Dressed in costumes ranging from oversized Franzia boxes to Dan Gilbert-themed Monopoly cards, some 4,000 revelers showed up in Midtown yesterday for the annual banishing of the Nain Rouge, an impish demon blamed for all of Detroit's misfortunes not already attributed to Kwame Kilpatrick. As a giant speaker looped a series of of throaty demon laughs and delightful Nain-isms ("I tore down Tiger Stadium! HA HA HA!"), the strange parade Marched to the Masonic Temple, where the Nain Rouge himself appeared in front of a giant "Mission Accomplished!" banner with a cold, bikini-clad woman to announce he was heading to a tropical vacation, meaning the parade's goal of banishing him was again successful. Organizers deserve admiration for coordinating such a large event, but most impressive is their ability to confront Detroit's endless misfortune with enough wit and absurdity to make a pretty good party.
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