Midpoint Locals - Best of the Best

For those looking for the best of Local Cincinnati Music at this year's Midpoint festival, here are my recommendations:

Straw Boss: Thursday 9:00 PM at Southgate House Lounge
The Seedy Seeds: Thursday 10:30 PM at Contemporary Arts Center
The Tillers: Thursday 11:30 PM at Madonna's Bar & Grill‎
The Lions Rampant: Friday 6:30 PM at Grammer's
Heartless Bastards: Friday 9:30 PM at Grammer's
The Chocolate Horse: Friday 11:00 PM at Havana Martini Club
The Kentucky Struts: Friday 12:00 AM at Arnold’s Bar and Grill
The Sundresses: Friday 12:00 AM at Blue Wisp Jazz Club
Pomegranates: Friday 12:00 AM at Know Theatre Upstairs
Eat Sugar: Saturday 6:30 PM at Grammer's
Jake Speed and the Freddies: Friday 8:30 PM at Washington Platform
You, You’re Awesome: Saturday 10:30 PM at Contemporary Arts Center
Wussy: Saturday 11:00 PM at Know Theatre Upstairs
Buffalo Killers: Saturday 12:00 AM at Southgate House Ballroom

Keeping Council Tweet-Backs To Myself

So, I was good. I wanted to reply to a council member's petty school kid tweet, but I didn't. I would have been mean and been snottier than this council member was to another council member. So I didn't Tweet-back. That would have been the cheap and easy way to respond. I am not keen on shooting fish in a barrel all the time, so I will pass. I will keep my fingernails out of it.

I do think that there is one current council member who should just stop tweeting her childish comments about her political foes, it demeans the profession. Ok, I do know politicians are only above lawyers on the social food chain. Would it matter any more if you knew this councilwoman was a lawyer too? I didn't think so.

If You Are Going to MidPoint

Midpoint is a tremendously fun event. That being said, you might want to plan out your weekend before jumping into it, unless you want to play musical roulette with your ear drums.

For the hardcore music fan, nothing will surpass your own judgment. You need to log onto www.mpmf.com and listen to all of the group’s MySpace pages yourself. Yes, this will take about two days, but nothing is too good for you.

Ok, so if you are not that much of a fanatic about your music and would like some help, well I’ve got some ideas for you. Before I get into some band names, you need to first identify how you want to attend the festival. There are several ways, but lets focus on the most affective methods. When thinking about this I’m going to assume you are getting a three day pass. There are no single day passes this year, so if you plan on going more than one day to more than one venue, you should cough up the $29 bucks for the three day pass. The three main types of fan are the following cleverly named categories:

1. The Floater

2. The Traveler

3. The Focused Planner

The Floater is out to see as much music as possible, and will float around and take chances on bands. The best preparation for a Floater is to plan out your time. Know what bands are playing when, and then catch half a set here, and half a set there. It is nice to have the freedom to hear a few songs of a band you’ve never heard of and if they suck or aren’t of your taste (to put it more pleasantly), then you can hit another band playing near by that you do know and can support. This is great way to see local bands you like and want to support, but weren’t your first option, since you’ll have more chances to see them.

The Traveler has set destinations and a schedule to keep. They have planned to see bands they know or like and worked out a firm plan on who they can see and where. This requires going hour by hour and using something akin to a sextant to map out a route from venue to venue, all while keeping to a time table. If you are smart you will maybe become friends with the Scion Taxis running around town, or maybe hire your own chauffeur if you plan on some trips over to Newport and back. This method is good when you are going to see local bands and only local bands.

The Focused Planner is a person who wants to go one place and stay there. A little boring, but if you are drinking or have a favorite bar, then can work best. This year’s festival is uniquely able to make this type of fan’s experience even better. With special events like the Lite Bright Film Test at the CAC, a fan can spend each night in one place and see a great variety of local and out of town acts, as well as see cool film. The same could be had at various venues where local promotions teams have cooked up cool ways to program certain venues each night. The All Night Party hosts a big night at the Blue Wisp on Friday, and Grammer’s hosts a big tent each night with some of the best known groups, like the Heartless Bastards. Some of these events even work to complement each other, where venues like Fountain Square, end early on Thursday night, allowing you to hit up a second location.

Other concerns: Food! No matter where you are, there are tons of late night food options: Arnold’s will have the full menu available until at least 2:30AM per the owner (Rhonda for those who know her). Other options are Cold Turkey & Shanghai Mama’s on 6^th, Lucy Blue on 12^th and 7^th Streets, and Gilpin’s also on 7^th Street.

OK, so now on to the good stuff, who to see….well, you are going to have to wait for my picks just a little while longer. Yeah, I suckered you in, but tough cookies, sweetheart!

Mynt Martini On The Square

Queen City Survey has the photographic evidence to support the news UrbanCincy reported way back in March. So if this Mynt Martini Twitter page is correct, the club will open this fall.

Vote No on Issue 9

Via UrbanCincy

Oktoberfest Political I Spy

I Spy a Drunk Westwood resident with both a Mallory and Wenstrup sticker on their ass!

That would be worth double points in the game I like to play when at Oktoberfest: What are most bizarre, interesting, or politically significant sights at Oktoberfest Zinzinnati?

This game is totally subjective, has no prizes, and at best if you send in a photo of what you see, I might (keep it clean) post it on the blog.

Mostly this is a way to see what political campaigns are out in force and which ones are absent. Good campaigns treat any festival as an opportunity to meet voters. This is the biggest festival of the campaign season, and the one that actually brings city residents who can vote, as opposed to Riverfest where teenagers make up a high portion of the attendees.

The things I am looking for are simple: candidate stickers, supporters wearing T-shirts, and the candidates themselves. There is no science to this, there is only subjective feeling about the health of a campaign.

Issue campaigns also should be there in strong numbers. I hope to see No on 9 supporters out in force! Those voting for Issue 9, I would think don't go to Oktoberfest or any other event anywhere.

