????其實(shí)，投資者和媒體們應(yīng)該從另一個(gè)角度看待底特律申請(qǐng)破產(chǎn)保護(hù)。它并不是一場(chǎng)災(zāi)難——雖然底特律破產(chǎn)保護(hù)的結(jié)果如何最終還要經(jīng)歷一段漫長(zhǎng)的法律程序，但是最終它可能會(huì)變成一件好事，不僅對(duì)于苦難深重的底特律居民，甚至對(duì)于債務(wù)市場(chǎng)乃至對(duì)于整個(gè)美國(guó)都是一件好事。

????這是因?yàn)榈滋芈傻膯栴}要遠(yuǎn)比其它城市嚴(yán)重得多。導(dǎo)致底特律破產(chǎn)的核心原因其實(shí)是福利問題，只是很多人不愿相信這個(gè)另類的解釋。

????雖然最近的許多政府債務(wù)危機(jī)并不是由養(yǎng)老金和福利開支導(dǎo)致的，但是福利問題仍然是幾乎所有大城市接下來都要面對(duì)的問題。

????底特律的破產(chǎn)使退休工人們隨時(shí)擔(dān)憂自己的養(yǎng)老金將遭到災(zāi)難性的影響，而這也使一些面臨相同問題的城市在與工會(huì)談判時(shí)多了一個(gè)籌碼，可以迫使工會(huì)就養(yǎng)老金和醫(yī)療保建支出的問題上作出某種妥協(xié)。這可以避免很多城市重蹈底特律的覆轍，從而給美國(guó)高達(dá)3.7萬億美元的市政債券市場(chǎng)注入一些急需的信心。

????底特律財(cái)政吃緊的狀況已經(jīng)存在幾十年了，主要原因在于政府管理不善、犯罪率居高不下以及人口的日益萎縮。沒有哪個(gè)城市比這座汽車城更能反映出美國(guó)制造業(yè)江河日下，城市里隨處可見廢棄的停車場(chǎng)、關(guān)閉的學(xué)校和破爛不堪的基礎(chǔ)建筑。所以，上周這座城市申請(qǐng)破產(chǎn)保護(hù)的時(shí)候幾乎沒有人感到意外。

????人們難免會(huì)把底特律的破產(chǎn)保護(hù)與其他城市進(jìn)行對(duì)比，因?yàn)樽罱€有不少城市也出現(xiàn)了債務(wù)違約或申請(qǐng)了破產(chǎn)。但其實(shí)它們并沒有可比性。那些城市之所以被推到破產(chǎn)的邊緣主要是由于城建項(xiàng)目投資不善，或者是由于資產(chǎn)價(jià)值出現(xiàn)了重大變化，與底特律的破產(chǎn)都沒有可比性。

????比如賓州首府哈里斯堡今年之所以進(jìn)入破產(chǎn)管理程序，是因?yàn)檫@個(gè)城市投資建設(shè)了一個(gè)昂貴的垃圾焚燒廠項(xiàng)目，最終這個(gè)項(xiàng)目燒掉的錢要遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)多于它燒掉的垃圾，導(dǎo)致它無力償還相關(guān)債務(wù)。與此同時(shí)，阿拉巴馬州的伯明罕市由于興建了一個(gè)大型下水道工程，花掉了數(shù)十億美元而無力償債，只得也申請(qǐng)了破產(chǎn)保護(hù)。另外像加州的斯托克頓、蒙羅維亞、夫勒斯諾、猛犸湖等市鎮(zhèn)也出現(xiàn)了嚴(yán)重的財(cái)政問題。主要原因是由于資產(chǎn)價(jià)值的急劇下跌擊潰了市政預(yù)算的收益面。

????而底特律之所以陷入困境則是由于不同的原因所致。顯而易見，城市服務(wù)開支過多不是底特律破產(chǎn)的原因之一。畢竟在這個(gè)城市，人們?cè)趽艽驁?bào)警電話后，警察平均50分鐘內(nèi)才能趕到現(xiàn)場(chǎng)，幾乎是美國(guó)其他城市平均11分鐘的報(bào)警反應(yīng)時(shí)間的五倍。底特律40%的路燈不能正常工作，而且近五年有一半的公園都關(guān)了門。它的失業(yè)率也達(dá)到全美平均失業(yè)率的兩倍，只有7%的八年級(jí)學(xué)生擁有合格的閱讀能力。

????Detroit's recent bankruptcy filing should be looked at by both investors and the media in a different light. Far from being a disaster -- the outcome of which will inevitably be a very long trip through the court system -- it could end up being a net positive for not just the city's beleaguered residents, but for both the debt markets and the nation as a whole.

????That's because while the severity of the city's problems are far worse than in other municipalities, the core issues that have placed Detroit in front of a judge aren't as idiosyncratic as some would like to believe: entitlements. While entitlement spending and legacy costs aren't behind the recent spate of muni meltdowns, they are something that nearly all major cities will need to grapple with down the road.

????Detroit's bankruptcy and the potentially disastrous impact looming for its pensioners could serve as the bargaining chip cities facing similar issues need in order to force their unions to come to some sort of compromise regarding ruinous pension and health care payouts. This could prevent a number of cities from repeating Detroit's mistakes, which could inject some much needed confidence back into the $3.7 trillion municipal bond market.

????Detroit has been a fiscal basket case for decades, thanks to a toxic brew of bad governance, high crime, and a shrinking population. No other city best embodies the death of U.S. manufacturing than that of Motor City with its abandoned lots, shuttered schools, and rickety infrastructure. So when the city filed for bankruptcy protection last week, few were surprised.

????Detroit's bankruptcy filing has inevitably led to a flurry of comparisons with other municipalities, which have recently either defaulted on their debt or filed for bankruptcy. But such comparisons are off the mark. Those other cities and towns were pushed into insolvency mainly due to inept spending on city projects or because of drastic changes in property values, neither of which is behind Detroit's fall.

????For example, the city of Harrisburg, Pa., was put into state receivership this year after the city struggled to pay off debts associated with an expensive trash incinerator project that ended up burning up more cash than garbage. Meanwhile, Birmingham, Ala.'s bankruptcy filing came about mainly because of a massive new sewer project that flushed billions of dollars of city cash down the toilet. And then there are the flurry of California municipalities experiencing trouble, like Stockton, Monrovia, Fresno, Mammoth Lakes, and so forth. The main issue there is the sharp drop in property values, which has zapped the revenue side of the city budget.

????Detroit, however, is in hot water for different reasons. Indeed, of all of the city's problems, spending too much on city services isn't one of them. This is, after all, the city where the average police response time is 50 minutes, nearly five times longer than the 11 minute average in other U.S. cities. It is where 40% of its streetlights are inoperable and where in the last five years more than half of its parks have closed. Detroit has an unemployment rate more than twice the national average and only 7% of eighth graders are considered proficient in reading.