‘Selling Detroit’

Yes We Can! .. sorry, I couldn't resist.

In all honesty, If we work hard, good chance it will come back, and it WONT happen over night. Gen Y wont understand this. they want everything their parents have and NOW!

I don't fully agree with the statement"Gen Y wont understand this. they want everything their parents have and NOW!".
This is the mentally that is holding Gen Y back. There is a disconnect between Gen Y and older, more experienced generations. Yes, Gen Y is used to having things quicker then previous generations. After all, they are the products of helicopter parents and come from a generation FILLED w/technology that makes things easier and faster hourly.
In contrast however you are looking at a generation that multitasking is as second nature as walking. They have been so involved their entire lives that they are able to see things from multiple perspective and aren't pigeon holed into a single focus. They produce great outcomes, manage time efficiently, and are extremely motivated. This is the generation when someone tells them it's not possible, they don't take no for an answer and produce a solution. These Gen Y-ers will be the 30yr old CEO's of new businesses and the shakers that will make change happen. This energy and motivation NEEDS to be harnessed and Selling Detroit is a great opportunity.

I laughed out loud at the NPR advertising this site by featuring a few college co-eds ranting about how they will bolt from Michigan once they graduate. For those in state government trying to maintain state tuition support for these very girls, the message is clear – don’t waste our tax dollars to educate these punks. If this is a trend rather then a few clueless, arrogant air-heads shooting their mouths off, canceling the aid is certainly worth considering when compared to other vital services our governor is willing to throw under the bus to maintain her own pet projects.

While this site seems to be helping to sow the seeds of it’s own flippant doom, I think the question is largely irrelevant. The reasons why college graduates stay in Michigan or leave are obvious…. Nobody with an expensive degree is going to take a job waiting tables so they can raise a lower middle class family in a trailer park but “stay in Michigan”. What can “we do to attract them”? That’s like asking what we can do to make Detroit a viable city. How about the same things that keep and attract everyone else: Government creates a climate where businesses can thrive, lead where leadership is necessary but otherwise get out of the way!

There is plenty of precedent for this in other states but today that sentence is all but a nonstarter here. The governor’s office is populated by a pathetic combination of leftist nitwits, eco lawyers and activists who view Michigan’s business as little more then a place to impose more job killing taxes.

Prosperity Tax
Consider a state law mandating 10% “green energy” by 2015. That requirement is an excellent example of an eco gimmick that the market does not need but Granholm is going to make everyone in Michigan pay because she’s a lawyer who believes a movie made by an unemployed clown and former vice president. Michigan demand for power is falling due to the economy; we have low wind speeds over land and only 100 days of often hazy sunshine a year. Those sources of power have no economical viability in here yet Granholm rammed it down our throats because she has surrounded herself with activist advisors who clap and chant as we pay! This just one more “prosperity tax” barrier to Michigan’s recovery.

Crazy view of reality
Young college graduates are not ‘builders of cities’ To think otherwise is a bunch of self esteem fueled gibberish. Do you think Chicago was built by 25 year olds? Get off this nonsense - you’re embarrassing yourselves. Same with the notion that generation Y has some unique perspective that nobody else thought of and should be handed a “say in local government". Oh please! LOL

…and as far as the “creative class”, as a rule there are few educated people with less money then artists. Ask the City of Jackson how their art community is going! LOL

However, once Michigan is up and healthy, generation Y kids who work hard, have some grit and are willing to invest their time, effort and money will be wonderful assets just as generations before them have been.

With regard to Detroit, the problem is not it's perception, it's the reality. Today the city tragically fails in virtually every metric there is but Dave Bing is the best thing that's happened to Detroit in generations and I wish him well. Unlike others, where is a man who is not looking to take something from the City, but to give. A rare man indeed.....

I agree with a lot of what you have to say, Detroit has been decayed over the course of 40 years of neglect, to think that it is going to be recovered by some new college graduates it ridiculous. It is going to take a huge effort by the people of Detroit, the city government and state government. So far it seems like no one really cares. The city didn't get this bad over night, it is not going to come back that quick either. The economy is not coming back anytime soon either so I wonder where all the money is going to come from to build things up.

I look at the ability to attract young talented people like a competition between states, currently a lot of other states have much more to offer than Michigan (like jobs). I think that Michigan has taken younger people for granted for some time and not worked to keep them within the state, as a result most look to move. I am 31 and I have never experienced a young professionals crowd in the state of Michigan equaled to many cities in America.In a a competition to retain young talent Michigan is getting a failing grade and has been for some time. I think..