If you happen to get into a discussion about the anti-passenger rail issue, the first question to ask the other person: do they live in the city. If they don't, well, I think you can take it from there.

I'll report in from the festival as best I can. I hope to not break Donald's Blogging While Intoxicated rule set for the blog, but I make no promises!

Good News for Tower Place Mall

The Enquirer reports that Tower Place Mall has attracted at least three new tenants: Elegant Attire; Eyebrows LLC; and Sushi at Tower Place. Right now, it looks like Tower Place's owner, Northeastern, is making good on promises to revitalize the beleagured downtown mall.

While I'm not sure I'll be in the market for evening-wear or an eyebrow wax anytime soon, I'm looking forward to a second option for sushi downtown.

POWR PAC Endorsements Are Out

The Westside political action committee has released their endorsements for the City.

For council:
Jeff Berding
Leslie Ghiz
Chris Monzel
Chris Bortz
Amy Murray
Bernadette Watson
George Zamary
Tony Fischer
Cecil Thomas

For Mayor:
Brad Wenstrup

A very mixed group. Funny part, I think maybe one person lives on the Westside?

Guest Post on CPS Superintendent Mary Ronan

Editor's Note: Here's a guest post to the Cincinnati Blog from regular reader Miles.

Give Back Cincinnati had a YP sounding session with Mary Ronan, the CPS Superintendent.

She did her rote presentation, with no changes for the YP crowd. That was disappointing, because it seems like the people CPS needs to attract are those who will otherwise move to the suburbs when they have kids. Instead, it was more of a justification for taxing Cincinnatians to pay for school.

She pointed out the great strides the district has taken since 2000, and the federal and state accolades it's received. She also made it seem like a completely reactionary district that hopes to assuage the Enquirer and its archconservative base.

She said that CPS was trying to rebrand and shed its negative image. When asked about LEED certification, she was defensive and apologetic about the financial investment. CPS is the greenest school district in America, in terms of the number of LEED buildings. Boy, that's an albatross!

She said she no longer saw a need for teachers' unions. I guess, after 30 years in one, Mary got hers, huh? She complained that they prevent her from moving teachers from school to school, without realizing that teachers' unions exists to keep the superintendent from treating them like commoditized capital.

She said she didn't believe in mandatory comprehensive sex ed while bemoaning the fact that there are so many children of poor young mothers in Cincinnati. Guess what? That 17-year old who's dropping out of Mt. Airy because she got pregnant? You're going to have to teach her kid in 5 years! If you want the 5-year olds to be better prepared, prepare your 17-year olds to not get pregnant!

I think she thought we were Republicans. I think she thinks Cincinnati is a Republican city, rather than one that votes 80% Democratic. She can be the superintendent at Colerain if she wants to pander to conservative Catholics.

I understand that I'm about as liberal as they get, but guess what? Liberals have kids too, and there are a lot more of us in your district. Hamilton County shouldn't concern her.

It's kind of sad, because I left the meeting thinking that if I want my hypothetical kid to have a liberal education, with diversity and tolerance instilled in those around her, I'll have to move to another district. After all, I'm not concerned with my kid being liberal; he'll be a DFH. I want to limit her exposure to bigotry and religious conservatism at school, and Mary Ronan doesn't seem prepared to attack those things as vociferously as other school districts do, even those with far more conservative constituents.

Lang Lang at the CSO

Tonight is a special night for the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Not only is it the 2009-2010 season opening, it includes a soloist who is the hottest draw in the classical music world: Lang Lang. He will dazzle his piano talents on Beethoven, here's a taste:

After the concert, you can hit the CSO's Afterburn party. Tickets for the concert are SOLD OUT, but the Afterburn party will have room in the Music Hall Ballroom. Tickets for the after party are $30.

Come out and support a Treasure of Cincinnati and a beacon to the world's arts community.

Covington Jim Returns to Blogging!

A big welcome back to the Covington Blog.

Riverfront Park to Have Early Bedtime

Sometimes, it seems that Cincinnati government functions a lot like the Bengals: even when it looks like things are going along pretty well, it manages to shoot itself in the foot. The City may have recently done this with respect to Riverfront Park.

At the September 2 City Council meeting this fairly innocuous-looking motion was on the agenda. Having originated in the Economic Development Committee, it sought to prevent any restrictions from being placed on the use of Riverfront Park (the city-owned and -operated park that will be part of the Banks) as a part of any deal with any developer handling projects on other Banks lots.

Because the September 2 meeting was another chapter in the budget soap opera, I watched the replay on Citicable. Admittedly, I wasn't paying much attention to other agenda items, but my interest became a little piqued when I noticed that Chris Bortz seemed unduly upset about something other than the budget. Thinking it'd be fun to watch Bortz pout, I turned the sound up and started listening. It turned out that this was not just Bortz crying over spilled milk. (Sorry...that was probably overly mean towards Bortz, who I think has acquitted himself well over the past month.)

It turns out that even though the Economic Development Committee had passed the no-restrictions motion back in June, the Parks Department had agreed to place restrictions on the hours during which amplified sound could be played at Riverfront Park. The agreement came in a covenant as part of an overall deal with one of the condo developers planning to build in the Banks. Every Councilmember who spoke on the issue was extremely upset about the contract, which had been signed by City representatives a few hours before the Council meeting. The agreement permits the covenant to be enforced by the condo owners association, which would presumably be formed once the condos are sold.

It never became clear during Council's meeting that day what the time restriction was. Eight at night? Bad idea. Two in the morning? Who cares? And since the last two weeks have been drowned out by budget hysteria, the traditional media haven't reported on this. But I've checked around, and it turns out that the agreement forbids amplified sound in the park after 11:00 at night.

It's an unfortunate agreement that may limit the park's use. On a day-to-day basis, of course, it's no big deal. Who's going to be at Riverfront Park on a Wednesday night in January after 11:00? But plans for the park are still very much evolving. When the park has been discussed here, some have suggested that Taste of Cincinnati (and other Fountain Square events) might move to Riverfront Park. But as it stands now, Taste goes until midnight each night, with live music on several stages. These restrictions would either prevent the move or force the event to end early. One can easily see other events (concerts, music festivals, perhaps even an extended Riverfest or Fourth of July party) for which Riverfront Park will now be a much less attractive venue.

