Devil of a problem putting out this PR fire
The Des Moines Register decides to liven up its annual Halloween tradition story about Bad Joke Night by highlighting what Detroit is known for on the days near Halloween.
They say Detroiters celebrate "Hell Night" as an example of "bizarre ... local traditions." The more popular name is Devil's Night, the day before Halloween when arsonists try to capitalize on the holiday atmosphere by torching houses in Detroit.
Of course, this has become much less of a problem in recent years. But every year, the city has to recruit hundreds of volunteers to patrol the streets to ensure that fires are held to a minimum.
My former colleague Bill Johnson, now the Wayne County Commission's chief of staff, wrote a column once reporting that the reduction in Devil's Night fires created a false sense of security. What arsonists sometimes choose to do is avoid the volunteer patrols and redistribute their arsons at other times when there is less vigilance.
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Wow that is so very 15 years ago
When you have a police force as unwilling to do anything as you do in Detroit (and much of the US), neighborhood watches do a lot better. Yet Detroit hasn't had devil's night fires for about 15 years.
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