Fear of art sale sparked by Detroit emergency manager asking for appraisal

[bif]

Source: Yahoo News

DETROIT (Reuters) - As part of his efforts to solve Detroit's financial crisis, the city's emergency manager Kevyn Orr has asked for an appraisal of the collection at the Detroit Institute of Arts, sparking fears in artistic and philanthropic circles that he means to auction off the city's artistic jewels.
Orr was appointed in March by Michigan's Republican Governor Rick Snyder to tackle the shrinking city's long-term debt problem, which the emergency manager estimated at $15 billion in a recent report on the state of Detroit.
Orr's spokesman Bill Nowling insists that the appraisal is not about having an artistic fire sale, but more about being ready when bondholders and their insurers, who will be asked to absorb considerable losses, inquire about the artwork.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/fear-art-sale-sparked-detroit-emergency-manager-asking-050359443.html

[Drale]

1. If the people of Detroit don't rebel against this true dictatorship

then the people of the US are completely lost and will never rebel against anything

[maddogesq]

3. And consider this:

If anyone thinks the majority of this art would go to say, Chicago or New York, they are foolish at best. It is more likely these pieces would be sold to places with ready cash, and no art.

If that doesn't tug at your sense of patriotism, nothing will...

Next up, the water department. That way, all of us that live in the 'burbs of Detroit can pay double for our water when we have to buy it from, say, Halliburton.

Isn't that just special?

[RKP5637]

4. Many in the US have been breed not to resist. I really realized this

after Bush got in and his regime did what they damn well pleased. And corporations realized Americans for the most part are just a pushover ... and then OWS was squashed by TPTB. And now local police forces have been militarized. Most Americans IMO are clueless ... Many are sooo damn clueless they don't get WTF many politicians are about and fall for all of the divisive tactics and bullshit.

[RKP5637]

2. It will probably be history as Detroit is in a survival mode and usually

bottom-liners don't give a damn about anything but the bottom line. I don't know about this manager, I'm just speaking from my experiences in a number of major corporations as they floundered to the bottom and eventually went out of business.

[Mika]

5. EVERY DUer should watch - The Art Of The Steal

The Art Of The Steal

[progressoid]

8. +1

[Earth_First]

12. Took your suggestion tonight...

Wow.

Just speechless.

Watch this film.

[louis-t]

6. This guy said he wasn't going to "kill unions or sell off assets".

I have been saying from the beginning, he's lying and he will do both.

[summerschild]

7. K&R

[DonCoquixote]

9. I bet Alice Walton snaps this up

She built a museum as her way to try and buy redemption.

http://crystalbridges.org/about/

And in the process used her money to strong arm many art pieces away from public museums.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/08/crystal-bridges-museum-of-art-alice-walton_n_1081448.html
http://www.artlyst.com/articles/walmart-gallery-in-cross-fire-controversy
http://www.artnews.com/2012/01/12/american-art-alice-walton%E2%80%99s-way/

In short, another rich lady's attempt to use art to hide the crimes that got it. I do like the idea of the South getting some art, but frankly, not as the Walton's attempt to hide the stench they have.

[Javaman]

10. Nations treasures going at whole sale prices. nt

[xtraxritical]

11. The privatize jive.

[blkmusclmachine]

13. Why does it feel like we're in 1930's Germany?

What's going on?