Michigan

From crack reporter Jon King over at MichiganAdvance, Another Day, Another Election Interference: more voting obfuscation for the ever-unstable GOP…

Following overwhelming victories in a recall election last week, the Republican members of the Delta County Board of Canvassers are refusing to certify the election results.

Unofficial results indicated that Van Ginhoven, a Democrat, and independent candidates Myra Croasdell and Matt Jensen, each defeated Republican Commissioners David Moyle, Robert Barron, and Robert Petersen by an approximately 3-1 margin. The incumbents were targeted for recall after they voted in February 2023 to fire County Administrator Emily DeSalvo.

When the county canvassers met this past Tuesday, however, Republican members Bonnie Hakkola and LeeAnne Oman refused to certify. The board, consisting of two Democrats and two Republicans, has to produce at least three votes in order to certify. […] Van Ginhoven tells Michigan Advance that the GOP canvassers cited, without evidence, irregularities in the vote totals based solely on the similarity across all three races.

While the board’s failure to certify the election has delayed the swearing in of the new commissioners, they will meet again on Monday, at which point they will have a final opportunity to provide certification. […] “And if at that time, the Republicans are still not willing to sign off on the certification, then everything’s going to have to be trucked downstate on the county dime and go to the State Board of Canvassers,” said Van Ginhoven.

Everything I say is a lie…
[email protected] ☆ [email protected] ☆ [email protected]

The NYT article (being in the Dining section) doesn't really go into it, but this one goes over the climate risks to wild rice

Who could have forseen this? 🤦‍♂️ From our friends over at BridgeMichigan, journalist Gabrielle Nelson reports on the pants-around-the-ankles situation in EV land…

A new International Energy Forum report, co-led by a University of Michigan researcher, found that a swift transition to EVs will require “unprecedented rates of mine production.” […] The world’s active copper mines, the authors concluded, can’t deliver.

Waitaminute…swift transition? Much like space exploration and a national renewable energy network, thanks to corporate greed and government myopia/complacence, the execution of a working national EV strategy is at least 20 years behind schedule, by my unscientific reckoning. Talk about dropping the ball.

Amid mounting political pressure to address climate change and looming competition from overseas automakers, Michigan’s Big Three automakers have all set ambitious EV production targets. General Motors has committed to all-electric sales by 2035, and Ford Motor Co. has said it wants half of its sales to be EVs by 2030, although both now face a reality check amid a slowdown in EV sales.

Bridge Michigan spoke to Adam Simon, a professor of earth and environment sciences at the University of Michigan and lead researcher on the report, about its findings. […] “Without copper,” Simon said, “you don’t have an EV.”

Unless the industry can find a way to make EVs with less copper, meeting EV demand would require an average of 1.7 new mines every year until 2050, according to the report. Achieving a full net-zero economy could require as many as six new mines per year.

…or Scrupulous Senator Reports Regaled Shill Stubs

State law bans lobbyists from giving officeholders gifts worth more than $76. However, lobbyists [slimy creatures that they are, tell me I'm wrong -- r^2^ ] have used various strategies to circumvent the prohibition, including providing tickets to lawmakers and then privately sending them letters asking for the value of the tickets over $76 to be paid back to the lobbying firm, according to more than 10 sources with direct knowledge of the arrangements. […] Whether lawmakers ultimately hand over what they owe the lobbyist is a mystery.

Sen. Paul Wojno, D-Warren, mistakenly thought he had to disclose tickets he received from lobbyists to a Detroit Lions game, to a Detroit Red Wings game and to the North American International Detroit Auto Show's annual Charity Preview event. The auto show tickets were worth $700, Wojno wrote in his disclosure.

Eric Doster, an Okemos attorney who advises clients on how to comply with state lobbying and campaign finance policies, said it's become a common practice for lobbyists to ask lawmakers to reimburse them for the cost of tickets over the gift limit. Such transactions are perfectly legal, Doster said.

