Media Watch Section

Michigan Lawyers Weekly highlights news that the American Judges Association has established the annual Judge Elizabeth Hines Award, recognizing “judges who have made special contributions to reduce domestic violence and establish innovative approaches to achieve that goal.” Hines, who is the first to receive this award, serves on the 15th District Court in Ann Arbor. According to an AJA press release, she handles a specialized court docket of domestic violence cases and “an innovative Street Outreach Court docket emphasizing rehabilitative services for homeless, chronic, nonviolent low-level offenders.” [Source]

A2GastroBoy posts the blog’s annual Ann Arbor area restaurant survey, with eight questions including how much do you normally spend when dining out, and what factors most often determine your choice of restaurants. You’ll also be asked to rate more than two dozen local restaurants. The results will be posted in January. The January 2012 A2GastroBoy Restaurant of the Year winner was Mani Osteria. [Source]

Joel Slemrod, chair of the University of Michigan’s economics department and a tax policy expert, is interviewed for The Washington Post’s Wonkblog about the impact of possible changes to the U.S. tax code: “Myself, I believe that it would be good for the economy if we deal with the long-term fiscal imbalance sooner rather than later, so I would be in favor, at some point, of a package which has a substantial amount of tax increases in it. The policy question, though, is, ‘When is that moment?’ The recovery is still fairly fragile, I think, but there’s a lot of consensus that in the long term, you need a debt plan that involves raising taxes nontrivially. But it may be … [Full Story]

In the context of a recent expansion at Zingerman’s Deli in Ann Arbor, Crain’s Detroit Business published a Q&A with co-founder Paul Saginaw. The wide-ranging interview includes discussion of the philosophy behind the business: ”We invite everyone to come in to help us run the businesses and make decisions. And we give people all the tools that are at our disposal to do so. To me, everyone that works here understands that they are personally responsible to help run the business. We share the information and the winnings. We teach rules of finance [to] keep score and share the winnings.” [Source]

The New York Times reports on the Nov. 6 defeat of state Proposal 2 in Michigan. The proposal would have amended the state’s constitution to protect the rights of public employee unions. Despite that defeat, the article notes that a different ballot proposal backed by unions – to repeal the state’s emergency financial manager law – was passed. Michael Traugott, a University of Michigan political scientist, explained a possible rationale for voters’ support of that proposal: “it seemed undemocratic to put a person in place with all those powers.” [Source]

Muehlig Funeral Chapel has published the obituary of Robert Mitchell Dailey, who died last Friday. Dailey was a financial planner who’s described this way: “As a fourth generation Wolverine and lifelong resident of Ann Arbor, Bob loved this city, its people and its sports.” Chronicle readers might recognize one expression of Dailey’s affection for Ann Arbor in the persona of Chance Langford – a member of the intrepid “Ann Arbor Newshawks,” who create parody newscasts based on local Ann Arbor topics. The Newshawks are self-described as “Three men who make up Ann Arbor’s Number One investigative news team.” In one fake interview, with President Barack Obama, he tells the president, “Thank you, sir, but it’s not Change Langford, … it’s … [Full Story]

The Detroit News reports from polls in the Detroit metro area, and talks with Madison Romney, who was casting her vote in Birmingham. The niece of presidential candidate Mitt Romney is a freshman at the University of Michigan: “They usually don’t believe me when I say I’m a Romney. There’s been no problem at the University of Michigan; people have been very supportive and respectful.” [Source]

National Public Radio interviews Justin Wolfers, a professor of economics and public policy at the University of Michigan, who recently conducted research on political polling. “What almost no one realizes is pollsters were asking, ‘Who do you think will win?’ before they ever asked, ‘Who do you intend to vote for?’ When you read The New York Times back in the day, they used to write to people all over the country and ask, ‘Who do you think will win in this local area?’ ” That kind of poll  more accurately predicts the outcome of a political race, he contends. [Source]

The Detroit Free Press reports on the three-day conference happening this week at the University of Michigan, commemorating the founding of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) in the 1960s. SDS founder Tom Hayden is the keynote speaker Thursday evening on the future of participatory democracy. Hayden tells the Freep: “I think Ann Arbor needs to dwell on this and give it a proper commemoration. And not shy away from (being) the birthplace of SDS. I think it’s a tough issue to grapple with. SDS has a mixed legacy, especially the latter years of SDS.” [Source]