It's not clear why the Parks Department--rather than the City Manager--was in control of these negotiations. It's not clear why the no-restrictions motion wasn't on Council's agenda until after it was too late to matter. And it's not clear how the Parks Department missed the clear direction from the Council Committee. Hopefully, this is an item that can yet be addressed. But as it stands now, it's a step (or at least a half step) backwards for the Banks project.

Vote for Best Chicken Dance!!!!

It is Oktoberfest Zinzinnati week and beer and brats are a mere 5 days away but you can start of the festivities early by voting for the best Chicken Dance video until Wednesday.

Good Eats: Cold Turkey

Yesterday, I ate for the first time at Cold Turkey. It's on Sixth Street in the space formerly occupied by Frisch's. And it won't be the last time I eat there. The menu is really straightforward (intentionally so): seven-dollar sandwiches and salads; four-dollar soups, and two-dollar sides. I know some will think seven bucks is too much for a sandwich, but try one and then ask yourself: is this worth two dollars more than a foot-long from Subway? The answer is yes, yes, yes, oh-my-gosh yes.

I had their ultimate grilled cheese sandwich. Three kinds of cheese, molasses-cured bacon, lettuce, and tomato--though I had it without the tomato. The molasses-cured bacon? Amazing. They should use it on all of their sandwiches. Or maybe they should use it instead of bread. Or just bring me a big plate of the bacon.

My friend had a different sandwich (I forgot which, but it also came with the bacon, and he concurred in my assessment of its porkiliciousness). He also had a bowl of their turkey noodle soup, which he said was quite good. And the sandwiches came with cajun pretzels, which packed just the right amount of heat.

The restaurant's atmosphere is perfect. To an extent, I think it's filling a void left by the departure of Kaldi's. The walls are filled with the works of local artists, and they (the art) are all for sale. There's also live acoustic music. While we were there, a pianist was performing (I'd assumed it was a recording until we reached the back of the restaurant and saw the piano). The pianist was CCM grad Della Enns, and her performance was quite wonderful.

The service was great, although--apparently to prove that I'm not just getting old, but curmudgeonly as well--I wondered aloud to my friend whether our server's employment was in compliance with child labor laws. (It was a joke--she was wonderful: she knew the menu, was attentive but not overly so, and was very friendly.)

And Cold Turkey's hours are also great: on Friday and Saturday nights, they're open until 6 am (which I believe makes them officially the kitchen open latest downtown). It's too bad I didn't know that a couple weekends ago, or I would have insisted on a pilgrimage following the Cincinnati Imports Debauchery Happy Hour. With a restaurant serving food that good open that late, local Waffle Houses may go out of business.

Next time I'm there, someone remind me to try the brownie. Those looked good, too.

Berding Loses Dem Endorsement

It was nearly a foregone conclusion, but the Cincinnati Dems dropped the hammer on Councilmember Jeff Berding today and revoked their endorsement. Berding knew it was coming and he should not be surprised that when you launch a big attack against your party's fellow elected officials and you use negative scare tactics in support of a police union that takes stances regularly inconsistent with your party, someone is going to be pissed off. The question remains, will this hurt him enough to lose? At this point I am sure people will spin it like mad, but this may be an election where we learn a little about party affiliation, the power of the Enquirer endorsements, and how do conservatives actually vote in city election (or how many of them are actually left?).

Tony Fisher, on the other hand, I hope has seen the light and understands that if you want to have a long term political future, you don't diss your party during your first election for public office. You have to earn maverick status, you don't just decide you are to be one as a campaign tactic.

Remembering September 11, 2001 - What Shall The Dead Tell Us The Living?

LEAP

By Brian Doyle

A couple leaped from the south tower, hand in hand. They reached for each other and their hands met and they jumped.

Jennifer Brickhouse saw them falling, hand in hand.

Many people jumped. Perhaps hundreds. No one knows. They struck the pavement with such force that there was a pink mist in the air.

The mayor reported the mist.

A kindergarten boy who saw people falling in flames told his teacher that the birds were on fire. She ran with him on her shoulders out of the ashes.

Tiffany Keeling saw fireballs falling that she later realized were people. Jennifer Griffin saw people falling and wept as she told the story. Niko Winstral saw people free-falling backwards with their hands out, like they were parachuting. Joe Duncan on his roof on Duane Street looked up and saw people jumping. Henry Weintraub saw people "leaping as they flew out." John Carson saw six people fall, "falling over themselves, falling, they were somersaulting." Steve Miller saw people jumping from a thousand feet in the air. Kirk Kjeldsen saw people flailing on the way down, people lining up and jumping, "too many people falling." Jane Tedder saw people leaping and the sight haunts her at night. Steve Tamas counted fourteen people jumping and then he stopped counting. Stuart DeHann saw one woman's dress billowing as she fell, and he saw a shirtless man falling end over end, and he too saw the couple leaping hand in hand.

Several pedestrians were killed by people falling from the sky. A fireman was killed by a body falling from the sky.

But he reached for her hand and she reached for his hand and they leaped out the window holding hands.

I try to whisper prayers for the sudden dead and the harrowed families of the dead and the screaming souls of the murderers but I keep coming back to his hand and her hand nestled in each other with such extraordinary ordinary succinct ancient naked stunning perfect simple ferocious love.

Their hands reaching and joining are the most powerful prayer I can imagine, the most eloquent, the most graceful. It is everything that we are capable of against horror and loss and death. It is what makes me believe that we are not craven fools and charlatans to believe in God, to believe that human beings have greatness and holiness within them like seeds that open only under great fires, to believe that some unimaginable essence of who we are persists past the dissolution of what we were, to believe against such evil hourly evidence that love is why we are here.

