I think people find it easier to think that the city government was just fucked up - which it has been, at times, sure - but this is just a symptom caused by the economics of the place.
Others find it easier to think it was the fault of greedy unions. I won't elaborate on what I think about workers blaming other workers...Divide and conquer bullshit at its finest.
The only thing in your post I take exception with is calling it "American capitalism". It's just plain capitalism. This is what it does, this is the inevitable result. It cannot be tamed, not in a lasting way. And it is more powerful than any city government, or even a national one that tries to resist. Sure, some countries are a little less willing to colonize themselves the way we are now here, but they still colonize other parts of the world for resources, labor, and 'investment' resulting in the same thing. It is a global system. It goes beyond our borders. And it often comes from beyond our borders.
It is a danger for people to treat Detroit as some unique case study of 'doing it wrong'. This is happening in many places. Neglecting infrastructure while giving tax breaks to corporations which are using up and spitting out workforces and leaving the poorest people and most impotent governments to try to clean up the mess. Privatization of public resources. Here in SE Michigan we are ahead of the curve. Lucky us 
Btw, Mr Scorpio, I always appreciate your insight on Detroit issues among other things, so thanks for taking the time to try to spread some truth.
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