The city of Ann Arbor has issued some tips and reminders for the upcoming Nov. 6 general election, including a list of polling locations. “Don’t forget to bring your photo ID to vote. Voters who do not have acceptable photo ID will be required to sign an affidavit in order to vote. Peak voting hours are from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. Voters who want to avoid long lines are encouraged to vote during midday hours.” [Source]

Added to the Michigan Theater’s schedule for Nov. 14, 2012 is another edition of the found footage festival – “an acclaimed showcase of odd and hilarious found videos.” This year’s show features a “sexy treadmill workout video.” For more background, see this  teeter totter interview from two years ago. [Source]

The University of Michigan is suggesting that one way Ann Arbor residents can help victims of hurricane Sandy is to participate in regular blood drives held here in our own backyard. A blood drive that’s coming up this weekend: Nov. 4 at Michigan Stadium (in the heated Jack Roth suite) from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.  [Source]

The transcript of a speech delivered Tuesday morning by University of Michigan Mary Sue Coleman at the annual Leadership Breakfast has been posted online. Coleman used the speech to announce several initiatives, including the launch of a new Great Lakes research center, a major expansion of the UM School of Music, Theatre & Dance, and a new $25,000 fellowship honoring Raoul Wallenberg. [Source]

“The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration In The Age Of Colorblindness” by Michelle Alexander has been selected as the book for the 2013 Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti Reads, which occurs in January and February. The program is “a community initiative to promote reading and civic dialogue through the shared experience of reading and discussing a common book.” [Source]

Writing in the New Yorker, former University of Michigan professor Donald Hall describes poetry readings by himself and others, including one organized by Bert Hornback, who also taught at UM: “On a January day in the eighties, he borrowed the university’s Rackham Auditorium, sold tickets for a joint poetry reading – five-fifty each, fifty cents for Ticketmaster – and invited some friends to do a joint reading: Wendell Berry, Galway Kinnell, and Seamus Heaney. On a Friday night – against a basketball home game, against the Chicago Symphony – Bert filled eleven hundred seats with paying poetry fans…It was said that scalpers charged as much as fifty dollars.” [Source]

NBC’s Today Show featured a performance by Meryl Davis and Charlie White, ice dancers who attend the University of Michigan and are preparing for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. [Source]

Writing for The Ann Arbor Observer, Vickie Elmer describes the new expansion at Zingerman’s Deli, which is expected to open for the general public later this month: ”The kitchen is huge, gleaming – and about 10 times as big as the original next door. And there’s another one in the basement, which [Paul] Saginaw said will be used mostly for catering, along with a huge walk-in cooler and an electrical panel that looks like it could power a Google office. So far, Zingerman’s staff has used the new kitchens mainly for prep work, carrying trays of sliced tomatoes and peppers over to the original building. They’re operating under a 90-day temporary certificate of occupancy.” [Source]

Fine Books & Collections has published an email Q&A between Nate Pedersen and Garrett Scott – also known as The Bibliophagist, an antiquarian bookseller based in Ann Arbor. From the interview: ”I think any bookseller is always trying to find new or interesting stock. Broadly speaking, if you don’t end up selling your schismatic Hicksite pamphlets then perhaps you grab the next batch of sexual quackery pamphlets to come to hand. (Or perhaps you end up saddled with them both.)” [Source]

Writing on Deadline Detroit, Jeff Wattrick describes his car-less excursion from Royal Oak to Ann Arbor on Saturday for the Michigan-Michigan State football game. He took Amtrak to town, then used the bus to get around. Wattrick writes: ”Ann Arbor has a fantastic transit center on Fourth and Liberty. Even though I’m unfamiliar with Washtenaw County’s ‘The Ride’ bus system, it was easy to find the right bus. One hitch, though, bus service out in this pastoral three square miles surrounded by reality shuts down early on the weekends. I was basically stranded in a strip mall-ish part of town without a (ahem) Ride. So I hoofed it back downtown – the wait for a cab was at least an hour … [Full Story]

The Detroit Free Press reports on the problem of “bank walkaways,” when financial institutions abandon homes that have started the foreclosure process. From the report: “In Washtenaw County, 76% of the 274 properties in county tax foreclosure this year are those that had banks listed on property records as having a financial interest, such as through a mortgage. That’s a drop from the 99% – 632 of 637 – of properties that Treasurer Catherine McClary counted in 2011, which she attributes to a general improvement in the market.” [Source]