No one knows who they were: husband and wife, lovers, dear friends, colleagues, strangers thrown together at the window there at the lip of hell. Maybe they didn't even reach for each other consciously, maybe it was instinctive, a reflex, as they both decided at the same time to take two running steps and jump out the shattered window, but they did reach for each other, and they held on tight, and leaped, and fell endlessly into the smoking canyon, at two hundred miles an hour, falling so far and so fast that they would have blacked out before they hit the pavement near Liberty Street so hard that there was a pink mist in the air.

Jennifer Brickhouse saw them holding hands, and Stuart DeHann saw them holding hands, and I hold onto that.

See the Ballet's New Works

Cincinnati Ballet's season opener, New Works, is a great introduction to Ballet for the arts fan who wants to explore an art form new to them. Last night's opening was an extra special event with live music from world class musicians all from Cincinnati. Three of the dance pieces premiered with live accompaniment from the song writers, which included Over the Rhine, Peter Adams, and Jake Speed & the Freddies.

Heather Britt's piece set to the new music from Peter Adams (Bad Vein-esque) and Joy Jovet's brilliant interpretation of Jake Speed's music were my favorites of the evening, along with the stunning mix of music, photography, and dance in "Retrospect" by choreographers Missy Lay Zimmer & Andrew Hubbard set to the haunting and bountiful voice of Karin Bergquist (from Over the Rhine)

The remaining performances will be to recorded music, which is too bad, because the use of live music with the dances added so much to the performances. It was a collaboration that I believe is something that is critical to dance, and art form I will admit I've only experienced a few times.

The next performance is 8PM tonight at the Ballet's Studio (1555 Central Parkway, Cincinnati, OH 45214) and the show runs through next weekend, with final show on Sunday afternoon September 20th.

FOP Approves Deal

Via Multiple Twitter posts it is being reported that the Cincinnati FOP membership has approved the concessions plan, meaning no police will be laid off. A very good move by the FOP. The vote was 565-433.

Fire Him

Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice shame on the City. This is a repeat offender, his discipline is clear. If you have been fired from your job as a police officer once for excessive use of force and get your job back via poorly created arbitration rules, then you use excessive force again, I don't think there is any question that you should be fired, again. Let's just hope this time it sticks.

FOP Voting?

I believe it was reported that the unions, FOP and CODE, were meeting to vote yesterday and today on the city's plan to save jobs through furloughs. I have not seen any news on how the voting is going. Anyone know when the results will be announced?


UPDATE: Expect some results tomorrow.

The Seedy Seeds in the News

A great review for local band The Seedy Seeds. If you've not had the chance to seem them live, do so! They play the CAC during MidPoint.


For more: www.theseedyseeds.com

Berding Dissed?

Rumors are flying around and credible reports are out there all which indicate that the Union endorsement Berding received for Cincinnati City Council has been or will be rescinded, and Laure Quinlivan shall take his place on their slate.

Based on the poll information included in the Osborne article, Berding is low on the list and still needs the support of Democrats. Does this make him vulnerable?

UPDATE: A source has indicated Berding is being unindorsed because he sided with Melanie Bates against the IBEW contract w/ CPS.

Does Jean Schmidt Agree?

In this You-Tube video from the Tea Bagger Rally on Saturday at the VOA, Congresswoman Jean Schmidt from the Ohio 2nd appears to agree with a "Birther" claiming that President Obama was not born in the USA, and not eligible to be President.
It is not 100% conclusive what she is doing, but Think Progress reports this is not the first time she's what I might call placated a "Birther." If she's just telling this crazy person what they want to hear, just to shut them up, I can understand the idea behind that, but it is not a good one. If a person is nuts or so emotionally out of control as to not be able to think clearly, having a congressman validate their delusions just makes their condition worse. If that is what Schmidt is doing, then she should be ashamed. If she actually does agree with the "Birthers," then she is mentally deficient.

The Return of Neon's

Kevin LeMaster has a really good story about efforts to reopen Neon's in the Main Street area. One of the coolest looking bars around, Neon's was a sad place to see close. The concept behind the new place sounds very reasonable. It doesn't look to be a hot club, it seeks to be a neighborhood bar that has a unique take on what a bar is. It seems to be more like a space that sells beer and wine. It will take a while to get the place open again, they are shooting for next Bockfest, so don't rush over to the 12th Street location just yet.

Disparate Treatment?

Two days before the 2004 general election, President George W. Bush came to Cincinnati and held a campaign rally at Great American Ballpark. His address to the crowd was carried live in primetime by all of Cincinnati's local news channels, preempting network programming. The event was nothing short of a free infomercial in the heart of a "battleground" state just before Election Day.

Today, President Barack Obama came to Cincinnati and addressed a crowd at Coney Island. Given that even the mid-term elections are over a year a way, it's hard to describe the speech as a campaign event. Instead, it was a presidential address, delivered on a national holiday in Cincinnati. This time, though, only channel 19 carried the speech live. Other channels decided that Montel outranks the president, and declined to break into their weekday programming.

It's just despicable how "in the bag" for Obama the media is, isn't it?

Lactating Women Need Not Apply

Jill's comment a few posts below reminds me that I'd intended to discuss the Ohio Supreme Court's appalling decision in Allen v. totes/Isotoner. (By the way, if you're not reading Jill's blog, you should be--although she's on hiatus until after Election Day, as she's busy running for Pepper Pike City Council.) In its opinion, of which no member of our highest court was willing to claim authorship, a three-member plurality found that an employer could lawfully fire a lactating mother because she took extra bathroom breaks in order to pump her breasts. Two members of the court went a step further, writing that post-pregnancy lactation isn't really related to pregnancy, and thus not covered under Ohio's Pregnancy Discrimination Act.

The decision is now two weeks old, so I'm not sure my own discussion would advance much debate. So instead, go read Jill's excellent posts (here and here) on the decision. I'll just add this: each time we insist that a judicial candidate prove his or her allegiance to "pro-business" interest groups, we demand opinions like the one our court handed us in toner/Isotoner. This is the quintessential "pro-business" opinion, in that it expands an employer's power to fire an employee at the expense of Ohioans' civil rights. It's a stark reminder that "pro-business" isn't always good for Ohio. (To be clear: I'm not implying that any of our Supreme Court justices are inherently biased or unfair to litigants. But when we're willing to accept only a narrow range of credentials for our successful candidates, we wind up with a narrow range of viewpoints on our courts.)

