re: How much damage can a stupid socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani do to NYC

I'm reading this thread, and then i see

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4cubbies

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Comment about Detroit. Knowing damn well she doesn't know a thing about this topic at all, outside of "more government = better". Here is a more in depth explanation that doesn't just overly simplify it to "cuz capitalism....REEEEE!!!!"

Detroits fall was due to:

1. Over-Reliance on the Auto Industry and Deindustrialization:

Detroit's economy was built almost entirely around Ford, GM, and Chrysler. Post-WWII, automakers decentralized production:
They moved factories to suburbs, other states (especially right-to-work states with lower costs), and abroad for cheaper land, labor, and newer facilities.
Automation, foreign competition (especially Japan in the 1970s–80s), oil crises, and recessions accelerated job losses.
Manufacturing employment in the region plummeted; ripple effects closed supplier businesses, reducing tax revenue and consumer spending.

2. Suburbanization and White Flight

Affordable cars (ironically) enabled sprawl. Highways and federal policies favored suburbs.
Middle-class (mostly white) residents left for better schools, lower taxes, and newer housing starting in the 1950s.
The 1967 Detroit riots (after years of racial tensions, police brutality, and housing discrimination/redlining) accelerated this exodus dramatically.
Population dropped sharply; the tax base eroded as businesses and jobs followed people outward. Impoverished residents (often Black, facing barriers to suburban moves) were left behind, increasing poverty and service demands

3. Governance, Corruption, and Fiscal Mismanagement

As revenues fell, city leaders raised taxes, borrowed heavily, and maintained high spending/pensions without adjusting for the smaller population.
Corruption scandals plagued multiple administrations.
Overly generous union deals, declining service quality (e.g., slow emergency response, blight), and failed revitalization efforts compounded problems.
Predatory lending and the housing crash led to massive foreclosures. Property tax issues (over-assessments) hurt homeowners further.

Timeline Snapshot

1950s–60s: Peak prosperity: early job losses and suburban boom.
1967: Riots mark a turning point.
1970s–90s: Auto decline + continued flight.
2000s: Housing crisis + Great Recession.
2013: Bankruptcy.

Other contributing factors included a lack of economic diversification, urban planning focused on cars over transit/neighborhoods, and broader Rust Belt trends.

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And Baltimore, Chicago, New Orleans, Memphis, Atlanta, etc.?

Unions?

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I don't know, but since your level of thinking seems to be that there are no individual or unique factors involved, but it's a monolithic phenomenon, I'm not about to go research all of them to find out.

A 4th grader wouldn't be able to appreciate a real answer on that and you're thinking like a 4th grader.

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And Baltimore, Chicago, New Orleans, Memphis, Atlanta, etc.?

Unions?

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Democrats. The common denominator is Democrats... well, actually, the people who voted the democrats into power. Make of that what you will.

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Who cares. Reap

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While yes, we hope the consequences of this stupidity are severe enough to teach a lesson, let’s not be foolish enough to think that communists being in control of our major cities and states is anything but a problem for our nation. An existential problem at that.

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The demise accelerated in 1984 when the UAW contract was renegotiated because the UAW was afraid of modern manufacturing techniques.

This was all well documented for years but really came to light in 2008 when we bailed out the auto industry

Shocked that a scholar such as yourself doesn't recall it

At one point in 2006, there was15K people in the UAW job bank program being paid to sit around and do crossword puzzles because the UAW contract made it impossible to fire anyone. Technically, those people could have chosen to stay on the job, sitting in the room until the day they died. Not even joking.

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Wait - are you claiming divestment in Detroit didn't start until 1984?

We won’t know for sure until he completes his second term. Yes, New Yorkers are that stupid.

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You are a stupid person

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I've noticed that that only a certain type of poster feels comfortable calling other people stupid when they're wrong.

stout: Capitalism made Detroit into a world-class city in every sense of the term, then unions came along and destroyed it.

me: Give us a history lesson - when did unions come along and destroy Detroit?

stout: 1984

me: lol

stout: you're stupid

Do you agree with Mamdani’s approach to urban governance?

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Perhaps, you shouldn't hang out in leftist book stores for your sources.

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What books informed your ideas about Detroit? I'll check them out.