Rep. Dylan Wegela, D-Garden City, a first-term lawmaker who has called for greater transparency, described the strategy of lobbyists using letters to seek reimbursements after sporting events as a loophole. […] Wegela said receiving tickets from lobbyists should be banned over a certain financial threshold. […] “Certainly, it should all be reported, period,” Wegela said.

[All emphasis in the above quotations is mine -- r^2^ ]

I was thinking (working without tools, I know), "what if your preferred politician isn't a sports fan or car buff?" It's a rhetoric question, kids.

Alt link for your convenience via archive.is

Stay sick, scratch glass, turn blue, climb walls…but don't get caught!
[email protected] ☆ [email protected] ☆ [email protected]

Why should DTE have to pay their "extracurricular" business expenses when you can?

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed testimony on Tuesday in DTE’s most recent request to increase its rates, calling the $266 million request “excessive and unnecessary.”

[…]business consultant Sebastian Coppola said DTE’s proposed gas rate hike would result in a 6.5% increase to the average customer’s bill.

Need I remind the DTE-bill-paying customers amongst us that a $368 million rate increase was approved only in December 2023?

Coppola also pointed to DTE’s estimated $74,769 jet travel costs included in the company’s projected expenses submitted as part of the rate case, and[…]leased private aircrafts for executives[…].

DTE spokesperson Ryan Lowry [said], “Regarding travel expenses, a fraction of the costs for limited air travel for business-appropriate needs[…]were included in the initial DTE Gas rate request.”

Everything I say is a lie.
[email protected] ☆ [email protected] ☆ [email protected]

…and what digs she had set up for herself! Computer, printer, coffee maker…yeh, not glamorous…

From the AP website:

Contractors curious about an extension cord on the roof of a [Midland,] Michigan grocery store made a startling discovery: A 34-year-old woman was living inside the business sign, with enough space for a computer, printer and coffee maker, police said.

The woman, whose name was not released, told police she had a job elsewhere but had been living inside the Family Fare sign for roughly a year, Warren said. She was found April 23.

A spokesperson for SpartanNash, the parent company of Family Fare, said store employees responded “with the utmost compassion and professionalism.” […] “Ensuring there is ample safe, affordable housing continues to be a widespread issue nationwide that our community needs to partner in solving,” Adrienne Chance said, declining further comment.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced charges on Wednesday against former Adams Township Clerk Stephanie Scott and her attorney, Stefanie Lambert Junttila, alleging the pair permitted an unauthorized computer examiner to access voter data concerning the 2020 election, which included non-public information.

In a statement, the Michigan Department of Attorney General contended that Scott, a Republican, disregarded multiple instructions from the director of elections to present the Adams Township voting tabulator to an authorized vendor for maintenance and testing. The department said Scott withheld the tabulator until it was seized by Michigan State Police executing a search warrant.

“Ensuring election security and integrity stands as the cornerstone of our democracy,” said [AG Dana] Nessel[.]

[Stefanie Lambert] Juntilla’s attorney, Dan Hartman said a statement: “I have spoken to Stefanie who remains steadfast in her efforts to bring transparency to the people’s election data, processes and procedures.”

As covered back in March (you read it here! -- r^2^), our Gov Whitmer signed off on two bills banning the sale of…

[…]any device specifically designed for inhaling nitrous oxide from canisters for recreational purposes, with stiffer penalties for selling the devices to minors.

That's great and would have solved the problem there and then…but unfortunately we're dealing with humans. The problem with idiot-proof solutions is that they're always inventing a better idiot. Take me, for example: I'm most likely a better idiot than you are.

From today's Detroit News article, "'Whippets' cannisters causing big problems in Michigan as lawmakers crack down"…

Many community leaders are hoping a new statewide ban, starting June 10, will make a difference. The two-bill package adds nitrous oxide or whippets to the list of drug paraphernalia under the Public Health Code that can't be knowingly sold to minors for the purpose of being inhaled for recreational use.

Of course. We all hope for the same thing, even the most cynical and coldhearted amongst us. But let's get down to the real problem here…

Whippets are metal containers. Some are about 3 inches tall and often sold in packs. More recently, cylinders about 12 inches tall also are being sold. Once a user sucks out the nitrous oxide, the canisters are no longer needed. Tens of thousands of them end up as hazardous litter, contend many who deal with the issue.

