Enhance beauty at a discount

"At a time like this, you must give, give, give," says Tamara Friedman. 'Tis the season, but Friedman -- who has run a high-end Farmington Hills day spa since 1980 -- is talking not about charity but her strategy for survival in the stressed out, maxed-out business of aesthetic soothing. - 11/19/2009

Proposal 2 challenge continues

Three years after Michigan voters approved Proposal 2, the constitutional amendment that ended the use of affirmative action in college admissions, lawyers are set to argue in a federal appeals court that the new law is unconstitutional. - 11/17/2009

Michigan's Legislature ... what is it good for?

In Lansing, even the emperors-to-be have no clothes. Case in point: Lt. Gov. John Cherry -- who wants to be promoted to governor -- signed on last week to the conventional wisdom that the Legislature is broken. It can't or won't move beyond its current pattern of budget cuts, threats, late-night sessions, name calling and momentary fixes. - 11/15/2009

Manoogian probe dogs Cox's gov run

The man who wants to be governor can't keep his fledgling campaign on message. It's haunted instead by his four-week, 2003 investigation into allegations surrounding a supposed party at the Manoogian Mansion. - 11/12/2009

• Cybersurvey: Was there a party at the Manoogian?

Nonprofit helps women gain power

A nonprofit group sponsored a political 'boot camp' that helped polish the skills of Saunteel Jenkins, helping her win a long-shot bid for Detroit city council. - 11/10/2009

Scoring H1N1 vaccine requires vigilance

Scoring a vaccine requires the kind of vigilance a 14-year-old practices to find out about the next Taylor Swift concert. To be honest, I only discovered the allure of finding the stuff recently, after overhearing whispers. - 11/08/2009

• Special section: Reports and advice on the flu and H1N1 flu

Pugh's star status wins over Detroiters

Almost lost in Charles Pugh's campaign and triumphant victory Tuesday was his status as a gay man. Now the sexual orientation of the new City Council president creates evidence of a singular Detroit political truth: celebrity trumps all. - 11/05/2009

Frederick Marx: 'Yoda of PR' knew how to connect

In 1982, Frederick Marx carefully arranged a magazine article about the career of department store magnate Joseph L. Hudson Jr. At the time, the public relations executive neglected to tell anyone that Detroit's department store history was dramatically changing: Joe Hudson would unexpectedly retire a few days before the article's publication, and the downtown store would soon close. - 11/03/2009

State plays same old song with school cuts

That Michigan tune -- slash, cut, pare to the bone -- is playing again. Art and music teachers cower in the corner when school budgets are cut. They know from long, difficult experience their specialties will be among the first to go. - 10/29/2009

Proposal D offers rising council candidates a stepping stone

Recent revelations about Detroit City Council candidate CharlesPugh's financial problems and the impending foreclosure of his $385,000 condo offer voters some incentive to look hard not only at him but at Proposal D, the ballot issue that would revamp the way city voters elect council members. - 10/25/2009

School cuts get residents' attention

One school district used Twitter to get out the news: "Governor signed a bill eliminating ... funds late today -- a loss of $931,902 ... Creates even greater financial problem for (Birmingham Public Schools)." In nearby Bloomfield Hills, school Superintendent Steve Gaynor fumed at the state"cherrypicking who they want to punish," adding in an interview, "I can tell you that people are madder than hell." - 10/22/2009

• CyberSurvey: Do you object to the governor's school funding veto?

What's in a name? Money for Wayne County

Let the purists sneer at Wayne County's consideration of selling naming rights to county sites. Maybe once, in those bountiful years when Comerica Park seemed a crude and commercial follow-up to the elegant simplicity of plain old "Tiger Stadium," old names were good names. Time to get with it. - 10/18/2009

Shroud to be lifted off Ambassador Bridge report

To the people who own the Ambassador Bridge, the document is rightly private, "a blueprint for terrorists." To a federal agency and a U.S. congressman, it's no more of a national security risk than millions of other documents released to the public every year. - 10/15/2009

Detroit's crisis is nothing new

In misty or imagined memory, Detroit was in its heyday in 1956 -- an automotive golden year of classy Thunderbirds and distinctive Chevys, of downtown restaurants and nightclubs, when even newcomers shared an aura of certainty about the city's greatness. - 10/13/2009