Headed to Dallas

Peter Karmanos should receive credit from Detroiters for the recent decision to offer Kwame Kilpatrick employment at a subsidiary of his company in Dallas. It's a move most have been critical of - many suggest the former mayor should not be hired. To state the opinion of the minority (in this case, me) Karmanos has done a very positive thing for Detroit, essentially buying out the former mayor. 

The only way Detroit can move on is to have an election, select a new permanent mayor, and remove Kilpatrick from the spotlight. Unless he moved away and had a new opportunity, this would not happen. He would continue to be a featured media story and would cause a major distraction. Each day he's spent in Detroit since his release from jail, Kwame Kilpatrick has ben on the front page and the election for mayor has been relegated to the metro section. The time has come to put the Kilpatrick era in the past, and that can only happen if he leaves the city and starts anew somewhere else. Had he not received this opportunity, it's likely he would have remained in the metro area, working in the private sector, and been a story time and time again. 

When considered as a "buyout," the salary and new position is well worth the former mayor moving on and letting the city progress from a trying period.