Social Media Petitions For Detroit RoboCop Statue

(CANVAS STAFF REPORTS) - Detroit needs RoboCop.

That was the premise of a 1987 movie in which RoboCop, a terminally wounded cop turned cyborg, protected a crime-ridden city. Now what started out as a tweet to Detroit Mayor Dave Bing has turned into a social media movement that suggests a statue of RoboCop is just what the city needs.

Bing, as reported by PopSci.com , originally got a Tweet saying that RoboCop would be a great Detroit mascot. Philadelphia has a Rocky Balboa statue, the text stated, and RoboCop would "kick Rocky's butt."

"There are not any plans to erect a statue to RoboCop," Bing replied. "Thank you for your suggestion."

Fans disagreed as a group of Detroit residents started a Facebook event page that grew to 4,600 supporters.

Imagination Station, a non-profit center that cleans up blighted neighborhoods, offered space on its campus for the statue. Supporters kicked off a campaign using the online fundraising platform Kickstarter .

"Part man, part machine, all crowd funded," the website DetroitNeedsRobocop.com states.

As of Sunday, the website reported that $16,524 or 33 percent of the group's $50,000 goal has been raised.

"That's the magic of the social network," Jerry Paffendorf, a cofounder of Imagination Station who launched the website, said to the Detroit Free Press . "With the amount of energy coming from the Internet, I don't think we'll have problems raising money."

Ironically the Free Press said the person who originally tweeted the idea now says he regrets writing it.

"I honestly never wanted to waste the mayor's time," he tweeted. "It was a joke."

While supporters are testing Detroit's love of RoboCop, another social media campaign is testing another sort of love.

A couple for the ages, Barbie dolls Barbie and Ken, looked to a new campaign pitched by toymaker Mattel to see if Barbie needs Ken after the duo called it quits in 2004.

The decision, announced on www.barbieandken.com on Valentine's Day, was to see Barbie and Ken together again.