Four years ago, more than 30,000 canisters were picked up in a six-week period in southwest Detroit by a group that formed to clean up whippets in the community, organizers said. And more than 11,000 were picked up in a single day at a recent Motor City Makeover, an annual citywide volunteer cleanup and beautification initiative, Detroit Police Department officials told a state House health policy committee in February. [all emphasis mine -- r^2^ ]

It's no skin off my genitalia if you wanna huff your way to a vitamin deficiency (to go with your mental deficiency)—weed's gonna harm you less in the long run. Nevertheless, like I have no legal problem with heroin enthusiasts or exhibitionist sex, I don't wanna see your—ahem—biohazard leftover paraphenalia littering my streets. Ya follow?

And now…

r^2^'s Solution to The Whippit Problem

Return deposit on whippit cannisters.

• USD$1.00 on 3" cannisters
• USD$5.00 on 12" cannisters
• USD$20.00 on cannisters larger than 12"
  • Exemption for individuals/businesses with a valid Michigan food establishment license

Labelling

• Cannisters may no longer have "enticing" labelling. Any labelling on cannisters is limited to company information (name, address, internet information) and cannister content information. Labels are to be no greater than one-quarter of cannister surface area minus 0.25" top and bottom radii. Labelling must be text only, with no illustrations nor logotypes.
  • This is inspired by Plain Tobacco Packaging statutes worldwide…except here…in "The Greatest Country in The World"

"Cracker" tax
No…I'm not saying adding a new tax on 80% of the citizenry of Michigan and Ohio (I'm kidding! I'M KIDDING!)…

• a 50% state tax would be applied to the purchase of N~2~O "crackers," including online sales.
  • aforementioned exemption applies for licensed individuals/businesses

It may not be the perfect solution but as the old saw goes, "'perfect' is the enemy of 'good'". It's not going to stop anybody from inhaling laughing gas but you're gonna see a dramatic decrease—decrease is the keyword here, for the Manichians or absolutists among you—of whippit litter around the state.

Being how I don't run in those circles, I had no idea (other than the non-trivial litter problem) how common and widespread the problem is worldwide.

Has anybody in the State government considered any of these proposals before and I'm just repeating past arguments as my own? I couldn't find any prior art online.

What do you think?!

Alt link for your convenience via archive.is

Remember…Parma spelled backwards is AMRAP!
[email protected] ☆ [email protected] ☆ [email protected]

cross-posted from: https://midwest.social/post/11707077

…or is that Honor Among Thieves in Saginaw…? Quid Pro Quo in Action? Birds of a Feather Flock to Mid-State Michigan? l could go on and on, you know I could…

Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, whose prison sentence was shortened by then-President Donald Trump in January 2021, attended a campaign rally for the Republican candidate on Wednesday in Saginaw County.

Kilpatrick was once a prominent Democratic politician in Michigan before he was sentenced in 2013 on two dozen counts of using his positions as mayor and state representative to carry out a decade-long criminal racket involving extortion, bribery, conspiracy and fraud.

Trump commuted Kilpatrick's sentence[…]16 years before Kilpatrick was initially set to be released from federal prison.

"This commutation is strongly supported by prominent members of the Detroit community," the Trump White House said in a statement in January 2021.

By who exactly?

From the Freep's article…

Michigan Republican Party Chairman Pete Hoekstra − who knew Kilpatrick from his time as mayor and as a state legislator and Hoekstra's time as a congressman from west Michigan − told the Free Press he saw Kilpatrick, his wife and his children come into the hangar at MBS Airport in Freeland ahead of the event.

"He said, 'Hey, congressman, good to see you.' I didn't recognize him at first − my bad − and he said, 'Kwame Kilpatrick,'" Hoekstra said, adding that the two spoke briefly. Hoekstra also served in Congress with Kilpatrick's mother, former U.S. Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, D-Detroit.

