Local/State

Detroit firefighters have put out a two-alarm blaze near the DMC’s John Dingell VA Medical Center at John R. and Garfield.
The fire, reported about 6 a.

m., is in an abandoned four-story apartment between Woodward and John R.
No one has been reported injured and no surrounding buildings were damaged as a result of the fire, which shut down parts of John R.

between Hancock and Canfield, fire department officials on the scene said.
Last month, Governor Jennifer Granholm presented to the State legislature, the new Michigan Business Tax designed to replace the unpopular Single Business Tax.
The Michigan Chamber of Commerce universally supported the measure, “less burdensome and less costly to employers, more equitable, and more would do little to entice companies to create jobs in Michigan,” said Sarah Hubbard, vice president of Government Relations for the Detroit Regional Chamber.

Americans have endured extreme weather this winter, but not just extreme cold.
Last weekend, Florida saw 80-degree weather, Colorado was hit with three blizzards so severe that almost 3,500 livestock were destroyed, and tornadoes have killed three people in Texas and Louisiana.
With the possible exception of today’s expected snowfall, Michigan’s winter has been unseasonably mild.

Experts say a combination of El Nino and global warming are responsible for the weather.
“The earth tries to work in balance,” said Shay Ryan, WXYZ Channel 7 meteorologist, referring to the redistribution of heat in the Earth’s system. “It’s not unusual for one place to be very hot and another The 2007 North American International Auto Show, which opened to media and the auto industry yesterday at Cobo Hall, marks the 100th anniversary of the exhibition.

The show began with only 100 cars as the Detroit Auto Show in Beller’s Beer Garden.
Big Three automakers. For General Motors Corp.

, Ford Motor Co. and DaimlerChrysler AG, 2006 meant a continued loss of market share to restructuring plans.
The companies’ heads were quick to admit as much yesterday.

Throughout the last year, local community center Youthville Detroit has hosted production classes taught by Mike Huckaby, producer, DJ and founder of Deep Transportation records.
using the software program Reaktor. With Reaktor, children can follow in the footsteps of heavyweight hip-hop producers like Kanye West, The Neptunes, Timbaland and J Dilla.

With Reaktor’s arsenal of virtual instruments and synthesizers, In the process, the children acquire self-discipline and dedication.
Detroit has birthed countless innovators in every genre of music, so with the city’s heritage.
Wayne State University, along with the University of Michigan and Michigan State University, yesterday filed a motion in federal court to delay the implementation of Proposal 2, the affirmative action ban passed by Michigan voters in November’s election.

Dec. 22. But the requested delay, filed before U.

S. District Court Judge David Lawson, would allow each school to retain its current school year.
“It would be extremely difficult, and unfair to prospective students, to change our admissions and financial aid processes in mid-stream,” said U-M President Mary Sue Coleman in a written statement.

Coleman said that the request was filed in response to a Nov. 8 lawsuit The suit, which names the three universities as well as Gov. Jennifer Granholm, alleges that Proposal 2 “was placed on the ballot of the state of Michigan by racially-targeted voter fraud,” and that it violates the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.

to comply with Proposal 2 beginning Dec. 22. The new policy, however, of the law.

One of Detroit’s most famous landmarks is coming back to life.
The Ste. Claire, a 94-year-old steamboat that ferried passengers to and from Boblo Island before its closure 13 years ago, will make its way back to the Detroit River.

Dr. Ron Kattoo, associate director of the intensive care unit at Henry Ford Hospital, recently purchased the boat from a Toledo woman for an “Four years ago, I was working downriver at one of the satellite hospitals,” Kattoo said. “Someone there mentioned the boat, and I At the time, the boat belonged to a Toledo couple, John Belko and Diane Evon.

Kattoo spoke to Belko, but he wasn’t interested in selling the boat.
Kattoo stayed in touch with the couple, and when they divorced in 2005, Evon was given possession of the boat and sold it to Kattoo.
A unanimous vote passed last night to modify the WSU Law School's admissions policy to comply with Proposal 2.

Jonathan Weinberg, WSU law professor, drafted an admissions policy that would reflect the state’s constitutional amendment.
policy to comply with Proposal 2, he believes it “will sharply reduce applicants that live in Detroit, have overcome discrimination, come from a low socioeconomic background, or are the first generation to attend or graduate college.
Changes were made to the original draft at last night’s meeting.

In a Dec. 4 memo, law professor Laura Bartell stated she believed it was “unwise and unnecessary,” to have a preference for Detroit residents.