Union Concession Issue Isn't Straightforward

Things on Plum Street have gotten uglier, and they're not going to get better as the campaign season really heats up. But somehow, Council has to begin to work together once again. In all likelihood, 8 of the 9 current members will be responsible for next year's budget. They need to find a way to have a budget process that isn't as driven by rancor as has been present in Council chambers over the past three months. Part of doing that requires that Council actually discuss, in open session, the issues impacting the City.

There's plenty of blame to heap on both the majority and the minority on Council as to how we've gotten to where we are: a last minute hail mary effort to save jobs for the rest of the year. No matter how we got there, the FOP, AFSCME, and CODE now face a difficult dilemna. Do they give up money (for the FOP, a little more than a day's pay each month for the rest of the year) to save jobs this year, but with no promises for 2010?

The FOP is certainly not the first union being asked to make concessions in this economy. A friend who works in the aviation industry recently reminded me of the deep, deep concessions Comair pilots have made over the last few years in order to preserve jobs. But usually, when a union gives up something it bargained for, it does so with some assurance of medium- or long-term job preservation. Here, the City has made explicit that there are no guarantees for next year. And I wonder: if a school board were threatening to fire ten percent of its teachers if the union didn't agree to a pay cut of roughly 4-5 percent for four months, would we on the left be demonizing the teachers' union for its reluctance to agree to the extent the left is demonizing the FOP? I doubt it.

I had hoped Council would find some cuts to fill the gaps in the 2009 budget, and then go to the unions for concessions--perhaps much more significant than those currently sought--as part of the 2010 budget process, as the unions would then have some assurance of lengthier job security. That didn't happen. So the FOP will have to decide how much value it places on its newest members. No doubt some members would benefit financially from the concessions. I haven't run the numbers, but I suspect that some of the sergeants being displaced to patrol by the layoffs would lose less money by giving up 4.6 days' pay than they would by accepting a lesser-paying position. And hopefully, the FOP, AFSCME, and CODE can set aside the bitter taste the process has left and recognize that Council has, in the end, significantly reduced the concessions originally sought and found money elsewhere for the unions' members' salaries.

As Council approaches the 2010 budget process, its individual members will have to strive to be more understanding and more cooperative. In particular, a couple members of Council can--and must--do better than they have the last few months. Chris Monzel's fear-mongering (and perhaps race-baiting) press release early this week was regrettable; using the injury and death of citizens to advance a political agenda is simply unacceptable. And Greg Harris's role on Council has been surprisingly disappointing. When he was appointed, most young professionals were excited. We saw him as a problem-solver, someone who, having come from outside the political establishment, would be a leader on Council and above politics-as-usual. Right now, sadly, he acting as a recalcitrant hard-liner more devoted to party than principle. That may be a way to raise campaign money, but it's not any way to govern a city.

Once the ballots are counted in November for City Council, let's all promise to do all we can to force the seemingly broken Council to come together to work for the common good.

Courthouse Plaza Solution

Over the last month, we've been hearing about the increased number of homeless people sleeping out on the courthouse steps, and the mess that this is creating because some of them urinate on the plaza overnight.

Introducing: the pop-up urinal. Believe it or not, the "urilift" is a device (now deployed by a few European cities) that rest in the ground during the day, but pop up at night for those who can't find a public restroom.

Yes, of course I realize that neither the County nor the City has the money to spend on these right now. (Perhaps, though, the Urilift Company might like to donate one or two in order start attracting business from American cities.)

Initially, I was concerned that installation of these would pose an equal protection issue (can the County supply a restroom facility for men but not women?). Apparently, though, Urilift has resolved this problem by introducing the Urigienic:

I call upon Urilift to supply the County or the City with a couple of these devices at no cost in exchange for testimonials from our public officials to other American cities. It could be a great partnership!

Important Ohio Criminal Justice Bill

As this article by Sharon Coolidge explains, an important bill has passed the Ohio Senate, has the support of Governor Strickland, and is now pending before the House. The proposed law, S.B. 77, contains several important reforms for Ohio's criminal justice system. The article focuses on a provision that raises the ire of some of my colleagues, which mandates DNA samples to be taken from all people arrested for a felony. Currently, Ohio law permits DNA collection only upon conviction of a felony. Federal law already requires this for those arrested for federal offenses, but requires the DNA sample to be destroyed if a conviction is not obtained. I've not heard a good answer as to how the Ohio bill handles an acquittal. (Even if the specimen itself is destroyed, the record of it could remain in CODIS, the national DNA database, without a procedure in place to retract it.)

For me, though, there are three other, much more important provisions of the bill (mentioned in the article, but not given enough attention). These would require:

• that all police interrogations be recorded from beginning to end;
• that DNA evidence in violent crimes be preserved even after conviction and that more convicted persons have access to DNA testing; and
• that when line-ups are performed, they are done in a "double-blind" manner, in which the police officer who conducts the lineup does not know who the suspect is.

The interrogation provision is the one that faces the strongest opposition by police and prosecutors' associations. But ultimately, it will prove beneficial to law enforcement. About a year ago on a trip to Chicago, I met a Chicago homicide detective. His department had recently begun taping all suspect interviews, and he explained that it was making his job easier, not harder. He no longer had to worry about a defense attorney insinuating that a confession was coerced or obtained in violation of a suspect's rights. Motions to suppress (a procedural device to prevent the use of an illegally obtained confession) were much less likely to succeed. The tapes proved what police have always contended, the detective said: in the vast majority of cases, the police do things correctly and legally. (I tended to agree with the detective on this.) For more on this topic, check out this report, Police Experiences with Recording Custodial Interrogations.