---

Alternate links for your convenience:

• Detroit News, Ex-Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick attends Donald Trump's rally in Michigan via archive.is
• Detroit Free Press, Kwame Kilpatrick among those who attended Donald Trump rally in Saginaw County via archive.is

---

Further reading:

• The Metro Times: Kwame Kilpatrick’s wife buys enormous house in Novi despite former mayor’s unpaid restitution
• The Freep: Kwame Kilpatrick has a new job, but he has shown he prefers thrills to paying his bills

---

Stay sick, scratch glass, turn blue, climb walls…but don't get caught!
[email protected] ☆ [email protected] ☆ [email protected]

Michigan prosecutors executed a search warrant to obtain hundreds of files from Google and X (formerly Twitter) as part of an ongoing investigation into the fake electors plot in the state.

The warrants targeted the Google and X accounts of pro-Trump lawyer Kenneth Chesebro, who played a major role in the scheme nationwide. […] The warrant sought Chesebro’s emails and direct private messages after he denied having an X account in an interview with Michigan prosecutors last year. […] State prosecutors obtained more than 160 sent messages and more than 25 received messages from X between 2014 and 2021, with most of them coming after the 2020 election.

In July 2023, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office charged the 16 fake electors for falsely claiming Donald Trump won Michigan in the 2020 election.

The new documents obtained by Michigan prosecutors show that Chesebro tried in vain to lure several notorious, controversial Trump allies to Washington, D.C. to witness the fake elector scheme unfold on Jan. 6, 2021, the day that rioters burst into the U.S. Capitol. […] The records also show that Chesebro encouraged conservative pundits and right-wing figures to promote his strategies for subverting the Electoral College process.

In related news…

BridgeMichigan: Michigan backtracks ‘co-conspirator’ claim in fake electors probe

Attorney General Dana Nessel is walking back claims former Michigan Republican Party Chair Laura Cox is an “unindicted co-conspirator” in a plot to overturn the state’s 2020 presidential election results.

Kim Bush, a spokesperson for Nessel, told Bridge Michigan in an email late Monday that the department “considers Laura Cox to be a cooperating witness in the case.”

Sen. Jeremy Moss (D-Southfield) [Michigan's only Jewish state senator -- r^2^] took to the floor of the Senate last week to condemn bigotry against Jews that he says is being wielded hypocritically.

“The overwhelming majority of Jews believe in a place of refuge in a Jewish homeland. But if you even mention how woven the Jewish religion is with Jewish sovereignty in Israel, today you get called a ‘colonizer,’ a ‘racist,’” he said. “Zionist is now being weaponized as a slur, and it is infuriating that the same people who will say that also post ‘Happy Passover’ to all who are observing without acknowledging what we’re actually observing.”

“And maybe even more so sickened by those who want to define what antisemitism is and it isn’t,” Moss said. “American Jews, especially on our college campuses are facing harassment, intimidation, incitement, praise for Oct. 7 [when Hamas attacked Israeli civilians and] threats of a repeat, just because they are identifiable as being Jewish.”

“I’ve said it after Charlottesville, Tree of Life, Poway, and specifically, I have said it from this floor a few years ago, antisemitism thrives when it is failed to be called antisemitism,” he said. “And I don’t care if it comes from the right or the left. Instead, some of the very same far left figures, activists, and organizations who were quick to condemn Charlottesville are cheerleading the chaos on our campuses and gaslighting those of us who call it out for what it is. Using the same tired trope that’s existed for centuries. The Jews have brought this upon themselves.”

Seems like the high winds knocked it down. This is just after an intersection where traffic turning right into this lane wouldn’t see the orange sign in the road due to a sign for the business on the corner, so this road safety sign was an ironic driving hazard. Not to worry, a couple of strangers and I managed to flip it out of the way of traffic:

Decades of pollution and rapid urbanization created ecological problems so severe that the lake was designated a “Great Lakes Area of Concern” by the U.S. and Canada in 1987.

Through expansive cleaning efforts, Muskegon Lake has gone through every step required to remove that designation. The Muskegon Lake Watershed Partnership is waiting for the EPA to officially delist the site, meaning it will no longer be a designated Area of Concern.