PHOTO COURTESY OF BARRY ROSEN
Dr. Barry Rosen, chairman of the Department of Biochemistry
and Molecular Biology at the Wayne State University School of
Medicine, is conducting cutting-edge arsenic research

Debi Wolfe
they turn on their taps. “Arsenic levels [in some parts of Oakland County] are way above the legal limits,” said Dr.

Barry Rosen, chairman University School of Medicine.
arsenic. This is a particularly relevant topic of study in Michigan, where aqueous arsenic levels have been high for years.

Membrane proteins, called Aquaporins, form channels on the outside of cells. They selectively allow substances, like water, to enter — but sometimes toxins like arsenic “sneak” in. Rosen and his collaborators discovered bacterial Arsenic Resistance Protein, ArsD, which serves as a chaperone to the toxin after it enters through the Aquaporins.

ArsD “captures” arsenic as it crosses the cellular membrane, and prevents it from damaging the cell before it is expelled.
Michigan’s first Hispanic auxiliary bishop Daniel Flores was ordained yesterday at the Blessed Sacrament Cathedral in Detroit.
“I am just delighted to be a bishop in Detroit,” Flores said during a press conference.

“I hope I can in some way be of service.”
Flores, 45, originally from Corpus Christi, Texas, is the youngest serving bishop in the U.S.

“This is a great and historic moment for our church,” said Cardinal Adam Maida, archbishop of Detroit and the oldest serving bishop in the U.S. “Especially for the ever-growing Hispanic population of Michigan.

”
church. His first effort will be celebrating the Virgin of Guadalupe. The Mexican tradition is celebrated with a Dec.

12 mass followed by hot chocolate and tamales.
directly affected by the outcome.
There is a feeling of “general relief among the staff, students and faculty,” said Dr.

Pranatharthi Chandrasekar, commonly known as Dr. Chandra, a member of the University Physician Group, which specializes in infectious diseases.
The problems between the two organizations seem to be solved temporarily.

Before the new contract was announced, there was chatter among students about transferring to other medical programs, said Rebecca Peak, a Senate.
News Editor

Wayne State University, the University of Michigan and Michigan State and collaborate with local and national companies.
By working collectively, the universities hope to attract national recognition for their research.

enriching culture in the past,” said Joe Serwach, a U of M spokesman. contractual agreement.
negotiations, which caught the attention of the Accreditation Council mediator, David H.

Fink, to assist with the negotiation process.
Dropping enrollment, a shrinking tax base, an aging population and a decline in births in Detroit are all contributing to the Detroit Public Schools’ fiscal insolvency, said Board President Jimmy Womack, M.D.

last night at the first DPS Facility Master Planning Process Town Hall Meeting.


The planned series of meetings is designed to gather information from parents to aid the board in solving these problems.
“Right now, there is no plan,” said Darrell Rodgers, Ph.

D., chief of Facilities Management Auxiliaries Services.

operating contract agreement; if they miss that date, it could mean that hundreds of medical students would need to be relocated.

On Nov. 14 the accreditation council governing the medical school programs in place with the DMC, and they expect to see a new contract between the two groups.
WSU and DMC officials have been trying to reach an agreement on the framework of the new contracts.

Michigan democrats celebrated a victorious evening last night at their campaign party in downtown Detroit.
Gov. Jennifer Granholm, who addressed a roaring crowd of supporters around 11:07 p.

m., announced that Dick DeVos offered congratulations and best wishes just minutes before.
“We may not have arrived at the Promised Land yet, but we can see it.

“This vote represents a vote that was cast out of hope and not out of fear,” she said. “Tomorrow our work begins at 8 a.m.

”
Granholm said she will now work on “universal access to affordable health care,” passing a $4,000 scholarship for Michigan students to go to college and “diversifying our economy so that young people will not have to leave the state to get a job.”
At a rally for Michigan Democrats on campus Saturday, the message was clear: Keep Michigan’s political offices full of Democrats and vote ‘no’ on Proposal 2.
A huge roaring crowd of supporters packed the Matthei basketball courts wearing buttons and stickers of support, greeting former President Bill Clinton as something of a hometown hero.

Among the presenters: Gov. Jennifer Granholm, Sen. Debbie Stabenow, Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and WSU President Irvin Reid.

After Clinton thanked WSU President Irvin Reid for making the space available for the Democrats, he told the audience that he usually doesn’t advocate in local elections.
But “There is something fundamentally wrong with the way our country has been run,” Clinton said.
Detroit’s regional transit systems, the Detroit Department of Transportation.

Each represents up to 120 daily stops within walking distance of central campus, making it one of the best served destinations in the metropolitan area.
Still, say members of WSU’s Transportation Committee, there’s always room for improvement.
Auditorium, reaching out to the university community for suggestions on how to improve transportation options for students, staff and faculty.

