Just read about a frightening situation in Allen Park, where a barricaded gunman was held at bay for nearly six hours, while reportedly shooting nearly 100 loads of ammunition at officers from Michigan State, Sterling Heights, and local police. At last report, the man was found dead in his home, which was to be foreclosed at that time.
There have been some confusing reports surrounding the man's identity, his life, and his motive. Supposedly, he helped author a weight-loss book. He was described by neighbors as a creepy individual, but the way he went out was creepier than any description someone could give him.
Allen Park is breaking ground on a new film studio barely a mile west of the shooting site. All sorts of productions will occur there, including (I'm sure) some gunfight scenes. Staged scenes, while I'm not a fan of them, will go better in those studios than they do in real life.
You never think the violence you read about can come near you, or even affect you directly, until you read that it IS happening locally.
I theorized in this space about two years ago about the donut-hole theory that urban sprawl is. What experts tragically fail to mention is that urban sprawl is more than constant build-up outwards from a central city. With the bad, you get the really bad.
Let's hope and pray this is only an isolated incident.