A recent study in the Journal of Great Lakes Research found that residents of lower socioeconomic communities in Muskegon feared the cleaned-up shoreline would be taken over by private interests.

The study found that many Muskegon residents were excited about the revitalized lakes, but others were concerned that the restored areas would attract high-end development and raise nearby housing prices. They feared that would lead to gentrification and less public access.

[Amanda Buday, rural sociology researcher from Grand Valley State University who worked on the study] said that as new businesses come to Muskegon, there needs to be a plan in place to prevent gentrification. […] “If there’s not some conscientious development occurring, if it’s all just high-end condominiums, then the price and the value of those houses can put a pinch on lower-income residents.”

Over at Michigan Advance, reporter Anna Liz Nichols writes…

Michigan Judge Kristen Simmons, while presiding over the case against several individuals facing felony charges for submitting false electoral votes for former President Donald Trump in 2020, began court Tuesday with a warning: Cut the social media posts.

“If it appears that you’re taking a photo, I’m going to have to take your phone and have it searched because we’re not going to have witnesses being intimidated when they’re coming in here under a subpoena to give testimony nor will I have to be taking time away from my judicial duties to address commentary made on Facebook posts. It’s juvenile and it’s ridiculous,” Simmons said.

Apparently, it's endemic amongst Republican minions as their Loudmouth-In-Chief was requested and ordered to do the exact same thing. Strategy? Egomania? Megalomania?

No one in the courtroom was singled out by Simmons, but her comments followed an in-chambers meeting with Nick Somberg, the lawyer for Meshawn Maddock, a defendant in the case and former Michigan Republican Party co-chair.

Somberg told media outside of court he was called into the judge’s chamber ahead of court Tuesday with the Assistant Attorney General’s on the prosecution’s side to discuss a Facebook post he had made. The post was in regards to testimony from James Renner, a member of the group who had his criminal charges dropped as part of a cooperation agreement with the Attorney General’s Office to testify in the case. […] “He testified publicly; it’s no secret that he is an Informant or snitch,” Somberg said. “Nothing I said was disparaging.”

Last I remember from way back in elementary school, the word "snitch", applicable or not, was disparaging. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

cross-posted from: https://midwest.social/post/11301182

The Pride of Muskegon and Ypsilanti…ladies and gentleman or whatever you consider yourselves…

Happy Birthday, Iggy Pop! Mostly shirtless but always dangerous since 1947!

~Mr~ ~"Gimme~ ~Danger"~ ~at~ ~Beale~ ~Street~ ~Music~ ~Festival,~ ~New~ ~Orleans,~ ~LA,~ ~2007.~
~Photo:~ ~Bill~ ~Dierssen~~.~ ~Later~ ~version(s)~ ~uploaded~ ~by~ ~Pomte~ ~at~ ~en.wikipedia.,~ ~CC-BY-SA~ ~2.5~~,~ ~via~ ~Wikimedia~ ~Commons~

How many second chances does Iggy Pop get?

-- journalist/Rolling Stone editor David Fricke on Iggy and The Stooges' Ready To Die

[…]the man doesn't seem to know how to sell out, even when he tries[…]

-- journalist Mark Deming on Iggy's Party

Mr Dichotomy, the Peanut-Butter-Smeared One himself has said…

I just got sick of listening to idiot thugs with guitars banging out crappy music.^1^3

"Idiot thugs with guitars" or not, Iggy's still got the goods…and the voice…

The-Shadow-Of-Your-Smile BONUS:

• Iggy Pop - Strung Out Johnny

---

[email protected] ☆ [email protected] ☆ [email protected]

Michigan Advance's Katie O'Brien Kelley reports…

The Keweenaw Land Association has requested metallic mineral lease rights to about 10,631 acres across Baraga, Dickinson, Iron, Marquette and Menominee counties. At a Wednesday virtual public meeting held by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR), residents of these counties, members of environmental groups and other community members expressed concerns about the lease request and called for the DNR to deny it.

