to shame, invested, and endowed a chapel for the white community on Grosse Ile. That is the story of Lisette Denison. Here is my sketch of her life, published with permission … Continue reading →

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Rat on the re-run

Posted on February 21, 2013 by admin

By Joel Thurtell So far, none of my Free Press friends wants to eat rat. Shoot! I got back on the rat track last year when I discovered that Freepster Zlati Meyer had borrowed from some of my old Free … Continue reading →

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‘Trickle up’ at Wayne State

Posted on February 20, 2013 by admin

By Joel Thurtell “Trickle down” is a conservative economic theory that claims tax breaks and government gifts to top earners will somehow leech their way down to lowlifes at the bottom of the earnings scale. Ever hear of “trickle up”? … Continue reading →

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CAB uproar

Posted on February 19, 2013 by admin

By Joel Thurtell The furor I sparked in California over capital appreciation bonds is not letting up. The Orange County Register on February 15, 2013 published a very thorough report detailing the very kinds of CAB abuses I reported in … Continue reading →

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Kiriakou gets 30 months, Convertino snitches get a pass

Posted on February 12, 2013 by admin

By Joel Thurtell They say the Obama administration has gotten really tough with federal officials who leak government secrets to journalists. For proof, look at what happened to former CIA agent John Kiriakou. He revealed names of government operatives to … Continue reading →

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The slave quilt hoax

Posted on February 12, 2013 by admin

By Joel Thurtell   Early in 2007, I read a New York Times article exposing a hoax involving the history of the Underground Railroad. I call it the slave quilt scam. Soon after I read the Times article, I noticed … Continue reading →

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‘Tomatoes & Eggs’ Part II: Erasing slavery on Big Isle

Posted on February 10, 2013 by admin

Grosse Ile historians chose not to use photos of slave inventory; one of the slaves mentioned, Charlotte, worked on Grosse Ile. Burton Historical Collection. By Joel Thurtell During the long-ago historical period when I was a grad student in history, … Continue reading →

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‘Tomatoes & Eggs’ Part I: Slavery at Grosse Ile, Michigan

Posted on February 9, 2013 by admin

Inventory of slaves in Detroit, Michigan. Joel Thurtell photo of record in Burton Historical Collection, Detroit Public Library By Joel Thurtell Just as I predicted in a January 2007 Detroit Free Press story, Grosse Ile’s historians changed history. But not … Continue reading →

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