MITCH ALBOM

For Michigan, get a win beats 'get a life'

He came here fluffed with hype, a whiz kid set to turn around a solid but stodgy program and gun the motor to a national championship. Instead, he got a little drunk on his own reviews, took a few shots to the chin and the gut, and is staggering home as night falls.

• Mitch Albom's homepage

SUSAN TOMPOR

More wild rides await investors

Wall Street kicked investors with another 400-point loss on Thursday after a brutal battering just the day before when the stock market was knocked to its lowest level in more than five years. Now, things look worse.

BOOK EXCERPT | WAR AS THEY KNEW IT - MICHAEL ROSENBERG

Bo won showdown vs. mentor in '69

There was an unusual buzz on the Michigan campus before the 1969 game against Ohio State. For many Wolverines, it was the first time that they felt the student body was behind them.

MATT HELMS

Thanksgiving promises hectic roads

It's going to be busy on the roads over the Thanksgiving holiday, even if the economy puts a crimp in some travel plans. AAA Michigan estimates a 6% drop in holiday travel next week.

BRIAN DICKERSON

How climate change felled the mighty John Dingell

He dreamed of going out the way every politician dreams of going out -- gracefully, on his own terms, with the taste of victory fresh in his mouth. As things turned out, John Dingell's fall from power looked more like King Kong's roaring tumble from the top of the Empire State Building.

TOM WALSH

Wagoner has become industry's leader, and lead he must

For better or worse, the fate of Detroit's automobile industry rests heavily on the leadership skills of Rick Wagoner, GM's chairman and chief executive officer.

MARK PHELAN

2009 Honda Fit has lots of room but fuel economy isn't great

Riddle me this, Batman: When is a fuel-efficient subcompact not? Answer: When it's the 2009 Honda Fit. Appearances can be deceiving, and seldom more so than in the case of the 2009 Honda Fit.

ROCHELLE RILEY

All of us can honor a Detroit hero in firefighter Harris

At a time when Detroit is getting so beat up, we can -- and should -- bond together as a region, as a state, to honor someone who died saving a piece of it.

DREW SHARP

Statement game? Only time will tell

There are no NBA statement games in November. If there were, the Palace would've rocked from an electrical jolt. Instead, it was like hitting the snooze alarm so you could get another 15 minutes of sleep. Inevitably, you wake up. But your eyes still aren't fully opened.

MIKE WENDLAND | VIDEO REVIEW

BlackBerry Storm is strong iPhone rival

The sleek new BlackBerry Storm incorporates many of the Apple iPhone's revolutionary features but adds a distinctly BlackBerry style and some new tricks of its own.

TOM WALSH

Auto firms, UAW need to charm, not drone

Over and over, as I watched Rick Wagoner, Alan Mulally, Bob Nardelli and Ron Gettelfinger stumble and pause their way through two days of erratic questioning by U.S. Senate and House committees in Washington, D.C., I kept thinking the same thought. These guys don't get it.

SUSAN TOMPOR

Detroit 3 woes drive potholes into Wall Street

Wall Street hit yet another 400-point pothole Wednesday as investors questioned what happens next for the Detroit Three and just how deep and drawn out the U.S. recession could end up.

• More columns

MIKE THOMPSON'S BLOG

Big 3 aid outrage!

HELENE ST. JAMES' BLOG

Injuries keep Kronwall and Holmstrom from Oilers match

Update from Rexall Place, where the Wings are playing the Oilers: Neither Niklas Kronwall nor Tomas Holmstrom are in the lineup.

HELENE ST. JAMES' BLOG

In chilly Edmonton, Marian Hossa unlikely to get warm welcome

I remember a few seasons back when the Red Wings were here in Edmonton for the playoffs, and former Oilers defenseman Cory Cross got booed. So I’m betting fans will have a go tonight at Marian Hossa, who spurned the Oilers this summer and instead signed for less money with the Wings.

NICHOLE M. CHRISTIAN

This is not a puff post

But how about a big “way to go!” to the millions of people who set down their cigarettes today for the annual Great American Smokeout. It enabled them, and all of us, to breathe a little easier.

BARB ARRIGO

Dingell’s loss

I am enormously sad that Henry Waxman ousted John Dingell from chairmanship of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

JEFF GERRITT

Crime and the mayoral campaign

Politicians usually dodge criminal justice issues, except to mouth platitudes about getting tough on crime. They figure there’s nothing to gain — and a lot to lose — by talking about better ways to handle people with criminal convictions. So we keep doing what doesn’t work.

MATT HELMS

Dreading winter driving

Here they come, those great cold-weather roadway traditions of our great state: salt everywhere, and brackish slush, to boot.

TRAVEL DIVA

Flying on Turkey Day may be smooth

AAA says only 8% of Michiganders taking a Thanksgiving trip will fly.

BARB ARRIGO

Sticker shock in the cookie aisle

Back in the humdrum world of grocery shopping, pumping gas and wondering how high you can afford to set the thermostat, I guess we should all be pleased that the Consumer Price Index

HELENE ST. JAMES' BLOG

Darren McCarty clears waivers, again

Update from Edmonton: Red Wings forward Darren McCarty has survived 24 hours on the NHL waiver wire, again.

JEFF GERRITT

No New Taxes: A promise Macomb can't keep

Politicians love to promise it, even when they don’t keep their records. Remember “Read My Lips?”

• More blogs