Tom Grotewohl, a U.P. resident, said he thinks that approving a mineral rights lease of this scale would be “entirely contradictory” to the DNR’s mission of protecting and managing natural resources. […] Grotewohl also said he was “very alarmed” that there were no in-person hearings being held by the DNR to discuss this lease. […] “Virtual meetings are a new technology, which still has not been embraced by many among older generations, which may include adjacent land wonders who have the right to know of the potential for mining to lower their property values,” he said.

This concern was reiterated by other speakers throughout the meeting, as several people were not able to unmute their microphones to give their public comments. […] Anna Bunting from Freshwater Future rejoined the webinar via phone because of this issue. […] “This is a woefully inadequate public participation process for such a huge lease request,” Bunting said. “There needs to be, and I certainly request, an in-person public hearing.”

Don't forget, kids: it's just not the same telling someone to go jump in the lake in a Zoom meeting. And by the way…

The DNR said that it will be accepting further questions or comments regarding the lease application. Comments can be submitted to the DNR via email. […] A post-meeting summary, which will respond to questions people had during Wednesday’s meeting, will also be posted on the DNR’s website.

…or What Goes Around, Comes Around: Russia-Ukraine Conflict Edition.

Here's a piece from the venereal, errr, venerated reportage of the BBC on the voluntary/mercenary counter-cyber on the behalf of the Ukraine. You may ask, "Raoul, baby, we all want world peace and all but what's this got to do with c/[email protected]?"

The [vigilante hacker] team, One Fist, has stolen data from Russian military firms and hacked cameras to spy on troops.

One of the hackers called "Voltage" has been co-ordinating hacks from his home in the US. […] His real name is [redacted -- read the article -- r^2^ ] and he is an IT worker from Michigan [emphasis mine -- r^2^ ].

The 53-year-old told the BBC he is delighted his efforts for Ukraine have been officially recognised with a certificate of gratitude.

Since the start of the conflict, Ukraine has controversially been encouraging volunteer hackers to attack Russian targets. But sending out official awards to foreign civilians is being seen as a controversial move and a sign of the times.

Okay, this is the second post today that has "fraud" in its title…

The America Project, a national nonprofit that's been focused on railing against the country's voting system, spent $1.2 million funding lawyers and groups in Michigan during the 2022 election year, according to a recently filed tax document.

The Florida-based nonprofit co-founded by former Overstock.com CEO Patrick Byrne reported it gave $429,875 to the law office of Oakland County attorney Stefanie Lambert for "legal support." Lambert was charged with four felonies in August 2023 for allegedly participating in a scheme to improperly access voting machines used in the 2020 presidential election.

The America Project also said it provided $700,000 for a Waterford Township organization that's connected to Lambert and called "United States Election Investigation and Lawsuits." The money was for "election integrity," [emphasis mine -- r^2^ ] according to the nonprofit's tax filing, which didn't include additional details about the expenditure.

"Election integrity." You have to laugh.

The tax document also showed how funds have been used to ensure conspiracy theories about voter fraud persist, said Chris Thomas, Michigan's former longtime elections director. […] “Obviously, this is a glimpse into the post-2020 spending to keep their (election) deniers’ conspiracy alive," Thomas said.

Alt link, for your convenience, via archive.today

"To churn out the robocalls, Wohl and Jacobs sought a Black voice actress to make the recording, which they called their “Black robo.” The call falsely claimed that personal information used on mail-in ballots could lead to arrests for outstanding arrest warrants or be used to collect unpaid credit card debts. The calls also falsely warned that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention could use the information to track people for mandatory vaccines. "

metrotimes.com/news/right-wing…

@hockey collegehockeynews.com/news/202… @michigan

This is not a drill, Peppa!

Motor City Furry Con attendees were forced from their hotel rooms at the Ann Arbor Marriott Ypsilanti at Eagle Creek just before 9 a.m. on Sunday after a threat forced an evacuation for the second year in a row, according to convention officials.

The Motor City Furry Con, a Michigan convention for those who appreciate the anthropomorphic lifestyle, took to social media on Sunday to announce a full hotel evacuation at 8:49 a.m. The post encouraged attendees to gather in the exterior golf course or leave the premises, but not loiter in vehicles.

