Craig Ferguson, Flint, and Murders

Whoever's in charge of PR for Flint should be in crisis mode after an appearance last night on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson by two local nurses named Christy and Rachel who were vacationing in Los Angeles. Feguson brought the pair up on stage. After complimenting their wardrobes, Ferguson asked a simple question: "What goes on in Flint, Michigan?" Christy's response: "Murders."

The crowd seemed to love it, prompting Ferguson to dole out a mild rebuke: "Excuse me, I just have to talk to the audience...That's not funny. What the hell's wrong with you? Murders? Yeah!" 

You can see the episode here. It's at the very beginning of the show.

Flint: Murdertown, U.S.A.

Lest Flintoids past and present get too giddy after Kiplinger's proclamation that Flint is a "comeback city," The New York Times Magazine is there to bring everybody back to reality.

The intrepid Charlie LeDuff, riding along with a Flint cop, reports:

It’s not that the cops here are scared; it’s just that they’re outmanned, outgunned and flat broke.

Flint is the birthplace of General Motors and the home of the U.A.W.’s first big strike. In case you didn’t know this, the words “Vehicle City” are spelled out on the archway spanning the Flint River.

But the name is a lie. Flint isn’t Vehicle City anymore. The Buick City complex is gone. The spark-plug plant is gone. Fisher Body is gone.

What Flint is now is one of America’s murder capitals. Last year in Flint, population 102,000, there were 66 documented murders. The murder rate here is worse than those in Newark and St. Louis and New Orleans. It’s even worse than Baghdad’s.

Happy New Year from Flint Expatriates

Here's a rundown of the ten most popular posts from 2010...a strange mixture of bars, cars, murders, memories and Nancy Kovack.

1. You Know You're From Flint If...

2. The Gangs of Flint

3. Flint Murder Map

4. Shawn Chittle's Retro T-Shirts

5. The Buick Electra 225

6. Flint's Bars, Lounges and Taverns

7. The Fading Murals of Flint

8. Flint Portraits: Nancy Kovack

9. Life Without I-475

10. To the Manor Born

Another Grim Milestone

Flint has recorded its 50th homicide of 2010.

David Harris of The Flint Journal reports:

The city’s streets have seen the equivalent of about one homicide every five days.

Keith Speer, president of the Flint police officers union, called Flint “a killing field.”

Mayor Dayne Walling and Police Chief Alvern Lock asked Flint residents to become more involved in helping police fight crime in their neighborhoods during a news conference at police headquarters Wednesday.