Detroit slavery ring.
Duay Jado, 28, claimed that he knew nothing about the trafficking ring when he was hired for a job by the group’s ringleader, Aleksandr Maksimenko. He said that Maksimenko told him he was trying to win back his ex-girlfriend by getting her attention.

Maksimenko said he wanted Bloomfield home and set fire to a car in the driveway.
for the proposal and another that was in opposition to it.
Proposal 2 were Frederick Glaysher, a renowned poet and Michigan Civil Rights Initiative supporter; Gregory Broder and Diane Carroll, representatives of the MCRI.

Steve Knoche/The South End

Attendees of the Rosa Parks Memorial Civil Rights Rally walked
to Gullen Mall for a candlelight vigil in remembrance of the historic
civil rights advocate, on the one-year anniversary of her passing.
the NAACP made a call yesterday to get people to the polls on Nov.

7 to prevent the passage of Proposal 2, also known as the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative, an amendment to the Michigan Constitution that would eliminate affirmative action in the state.
the students here at Wayne State University by any means,” said Lamont Cole, fraternal relations outreach and field operations director of the NAACP’s Detroit chapter. Cole is also the advisor of the NAACP’s Wayne State Chapter.

“We are going to attempt to Theodore St. Antoine, a white law professor from the University of Michigan, and Dr. William Allen, a black political science professor from Michigan State University, offered their views on affirmative action to an almost full crowd at the Undergraduate Library last night.

Sitting shoulder to shoulder, looking toward the audience, two men with different backgrounds and different beliefs debated a hot election topic — affirmative action.
At hand was the issue: should Proposal 2, a proposal that would ban programs that give preferential treatment to minorities, pass — and what would the result mean for America?
Some students who weren’t so sure about how to approach the issue thought the debate proved insightful.

Photo: Dean of Students David Strauss was the moderator of yesterday's Affirmative Action debate at the UGL. He looks on as William Allen of MSU makes a rebuttal to Theodore St.

Antoine of U of M - Lindsey Muliolis/TSE
“Does anybody know where the student body is?” said Nancy Skinner, Democratic candidate for Michigan’s 9th District for the U.S.

House of night in the Spencer M. Partrich Auditorium.
political apathy.

“This room should be busting with people right now, busting over with election,” she said.
daunting experience. It stands alone on an empty block, a beacon for the thousands of homeless in the area.

People mill about outside at all hours, some passing time smoking cigarettes and drinking coffee provided by the NSO. Others are participating in somewhat illicit enterprises.
Inside, the shelter is divided into two different sections.

One for men, one for women. One must walk through a metal detector then be approved by two security guards.
The shelter smells of poverty and disenfranchisement: a mix of urine, stale beer and unwashed clothing.

? by blasting the first pitch he saw into the left field stands.
The Game 1 home run was meaningless, as it cut the Tigers deficit to the Tigers their first run, something the St.

Louis Cardinals weren’t able to get until the ninth inning, as Detroit evened the World Series at one game apiece, yesterday, with a 3-1 victory at Comerica Park.
Assistant News Editor

This November Gov. Jennifer Granholm will receive votes from an unlikely source — Republican voters.

governor than their party’s candidate Dick DeVos.
“People call me a moderate Republican, but I resent that,” said Gil Ziegler, a Charlevoix businessman and chairman of RFG. “I haven’t changed much in the past 30 years, but the Republican Party has changed.

I think it’s gone quite a bit to the right.”
MGM Grand casino's new permanent facility is being constructed at a relatively brisk pace.

While the city gains jobs and revenue from the casinos, the social impact is harder to quantify.
The city of Detroit ranked fourth highest in the U.S.

for all casino markets in 2005, earning an estimated total of $1.23 billion in gross revenues, according to the American Gaming Association. But the news may not be all good, even for an economy like Detroit, which needs all the money it can get.

Fred Wacker, Wayne State professor and published author, held a conference yesterday in the Faculty Administration Building titled, “Reflections on Gambling in Detroit: Humanistic Costs and Benefits.” Wacker talked about the “pathological problems” and economic “costs” and “benefits” that surround casinos and their gamblers.
Dean Robert Mentzer of the medical school opened last night’s discussion forum on the ongoing negotiations between the Detroit Medical Center and Wayne State University School of Medicine by talking about the anxiety, confusion and uncertainty students may be feeling.

“I don’t know to what degree I can relieve all three of those,” Mentzer said. Medical school students and faculty packed Scott Hall’s Blue Auditorium to hear the dean speak and ask questions about the negotiations.
The two groups are currently renegotiating a contract for the medical school’s residency programs that will be hosted at the DMC.

