Our Best of Detroit issue's winner of Best Thrift Store in Wayne County was the Salvation Army, and that didn't sit well with reader and Catrina Stackpoole of Hamtramck's thrift shop Recycled Treasures (12101 Joseph Campau):
I would like to protest one of your Best of Detroit picks — for the category of Best Thrift Store in Wayne County. The Salvation Army is a huge operation that receives the major portion of furniture donations and uses the proceeds to fund their recovery programs. But they cherry pick the donations, taking only the best items that people have to donate and their store prices are very high.
Recycled Treasures will take 95 percent of what folks are donating and our prices are the lowest around, so low-income folks can get the things they need at a very low cost. Recycled Treasures also gives away all the mattresses and appliances that are donated to those who have had an emergency, plus giving these folks who are starting over, furniture and household items. We save things from the landfill by re-purposing, fixing, or turning into art. We also give away the majority of the clothes that are donated through our sister organization, Detroit Friendship House.
We are a community-based organization that relies on volunteers to help and area residents to bring in items every day to recycle items that still have use.
Perhaps you need to have a new category next year: "Best Green and Most Helpful Thrift Store in Wayne County."
Our blog "Push comes to shove on Michigan historic districts" was about how a Grand Rapid politician sponsored a bill to tame historic districts that impinge upon their wealthy residents' property rights, but that the bill seems to have been abandoned to help protect that playground of the wealthy Mackinac Island. This convoluted tales was summed up by one of our favorite posters, Ed, thusly:
So the west side fuckin' fuckers tried to fuck reasonable east side fuckers to help the fuckin' business fuckers make more fuckin' money and almost fucked fuckin' rich fuckers so they fuckin' caved. Fuck them, the fuckin' fucks.
In reply to Jack Lessenberry's Politics & Prejudices column, "All the governor's men," Steven Mason posted:
It would be hilarious to see Snyder eating the maggot-infested prison food he privatized. Snyder ran for governor to make money by eliminating the state business tax on his own business, which created a $2 billion budget deficit, which led to a lot of bad for the people of Michigan. Even though Snyder is allegedly worth $200 to $300 million (that oppressive Michigan business tax really hurt him!), Snyder is so greedy that with no legal authority he is using $800,000 in state money to pay for his personal criminal defense attorney. What a guy!
We received a couple of poems about the drug epidemic from Delores Allen of Detroit. Here's one of them, entitled "Elegy to an Addict":
To love a pill, is this life today?
Popping up happiness, downing it away.
God in a needle, lift yourself higher.
Killing the seed of sexual desires.
How in the hell did I get in this fix?
Heroin for breakfast, heroin for kicks.
All the pills have drifted away.
Heroin took my life today.
Errata: Our April 27 Best of Detroit issue should have stated that Ban Thai in Macomb Township won Best Thai Restaurant in Macomb County; the restaurant Pi's Thai is located in Oakland County. Best Tattoo Artist should have stated that Matthew J. Hockaday of Tribute Tattoo won this category. The Best Cake Pops category should have stated that the winner is Serendipity Cakery, which is owned by Tammie Bachran. The Best Deli in Macomb County category should have stated that the phone number for Ventimiglia's Italian Foods is 586-979-0828. In the Best Wedding Banquet Hall category, a second address for a Penna's of Sterling location should have been listed: 43985 Hayes Rd., Sterling Heights; 586-566-9900; pennasbanquets.com. And finally, our listing for Best FM Station got the website incorrect; it is 89xradio.com. We regret the errors.
