Witness to a death

At least once a year I am lucky (or unlucky) enough to be in court when some case or matter of notoriety is being heard. It's not uncommon to see TV crews outside of the courts that I frequent. Sometimes I'm actually in the courtroom where the matter is being hard. Yesterday was just such a day.

While waiting to see the judge, I sat through the hearing on an injunction to halt the demolition of what remained of Tiger Stadium. For legal reasons that aren't terribly exciting or dramatic, Judge Edwards agreed with the City of Detroit and the Economic Development Corporation that complete demolition should not be further delayed. In essence, the court seemed convinced that because there appeared no likelihood of any sources of funding that could save the stadium and the costs to keep her standing were mounting, that the rest of the building should be scrapped.

Tiger Stadium was a site for so many of my fondest childhood memories. But I said goodbye to it 10 years ago when I walked out of it for the last time.

Leaving a piece of her shell standing for a yet additional indefinite amount of time seems pointless. Perhaps the people in this area that have strong feelings about the stadium issue, one way or another, can move on and devote time and resources to improving other sites within the city. Lord knows that Detroit needs all the help she can get.

Governor Granholm: earn my vote!

Governor Jennifer Granholm has a chance to earn this non-supporter's vote. I have never been her biggest fan, but she can win me (and probably tens of thousands like me) by removing Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick from office.

In May, the Detroit City Council, asked the Governor to exercise her constitutional power to remove Hizzonner from office. I do not claim to understand how the Governor can do this, but it is pretty well agreed that she can (assuming due process is afforded.)

Kilpatrick should have never been re-elected. In a democracy, people sometimes make awful choices, and Kilpatrick showed plenty of character flaws and poor decision making in his first term. His recent criminal trouble, arising from a wrongful termination civil suit that cost the people of Detroit nearly $9,000,000, is well documented.

Kwame has added to that trouble by shoving a Sheriff's deputy off his sister's porch -- he says he "gently escorted" the officer -- who was on the property to serve subpoena on another individual. How can the head of a major metropolitan police force lead it with any credibility when he shows his utter contempt for the law and law enforcement insofar as it applies to him and his family? Check out the story for yourselves. He made some horribly racist comments as well to the officers.

Kilpatrick is a thug. He's a bigot. He's harming the city. The good people of Detroit deserve better.

In a move that would take massive political intestinal fortitude, Governor Granholm could relieve the people of Detroit of this man. She would have to ax one of her own, a Democrat. She would risk alienating tens of thousands of people in the City of Detroit, even those who don't care for Kilpatrick. But, the right thing to do is to do the right thing (an old friend of mine used to say.)

Kwame is not fit for office. The Governor would earn the respect of many detractors in the state if she did the right thing. I know that I would vote for her next time around if she pulled the trigger on Kilpatrick, even if I do not agree with her on the bulk of the other issues. Character and courage in politics should be rewarded.

EDIT: In my exuberance over the possibility that Governor Granholm could and might actually remove Mayor Kilpatrick from office, it completely escaped my mind that Mrs. Granholm cannot "earn my vote," at least not for Governor, as she is subject to term limits. This is her second and final term. However, her political life presumably does not end when she leaves Lansing. I expect she'll turn up elsewhere, perhaps running for elected office, perhaps seeking an appointment.

Goodbye to an old friend -- Tiger Stadium

Some of the best memories of my life were made in Tiger Stadium. I saw game 3 of the 1984 World Series. I'll never forget sitting on my uncle's shoulders after Mark Fidrych pitched a gem of a game in 1976, and came out of the dugout to a standing ovation. So many hours were spent there watching exciting baseball, bonding with loving friends and family (and sometimes even complete strangers.) Win or lose, I never had a bad day in that park.

In 2000, Comerica Park -- what a sterile, boring name -- replaced old Tiger Stadium as the home for the Detroit Tigers. Comerica Park is a beautiful modern building that has little charm and none of the intimacy of the old stadium. It has good sight lines and plenty of room for people's bigger butts. It's a great place to see the game but not necessarily feel or experience it. At Tiger Stadium, you felt like you were right there, almost part of the action. The crowd noise could be deafening. Comerica Park is an aesthetic experience, Tiger Stadium a visceral one.

The old girl has sat empty for the better part of a decade. Plans to convert Tiger Stadium to other uses have all fallen through. She stands on "the corner" rusting and decaying. Like a kind master does with an old sick dog, the City of Detroit is finally putting her down. Demolition started yesterday. What will take her place -- probably just another vacant lot in the city -- is still unknown.

As sad as that is, I will not miss her. I said goodbye to the old stadium a few weeks before she closed for good in 1999. As I walked down the ramp from the upper deck for the last time, I ran my hands along her walls and rails. A lump in my throat nearly choked me. A tear or two welled in my eyes. I'm a sentimental fool and that old building meant a lot to me.

But she's gone. There's no life in her anymore; she's like an ailing old friend kept alive by tubes and machines. It's time to pull the plug. It's time to let her go. I would rather remember her as she was than watch her slowly collapse into a pile of rubble at Michigan and Trumbull.

It looks as if demolition might be halted; she may be granted a brief reprieve. But, I've already let go. Those of you that loved her should let her go, too. Tiger Stadium will never again be what it was, regardless of whether she is spared the wrecking ball. So, I will move on with fond memories.