Alt link via archive.is

Genetic tests have revealed that an animal killed in a legal coyote hunt in Michigan's Calhoun County was actually a gray wolf, state officials say. But experts don't know how the animal got there in the first place.

Calhoun County is located in the southern half of Michigan's Lower Peninsula, where no gray wolves (Canis lupus) have been sighted for over a century. A population of around 630 gray wolves inhabits the state's Upper Peninsula, 250 miles (400 kilometers) away, and some wolves have occasionally been spotted in the northern half of the Lower Peninsula — roughly 130 miles (200 km) from Calhoun County.

"While rare, instances of wolves traversing large distances have been documented, including signs of wolves in recent decades in Michigan's Lower Peninsula," Brian Roell, a biologist and large carnivore specialist with the state's Department of Natural Resources (DNR), said in a statement.

Activist, poet, columnist (or fifth columnist, depending on who you're asking), founder of the White Panther Party, marijuana enthusiast and evangelist, manager of the equally infamous rock group the MC5 (RIP) and all around trouble-maker 😄, John Sinclair passed away last Tuesday, March 2, 2024 of heart failure. Condolences to the surviving family. 😞

Obligatory music, brothers and sisters!…

• John Lennon - John Sinclair
• MC5 - Ramblin' Rose
• John Sinclair & Cary Loren - PeyoteMind (2012)
• Bonus: John Sinclair (1941-2024) & The MC5 - From the Film "MC5 - A True Testimonial" (2002)

The Freep reports on the upcoming memorial services for Sinclair…

A memorial will take place at 1 p.m. Tuesday at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD), featuring performances by musicians and speakers who were friends of Sinclair — a storied poet, counterculture activist and Detroit music fixture who was embedded in the city’s rock and jazz scenes. […] MOCAD is at 4454 Woodward, Detroit. […] A reception will follow at the Trinosophes café at 1464 Gratiot, Detroit.

From The News…

In a Detroit News interview in 2021, on the 50th anniversary of the freedom rally for Sinclair, the activist said he was surprised it took Michigan so long to legalize marijuana.

"The truth prevailed," he said. "People didn't quit using it, you see? And more and more people got on the side of the felons and pretty soon they had to remove the felony. It just didn't make any sense."

Sinclair had been living in the Cass Corridor in recent years. He was able to see marijuana not only be legalized in his home state, but become so available that dispensaries dot the entire landscape from county to county.

From CBS News…

Sinclair also promoted concerts and festivals and helped to establish the Detroit Artists Workshop and Detroit Jazz Center. He taught blues history at Wayne State University; hosted radio programs in Detroit, New Orleans and Amsterdam; and wrote liner notes for albums by artists including The Isley Brothers and Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes.

He helped create Hash Bash, a yearly pot celebration at the University of Michigan, and served as state coordinator of the Michigan chapter of NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.

And finally, from The Metro Times' article…

At the time, cannabis activist Rick Thompson reportedly asked Sinclair, “Things have come full circle, haven’t they, John?” Sinclair retorted, “It would be more full if they came and gave me back the weed that they took.”

More information is available at the Lynch & Sons Funeral Directors website.

Alt links for your convenience:

• The Freep: John Sinclair memorial service and reception set for Tuesday in Detroit
• The News: Marijuana activist and 'Detroit's resident radical' John Sinclair has died at 82

Well, it ain't Cannes or Venezia but…

Central Michigan International Film Festival
April 3 - 7, 2024
Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, Michigan

Check out this year’s film schedule and make plans to join us for our 21st annual festival!
Tickets are on sale NOW. Click here to visit our ticketing site.

Tickets cost $8, $5 discounted rate for students and seniors. Tickets available on-line or at the door.

*Special event pricing varies (Opening Night Film & VHS Night at the Broadway)

Join us at Celebration Cinema Wed. April 3 at 6:30pm for our special Opening Night film WICKED LITTLE LETTERS starring Oscar winner Olivia Colman (The Favourite, The Crown, Fleabag), & Jessie Buckley (Women Talking, Wild Rose, The Lost Daughter).