The identification procedures mandated by the bill are also quite important. Over the last several years, a significant body of scientific literature has arisen regarding the inherent unreliability of eyewitness testimony. The double-blind procedure will help to ensure that line-ups are done in a manner that ensures the greatest possible degree of accuracy.

Republican State Senator Bill Seitz (of Green Township) has been a prominent supporter (and sponsor) of the legislation. On many issues, I often find disagreement with Senator Seitz. But--particularly over the last year--he had an extremely thoughtful voice on criminal justice issues and has been an important leader for crucial reforms in that area.

Riverfest Etiquette

Had I not gone to law school, I likely would have pursued a Ph.D. in sociology (or perhaps in economics, which over the last ten years seems to have expanded to areas that were previously thought to belong to sociology). And if I had pursued that alternate path, I'd likely do some writing on the fascinating issue of space reservation for Riverfest fireworks watching.

The fireworks aren't set to begin until Sunday evening, but since early this morning, people have been staking out their spots along the Serpentine Wall, as well as on the grass atop the Newport levee. As you can see from the pictures, people simply put down tarps (usually secured by duct tape) and leave. The people who leave their tarps make no effort to guard their spot or stay with their claimed space, but instead seem to just trust that they can return tomorrow to watch the fireworks.

This situation presents a departure from the rules governing any other situation I know of in which people wait for a particular event. For instance, when people want to buy tickets to a sporting event or concert, they can't merely show up in line, claim a number, and leave until a few minutes before the ticket window opens. (Yes, I realize that the internet has drastically reduced the camp-out-overnight-for-tickets phenomenon.) People hoping to cash in on limited-supply sales events on "Black Friday" (the day after Thanksgiving) have to physically hold their spot. Golfers hoping to play the famous Bethpage Black course without a reservation subject themselves to a complex set of rules as they wait one or more nights in the course parking lot. And a few years ago when I watched the fireworks from the observation deck of the Empire State Building on the Fourth of July (truly a fabulous experience), we had to stand in our spaces for over five hours; we didn't dare to even take a bathroom break for fear that our group would be forever separated.

So I'm curious: how has the Riverfest tradition developed? Why is it so polite--and, frankly, so easy? What prevents an unscrupulous (or perhaps just eager) fireworks watcher from removing someone else's unguarded tarp and claiming a spot of earth for themselves?

Enjoy the fireworks, everybody. And if you're going to drink down there, have a designated driver or catch a cab.

Miami (OH) vs. Kentucky

About an hour from now, Miami will take on Kentucky at Paul Brown Stadium. There's a good chance that those who attend the game will see the highest quality football to be played at PBS over the next three months. While I'm not going, as a UC fan, I've been trying to figure out who I'd prefer to win.

My inclination is to cheer for Miami. We should support our fellow Ohio schools when possible, right? And perhaps if Miami's season starts strong, UC's BCS standings will be boosted when they trounce the Redhawks on October 3rd. But, still, it's Miami! J. Crew U. Can I really root for that?

On the other hand, certainly I'm not the only downtown resident to be offended by the putrid shade of blue that's invaded our streets over the last couple of days. And Kentucky is an SEC team; no self-respecting Ohioan should cheer on a team from that conference.

I think I'm going to review the rules of the game: is there any way that both teams can lose?

WOW! That Sums It Up

A Christian Moerlein Microbrewery and beer garden at The Banks is a brilliant idea and provides two great elements: something unique and vibrant as well as something the suburbanites will flock to before and after Reds games. I wonder how many of them will know the history of the name and understand it is local? This is a place I will enjoy and I am really congratulate the City and Moerlein CEO Greg Hardman for coming up with a great idea.

Today We Settle All Family Business

Today there will be three council meetings and a deal is close with City Unions. Assuming we get the legal ruling on the Layoffs as well, everything could come together by the end of the day, except for the unions getting formal approval of any concessions.

This is the day to stay out of the way. I would not want to be Ghiz, Berding, or Monzel today. I think the GodfatherMayor may have a few questions for them before he sends them off to Las Vegas with Clemenza.

It is fun when life imitates art.

Local Blogger Exposed By John Matarese!

Well, not really. But I'm pretty sure I saw Kate the Great on the news last night. Matarese did a piece on how the United Way uses donations. (It's a very favorable piece, without even a hint of a scandal; Matarese must be losing his touch.) Katy was United Way's spokesperson for the story.

The WCPO story is online here. And if you've got a few extra bucks, make a donation. (Maybe they'll give Katy a raise!)

City Reportedly Close to Deal With Unions

The Enquirer is reporting that the City, read that as the City Manager, is close to a deal with Unions to avoid all layoffs. The bulk of the shortfall would come from consessions from the unions. In the story I got the impression this was news to the FOP President. I hope she is just playing ignorant and this ends up being all for not.

UPDATE: 700 WLW reported that the deal would include furloughs.

Will Someone Blink?

Layoffs at the city are looming and the details of the impacts are starting to be made more clear. Are we going to see the FOP or anyone on council come up concessions or with a new plan to avoid layoffs? Will one of the parties in play make choices they don't want to make? Will someone blink? Will this remain a big issue two months from now when voters go tot he polls?

In Memoriam: Erich Kunzel

The Enquirer's Janelle Garland has an excellent obituary for Erich Kunzel, a mainstay of the Cincinnati music scene for decades. I'll not add anything, except to say that I'm extremely grateful that I was able to attend a couple of performances of the Pops under his baton.

I'll leave the comment thread for folks to share their thoughts on this sad day.

Wal-Mart Supercenter To Open Soon

A little non-CBD news for those of you who think we're too downtown-centric on the blog.

Wal-Mart is set to open its Supercenter in Red Bank Village (on Red Bank Road in Fairfax) on October 28. According to news reports at the time Wal-mart announced the new store, it should have about 200,000 square feet of retail space. At about the same time, the company will close its "general merchandise" store on Highland near Ridge.