Applications are due Oct. 25 for the “Many Voices” video workshop at the University of Michigan Museum of Art. As many as 16 people will be chosen to create 2-3 minute videos about works of art in the UMMA collection, to be shown in the museum’s galleries. One of the instructors is Donald Harrison, former executive director of the Ann Arbor Film Festival. [Source]

The Detroit News publishes a Q&A with athletic directors at the University of Michigan and Michigan State – Dave Brandon and Mark Hollis – in advance of Saturday’s UM-MSU football game in Ann Arbor. Regarding a possible night game in the future between the teams, Brandon had this to say: ”I’ve talked to a lot of my colleagues who have hosted games, and we’ve certainly played enough of them on the road to know that the atmosphere that you create in the evening, prime-time, partying all day, all those realities of how it works, is like pouring a little bit of gasoline on the atmosphere. That’s why the fans love it, that’s why the networks love it. My point of view … [Full Story]

In a video posted on YouTube, Jim Leija of the University Musical Society describes a free “pop-up” concert by the Chiara String Quartet on Friday, Oct. 19 at 8 p.m. They’ll be performing at the vacant building at 314 S. Fourth Ave. in Ann Arbor, site of the former Dream Nite Club. Leija says it’s a way that UMS is celebrating 50 years of its chamber arts series – “taking chamber music out of the concert halls and into the streets.” [Source]

Writing on her blog, Sabra Briere reflects on the recent presidential debate between Mitt Romney and Barack Obama, which she found “less than inspiring.” Addressing the candidates, she writes: “For me, there was way too much testosterone and entirely too much ego last night. I don’t care whether you like or respect each other, I care that you respect us enough to actually listen.” [Source]

The Livingston Daily Press & Argus reports that Michael Benham of the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority will be making two presentations in Livingston County about the proposed Washtenaw and Livingston commuter rail project between Ann Arbor and Howell, known as WALLY. According to the report, Benham said a recent federal grant has spurred a “reawakening of interest” in the effort. [Source]

A post on Damn Arbor highlights historical footage taken at German Park, recently discovered by Terri Sarris at Treasure Mart in Ann Arbor. Sarris has posted the video online, with a note indicating that the footage might be from the 1930s. [Source]

Michigan Radio reports that the University of Michigan Health System is reviewing aspects of its drug procurement policy following a national meningitis outbreak that has been linked to tainted steroid injections from clinics not associated with UMHS. The report quotes James Stevenson, dean of UM’s College of Pharmacy, about UM’s efforts: “What would it take for us to in essence be able to manufacture more of these things internally. What types of space, equipment, facilities would we require in order to do that successfully. The real question is what can we do…or what should our processes be…to assure the safety of the product to the greatest degree that we can.” [Source]

The Ann Arbor-based Arts Alliance has released results of a candidate survey, asking about views on arts and culture. Twenty-seven candidates responded, answering questions like “If elected, what measurable actions will you take to ensure arts & culture can survive and thrive in Washtenaw County?” and “What is your position on public funding for arts & culture?” [Source]

The Chelsea Standard reports that a recount will take place for the Aug. 7, 2012 Sylvan Township ballot question regarding a millage proposal for debt repayment on water and sewer bonds. A recount had been requested following the narrow passage of the millage – 480 yes votes (50.37%) compared to 473 (49.63%) no votes. But during the recount on Sept. 4, the county board of canvassers determined that the ballot seal had not been appropriate and the recount didn’t proceed. On Oct. 3, judge Archie Brown of the 22nd circuit court ruled that a recount could move forward within 21 days. [Source]

A report from Washtenaw Community College staff describes the Oct. 1 visit to WCC by Jay Williams, executive director of the U.S. Dept. of Labor Office of Recovery for Auto Communities and Workers. His visit highlighted a recent $2.9 million federal grant to WCC, enabling it to develop new courses for the IT industry. The report quotes WCC president Rose Bellanca: “During our strategic planning process we asked employers to tell us what kind of training they needed so that we could design it. Up to this point, we have only been able to plan for it. This grant allows us to make it happen.” [Source]