The current contract expired in March 2005, but was extended through 2006 when new terms could not be agreed upon.
If anyone can inspire entrepreneurship in the city of Detroit, it's Dan Gilbert. Gilbert is No.

354 on Forbes Magazine’s list of richest Americans, founder and chairman of the Quicken Loans Corporation, the largest online retail home mortgage lending firm in the U.S. and the owner the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Now the mogul plans to share his knowledge with the world via a two-year, full-time internship venture; launching in January of 2007 and aimed at the most ambitious, business-orientated young people the city has to offer. Granholm supoorters from the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and others congratulate her after last night's debate.

Candidates clash on tuition, trash, transit
Gov. Jennifer Granholm was greeted with chanting, clapping and camera phones when she arrived at the Communications Workers of America (CWA) Southfield branch last night. She gave hugs and high-fives to everyone in the room.

CWA hosted a Debate Watch party for many local democratic support groups, including WSU College Democrats, to show support for Granholm.
The third and final gubernatorial debate was broadcast last night on WXYZ Channel 7. “Some of these questions are dumb,” said Grosse Pointe South junior Victoria Caragay, but she loved listening to responses from each candidate.

“Nothing should come between Detroit and Michigan, but a comma,” Granholm said.
Granholm has invested in WSU and TechTown with money from the 21st Century Jobs Fund, and she wants to have a good relationship with Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.
DeVos said he wants to “get education right” in Detroit.

He was not pleased by a strike held earlier this year because students were “left sitting in the street.” DeVos also noted that Granholm has made revenue cuts for the city and the entire state.
Sen.

Barack Obama, D-Ill., threw his support behind Gov. Jennifer Granholm and Sen.

Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., in Detroit Friday as the keynote speaker at the “Movement for Michigan Victory Rally.”
A crowd of over 300 people filled the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 58, the electrician’s guild, with many holding signs promoting Stabenow and encouraging voters to vote no on Proposal 2, a proposal to end affirmative action programs in Michigan.

One woman even wore a button with Granholm’s picture in the center of a heart with words along the top that read, “We love our governor.”
Buyers were offered a first opportunity to reserve condos at the Westin Book-Cadillac Saturday at an event at The Detroit Athletic Club.
The grandiose old hotel, that elicits strong nostalgia from older Detroiters and has seen at least two other failed attempts at renovation, saw brisk sales in its single-day pre-sale event.

“We sold 40 (of 67) units in four hours,” said Jon Grabowski, president of Esquire properties, the real estate firm marketing the condos. “[Saturday’s] success surpasses all of our expectations.”
Once again, Michigan’s declining economy was the focus of last night’s gubernatorial debate, the second of three leading up to the Nov.

7 election.
Incumbent Jennifer Granholm tried to use challenger Dick Devos’ ties to President George W. Bush to emphasize his apathy to Michigan’s automotive crisis.

“My opponent is a backer of President Bush but [the president] won’t even give the Big Three the courtesy of a talk,” Granholm, who last month sent a letter to Bush asking him to meet with domestic automakers, said during last night’s gubernatorial debate.
But Dick DeVos claimed it was his phone call that convinced Bush to set a date for a meeting with the Big Three automakers in Michigan.
said she has no control over the affordability of college tuition, yesterday during a conference call with student newspapers throughout the state.

have set their own tuition rates, and as Governor, I’m autonomous and I can only give incentives to keep rates low, she said.
offer some relief, saying she would like to set up a statewide program similar to the Kalamazoo Promise, a privately funded program in which students of called the Merit Award Scholarship, which is still in the works, high school graduates who want to go to college would receive up to $4,000 to attend a Michigan program.
be provided by the 1998 multi-state tobacco settlement, which Michigan has used 2007, the MEAP test will be eliminated and replaced with the ACT college our efforts to get people to think about going to college,” Granholm said.

“They might take the test and realize that years, Granholm said she wants to double the amount of college graduates by graduation requirements have been raised to include, four years of math and English, three years of science and social studies, heftier foreign language qualify Michigan students for the Federal Academic Competitiveness Grant, which the business climate in Michigan because we want to intrigue job providers.
billion, also from the 1998 multi-state tobacco settlement to create the 21st Century Jobs fund, which aims to create jobs in the high-tech sector to replace jobs for today and for tomorrow to reshape the economy,” Granholm said. “We’re investing in companies that are going to come to Michigan, and grow in Michigan be one of the first states to provide universal health care,” Granholm said.

“We’re taking a page of what they did in Massachusetts.
Premiums will be set on a sliding scale based on income.