Category Archives: Bad government

Matty & money, again

Posted on January 28, 2010 by hro50ta1

By Joel Thurtell The pixels were hardly dry on my recent post assigning kudos to The Detroit News for publicizing billionaire Matty Moroun’s largesse to key political and judicial people when reality arrived in the form of a corrective note … Continue reading →

Posted in Bad government, Me & Matty | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Best little political system Matty can buy

Posted on January 28, 2010 by hro50ta1

By Joel Thurtell Kudos to The Detroit News and reporter Tom Greenwood for their story today, January 28, 2010, about the influence-buying habits of billionaire Ambassador Bridge owner Manuel “Matty” Moroun. According to the News, in the past decade, Matty … Continue reading →

Posted in Bad government, Me & Matty | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Scraping ‘hope’ from rubble

Posted on January 22, 2010 by hro50ta1

By Joel Thurtell One week after the disaster that left Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas in ruins, the toll on this country has been measured almost entirely in lives. But Haiti’s institutions, weak as they were, have been grievously wounded too. … Continue reading →

Posted in Bad government, Joel's J School | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Cronies of the Rouge

Posted on December 4, 2009 by hro50ta1

By Joel Thurtell I was tromping alongside the Rouge River in Detroit last spring with Sally Petrella, public outreach coordinator for the nonprofit Friends of the Rouge. We were looking for junk cars that people have dumped in the river. … Continue reading →

Posted in Adventures on the Rouge, Bad government | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Of pizzas, pools and prosecutors: or, how the ‘Free’ Press (once again) muzzled itself

Posted on November 29, 2009 by hro50ta1

The Wall Street Journal‘s revelation that my onetime employer, The Detroit [Self-Styled] Free Press, had invited advertisers to participate in the reporting and editing process came as no surprise to me. I worked at the Free Press 23 years if … Continue reading →

Posted in Bad government, censorship, future of newspapers, Joel's J School | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Unmeasuring the Rouge

Posted on November 23, 2009 by hro50ta1

The New York Times did a bang-up job today, November 23, 2009, reporting on hazardous pollution created by municipal sewer systems. Glad they found the story. This kind of national attention to a serious problem that is getting worse is … Continue reading →

Posted in Adventures on the Rouge, Bad government | 3 Comments

Bully boys in red

Posted on November 19, 2009 by hro50ta1

By Joel Thurtell [paypal-donation] Timothy Dolan, archbishop of New York, has come out swinging against The New York Times. The newspaper, he wrote on his blog, is unfair to Roman Catholics. In his November 8, 2009 public editor’s column, Clark … Continue reading →

Posted in Bad government | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Big Ed’s ghost

Posted on November 4, 2009 by hro50ta1

By Joel Thurtell [paypal-donation] We at JOTR are firm DISBELIEVERS in any kind of occult happenings, yet the appearance of an e-mail purportedly from the Other World piqued our curiosity. Its claim to have come from the late Wayne County … Continue reading →

Posted in Bad government, censorship, future of newspapers, Joel's J School | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Michael Johnson case

Posted on October 9, 2009 by hro50ta1

The following article gives context to my JOTR column. “Michael Johnson: He had his chance.” Re-published with permission of the Benton Harbor Herald-Palladium Published 5/24/09 in Benton Harbor Herald-Palladium By SCOTT AIKEN H-P Staff Writer ST. JOSEPH — Michael Jeffrey … Continue reading →

Posted in Bad government, Joel's J School, Michael Johnson | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Those Free Press pumpkins

Posted on October 8, 2009 by hro50ta1

By Joel Thurtell During the McCarthy period, spy-hunting journalist Whittaker Chambers hid rolls of film in a pumpkin. In the most amazing Detroit Free Press story I’ve ever read, I learned today, October 8, 2009, how the two top sleuths … Continue reading →

Posted in Bad government, future of newspapers, Joel's J School, Kwamegate | Tagged , , | Leave a comment