Every now and then, you hear some news that makes you just want to smile.
EVENT
Last December, mindful of gloom and thunder, I posted this. Six months later, when news in both Flint and the world at large tends to be more often depressing, something wonderful has happened.
In the (well-chosen) words of the Flint Journal:
'The rock' reborn
People's billboard, with care, could be better than ever
Monday, June 20, 2005
Whether it was creatively applied pressure or Don Williamson wising up on his own, we applaud the mayor's decision to resurrect "the rock" as the people's billboard.
It was an ill-thought-out action in the first place to ban overnight what has been a 30-plus-year tradition. Better, and certainly more acceptable, ways can be employed to combat debris and other downsides of this spontaneous message-painting, which the city is trying now.
For instance, garbage cans and barrels have been supplied for paint cans and other leftover material, along with a sign asking the "artists" to be tidy. That replaces ones posted last October threatening $1,000 fines for anyone caught coating the concrete-covered city pumping station at 12th Street and Hammerberg Road.
Not only will no one be fined for this technically illegal activity, but Williamson is offering a twice-yearly $500 prize for the best paintings.
Now that's an artful policy reversal, almost as clever as an American Civil Liberties Union campaign opposing the mayor's initial ban. The Greater Flint Branch of the ACLU used that edict as fodder for a freedom-of-speech campaign, handing out its own recognition Thursday for student essays on the topic. Additionally, it named the rock its Civil Libertarian of the Year.
However, that freedom we cherish requires responsibility. Spare the rock any profanity or gang symbols, and no paint should find its way to nearby road surfaces, concrete drains and light poles, as happened before. Perhaps a "rock band" might form to see to this upkeep.
In any event, it's nice to see a bit of Flint reborn, and maybe better than ever. Rejoice and grab your brushes.
In this case, I don't even mind their punnery, the news is so good. I always felt that the Rock was newsworthy because in some way, it represented the soul of the city. Depopulation, disinvestment, crime, and poverty have been "30-plus-year" traditions in this town, which was federally classified as "depressed" in the late sixties, and was suffering a large-scale exodus just ten years later. But the Rock has also come to be in that time. Situated between a factory and a school, the Rock and all that it represents in the authentic, real-deal hope for the future of Flint.
May this heap of concrete be ever splattered with paint.
People's billboard, with care, could be better than ever
Monday, June 20, 2005
Whether it was creatively applied pressure or Don Williamson wising up on his own, we applaud the mayor's decision to resurrect "the rock" as the people's billboard.
It was an ill-thought-out action in the first place to ban overnight what has been a 30-plus-year tradition. Better, and certainly more acceptable, ways can be employed to combat debris and other downsides of this spontaneous message-painting, which the city is trying now.
For instance, garbage cans and barrels have been supplied for paint cans and other leftover material, along with a sign asking the "artists" to be tidy. That replaces ones posted last October threatening $1,000 fines for anyone caught coating the concrete-covered city pumping station at 12th Street and Hammerberg Road.
Not only will no one be fined for this technically illegal activity, but Williamson is offering a twice-yearly $500 prize for the best paintings.
Now that's an artful policy reversal, almost as clever as an American Civil Liberties Union campaign opposing the mayor's initial ban. The Greater Flint Branch of the ACLU used that edict as fodder for a freedom-of-speech campaign, handing out its own recognition Thursday for student essays on the topic. Additionally, it named the rock its Civil Libertarian of the Year.
However, that freedom we cherish requires responsibility. Spare the rock any profanity or gang symbols, and no paint should find its way to nearby road surfaces, concrete drains and light poles, as happened before. Perhaps a "rock band" might form to see to this upkeep.
In any event, it's nice to see a bit of Flint reborn, and maybe better than ever. Rejoice and grab your brushes.
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