For those of you wondering about the employment impact of the new store: the employees and management of the Highland store will transfer to the new supercenter. Wal-Mart will also hire additional associates, though I've not heard how many or when applications will be accepted. My own experience with Wal-Mart (now almost a decade in the past) is that about 50 new associates will be needed, and hiring will be about 30-45 days prior to grand opening. If the company still operates as it did in the past, associates in surrounding stores will be given the opportunity to transfer to the new store (and some from nearby supercenters may be assigned there temporarily to help with grand opening). So in addition to the possibility of positions available in the Red Bank Village store, there may also be a few jobs open at nearby Wal-marts, too.

Yes, folks, I do shop at Wal-mart. Not often, and only for certain things (four-dollar prescriptions come to mind), but I do shop there. And I'm not apologizing.

For what it's worth, I'll give a shout-out to the Highland Avenue store. Five or six years ago, you couldn't have paid me to walk into that store and shop. It usually felt dirty and its in-stock position was terrible (in other words, there were often a lot of items that were out-of-stock on any given day). The last couple years, though, the store has really turned around (at least in my opinion). The store is usually clean and I don't have trouble finding what I'm looking for; the associates all generally seem to be in better spirits than in the past. My guess is the store has benefitted from a new management team. Wait times at the check-outs during peak hours remain a problem, but that seems to be a chain-wide problem the company is willing to live with(I'm not sure the company even pays lip service to the notion of "speedy checkout" anymore.)

So look for the new store, and a few new employment opportunities in the next couple months.

Support Passenger Rail at City Hall September 1st

Come out and support Passenger Rail Transportation 10AM September 1st at City Hall when the City will determine the language of the ballot initiative seeking to prevent any passenger rail in Cincinnati. COAST, the author of the ballot language purposely wrote a deceptive amendment in hopes of fooling people into thinking their effort is only about Streetcars. The goal of COAST is to prevent any passenger rail from being funding in Cincinnati. Say no to COAST and their anti-city movement.

Reminder: CEAs For Theatre Tonight @ Below Zero

Just a quick reminder that CityBeat's Cincinnati Entertainment Awards for Theatre take place to night at Below Zero(1122 Walnut Street) and start at 7pm sharp, with a mixer starting at 6pm. Come down and support local theatre!

New Rule: No BWI.

Things not to do on a Friday night (technically, I suppose, Saturday morning): post to the blog after having far too many screwdrivers. It can lead to writing inappropriate words that one wouldn't use with any ability to engage in forethought.

My apologies to anyone who was offended by last night's post.

But you really should start coming to the Cincinnati Imports events.

BWI (Blogging While Intoxicated)

Anyone who wasn't at Cincinnati Imports' pub crawl earlier tonight is a pussy asshole loser.

Best kept secret about these things: it's the best male:female ratio (from a male perspective) of any gathering in Cincinnati. This is no sausage fest.

Lincoln-Douglas? Nay

WCPO will televise a mayoral debate on October 13th at 8 p.m. I'm not expecting a Lincoln-Douglas quality debate. I think Mayor Mallory is a very capable orator and knows the issues like few others. The challenger, Brad Wenstrup is NOT known for his grasp of city issues, so I don't expect much more than a George W. Bush style performance from him. Yes, that lowers the bar for Wenstrup. I think he'll be swinging for the fence to try and make some impact on the Mayor's huge advantage. He shall strike out.

I know it was you Fredo. You broke my heart.

After learning about recent events in Democratic circles, there is some clear advice for one council candidate. If Tony Fischer is going to go fishing with his nephew and his nephew is suddenly not able to go fishing for some unknown last minute reason, then under no circumstances should Tony go out on a small boat in Lake Tahoe alone with Al Neri.

Delay School Funding For Cops?

In a new tact some council members are proposing to defer payment of 2.5 million dollars the Cincinnati Public Schools due in October. That would buy some time. I assume the four members of council reportedly pushing this newest idea beleive that if we save 2.5 million dollars, that they CPD is the most important group to retain. They are the most vocal about it, that is for sure, but not all of the jobs affected are more important than keeping more Health inspectors. I'd like to not get sick the next time I eat out.

I like where Council Member Greg Harris is going on this issue. He reportedly is inclined to support the idea of deferring payment to CPS, but he wants the FOP to step up to the plate and make concessions for 2010. We will be having the same fight next year if the FOP doesn't. The FOP president is quoted in the article as basically saying no, cut someplace else. I still do not get how the FOP can be so hypocritical and plain old greedy. Sure some would say it is their job to fight for their members and they need to have a strong negotiating position. Well, sure, but how can anyone in good conscious claim they are moral and doing the right thing for the safety of the city if they willingly take a pay RAISE while other police officers and other vital city employees loose their jobs? We are not talking about pay cuts, just a pay freeze. If there are other departments in the city not taking a pay freeze, slap one on them for 2010. If people are serious about public safety being compromised, then they should be taking these steps, the FOP should not be playing chicken with public safety. If people (like Jeff Berding and Leslie Ghiz) are not being serious about the impact of the reduction of police officers and are doing this to appease the FOP and appear (falsely) to be fighting crime, then they should be ashamed of themselves and be honest about it. Yeah, I know, that is a pipe dream.

Deferring the payment to the CPS is a short term fix. It can buy us some time. It does not solve the problem for 2010. The FOP must step up with concessions or agree that the CPD doesn't actually need the number of police officers it has.

RIP Ted Kennedy: 1932-2009

The Lion of the Senate has passed. His shoes shall never be filled.

Now Deters Is Fear Mongering

I am not surprised by County Prosecutor Joe Deters scare tactics. When you are trying to save your budget, you will say anything to panic the people into supporting you. Si Leis, Jeff Berding, and George Bush are the others who do it often.

Details Take Days?

Why is it taking Jeff Berding a couple of days to produce details about his new 'plan'? If you have a plan, you should have the details down. If you don't have the details down, you don't have a plan. Jeff actually have a plan if he spent his time working on the details instead of going on WLW and trying to put fear into the public, as he did yesterday where he claimed the population of the city would drop because the city laid off 138 people in the police department. We don't need grandstanding. We need leadership. A leader exposes the FOP unwillingness to make concessions to save jobs. A leader isn't a shill for the police union and goes out and cuts jobs in other department to preserve the raises of cops.

