Detroit

[Major Robert Dump]

You're smart enough to get the subtlety here, man. Building a fence has been shown in study after to study to be not cost effective, and in fact not really effective at all, yet the Republicans push for it because a portion of their constituency includes people who have an irrational fear and hatred for latinos, illegal or otherwise.

The fact that so many Republicans in Arizona consider Sheriff Arpaio to be a genuine American hero, for example...

So no fence on the southern border? Worked for the Chinese. Until the Japanese invaded. Maybe we could fence in Detroit?

[Major Robert Dump]

Well to be fair, the fence on their northern border didn't keep out the Mongols either.

How dare you say that about Canadians.

Despite what you may think with your liberal sensibilities, I have it on good sourcing that the southern border fence with Mexico is not about keeping Mexicans out, but about keeping Americans from escaping. So, if the fence is racist, it is racist against Americans. Facts.

[HopAlongBunny]

They do have a rodent as their national symbol...

[Papewaio]

They do have a rodent as their national symbol...

Rabbit is it rodents that are the problem or is it you don't like beaver?

[HopAlongBunny]

Well, if it walks like a rat...

[ReluctantSamurai]

This has to do with detroit because we're now discussing how the parties manipulate racial tensions.

While racial tensions certainly exacerbated an already bad situation, Detroit's problems went far beyond that and started long before race became an issue. The decisions made by corporate execs and government officials alike had much more to do with Detroit's economic decline. That, and the general trend across the Midwestern factory belt of moving from a producing environment to a consumer environment.

[Fisherking]

I think it is fair to blame city government for the bankruptcy. It is machine politics and a one party system. Since they have no political opposition the city blames it problems on Outsider interference.

Detroit is one of the few cities with a full time legislative body. Most city councils are part time affairs.

It does not make them the only cause of the tragedy of course. But if you want to be in charge and expect credit for what goes right, you also have to take the hit when it goes bad.