Stockton avoids bankruptcy stigma for now

As we sit here, about a week from Stockton's bankruptcy trial, our civic ordeal has not carried quite the stigma that was anticipated by many. Including yours truly. That's not to say what happens in a Sacramento courtroom starting March 25 won't intensify the Stockton malaise ten-fold. But so far, the city has endured and battled and used a good deal of cogent strategy and forward thinking to lessen the impact of filing for bankruptcy. For that, City Manager Bob Deis, council members, city employees and even the general citizenry deserve a lot of credit. This "B" word could have buried the city. Instead, Stockton took the initial hit, surfed along the waves of uncertainty and outside scorn, and has emerged with a can-do, positive approach moving forward. Things could get tricky with the trial, which is expected to be completed in four or five days. Many of the city's creditors - who range in approach from cooperative to bloodthirsty - will line up to state their cases. The city must show U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Klein not only its fiscal situation, but also the plan to turn things around. Klein could have simply declared Stockton eligible for bankruptcy at a hearing late last month, but he made the proper decision to proceed with a compacted trial. Read the rest at http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130317/A_NEWS0801/303170311