Hamilton FOP Steps up

I still don't know how much the Cincinnati FOP leadership pays attention to anything outside their Central Avenue clubhouse, but it would be good if they read this. The Hamilton FOP agreed to concessions:

While the city eyed cuts of more than $4.5 million to balance the general fund, concessions made by both unions saved the city more than $3 million in expenditures for this year and in 2010.

The other union mentioned was the Fire Fighters.

The power is the FOP hands. They can save every police officer's job with concessions. I don't get why they are not willing to protect their FOP brothers and sisters from getting laid off. I am hoping when they lose in court, they will come to their senses.

Police Chief States Excessive Force Used

The video is here on Cincinnati.com and it is clear enough to put the cop on suspension until a full investigation can be made.

The Enquirer has a good summary here, including the past of the officer under suspension, who was actually fired and then the city was forced to rehire after arbitration. This police officer needs to think about his career choice. He can avoid problems for himself and save another police officer's job if he quits.

Relevant? No.

When an adult child of a sitting council member is arrested by police and is tased in the process, I hesitate to post anything about it. This councilmember, Cecil Thomas, is a retired police , so that adds some level of interest to the story. A clear conclusion everyone must reach is that this has no bearing on the election. If she was a minor and living with her father, this might be more of a relevant story to his character. At this point, this story is really only about the character of Celeste Thomas, age 26, someone who happens to be the daughter of a politician. The police cruiser’s video camera will hopefully shed light on what actually happened. Until then, lets hope this doesn't become an a circus. After that, lets hope it still doesn't become a circus, but let the facts fall where they may.

UPDATE: Reportedly, after seeing the cruiser video, the Police Chief has suspended the officer who tased Thomas, on grounds that excessive forced was used.

Jason Bruffy Leaving the Know Theatre

Unexpected news from Rick Pender, Jason Bruffy, Artistic Director of the Know Theatre is leaving for Utah and a job with the Salt Lake Acting Company in September. I was a bit surprised by this news, but it sounds like a great opportunity for him. I hope to see him back in town on occasion, maybe bringing a show to Fringe?

According to Rick the Know is throwing a Farewell happy hour on September 3rd at 7PM.

CincyPAC Final Endorsements

The membership of CincyPAC have voted and the final slate of endorsed candidates are:

Mayor:
Mark Mallory

City Council:
Amy Murray
Chris Bortz
George Zamary
Greg Harris
Jeff Berding
Laure Quinlivan
Leslie Ghiz
Roxanne Qualls
Tony Fischer

So in the council race there are 3 Republicans, 2 Charterites, 4 Democrats.
5 incumbents and 4 challengers.
4 Women and 5 Men.

I have many thoughts on this slate, but I am heading down to the CincyPAC event today so I hope to learn more about the voting process and why people picked these candidates. I have a full report forthcoming.

Pro-Lawyer Charter Amendment

When councilmembers are grandstanding for the purpose of gaining attention, they often come with a shortsighted idea that they don't vet its effect in the long run. Leslie Ghiz is trying to get Cincinnati city council to approve a motion to put a charter amendment on the ballot in November that would reduce Cincinnati Council members salaries more than 50%.

So Ghiz is trying to scrimp and save a few more jobs, instead of pressuring the FOP for real concessions that will save all of the 138 jobs, OK, fine. She lacks the courage to stand up to the FOP. Fine, I get that, this is something Republicans generally do in this town (or rather don't do.)

Did she stop and think about who will be able run for council to do this so called "part-time" job in the future? Lawyers like her. That's about it. Who else but a person who does not need to work will be able to find a full time job that would allow them time to take off every Wednesday afternoon, not to mention time off for committee meetings or to do anything else? Well, lawyers like her can, and the wealthy can. So under Ghiz's plan we would all but insure that anyone going forward who is going to run for council will not be an average middle class person, because no one without wealth can sacrifice their livelihood to live on 27,000 a year, along with the headache and expense that comes with being a member of council. This means we would have a council who represent the upper-class or at best the upper-middle-class, looking to make it really big. I think it is in everyone's interest that we don't take steps toward making city council into a House of Lords.

I think instead of this type of shortsighted grandstanding, Leslie Ghiz should just give half of her own salary back to the city and then see can feel good about herself, use it as a campaign issue, but not limit the ability of the average citizen from being a council member and earning a fair salary to do a difficult and often thankless job.

19 Council Candidates Turn in Signatures

The maximum number of candidates for city council in 2009 will be 19 and the list is:

Jeff Berding (D)
Chris Bortz (C)
Anitra Brockman (I)
Laketa Cole (D)
Tony Fischer (D)
Kevin Flynn (C)
Leslie Ghiz (R)
Greg Harris (D)
Nicholas Hollan (D)
Chris Monzel (R)
Amy Murray (R)
Roxanne Qualls (C)
Laure Quinlivan (D)
Cecil Thomas (D)
LaMarque Ward (I)
Bernadette Watson (D)
Charlie Winburn (R)
Wendell Young (D)
George Zamary (R)

The short field is leading some to speculate that there could be some upsets. It is clear there will be one new spot on council, with the term limited Crowly out at the end of this term, but at this point, the question will turn back to GOTV. If Obama voters, who are registered still, get back out and vote again, things could greatly change. One could argue that if the Teabaggers GOTV things could change, but that assumes there are a bunch of Teabaggers living in the City. Well, I think the fact is clear that Teabaggers are not a big group and more importantly they don't live in the city. So, what does that mean? Is this going to be a repeat election of 2007, with all 8 incumbents winning? At this point that is the logical way to think, but this year I don't have a good sense yet of the mood of populace. I think energy will be a factor and the campaign with the most energy will be in the mix.

Deception (Exempli Gratia, COAST, Finney)

It is funny when Chris Finney gets hoisted by his own petard. Finney is pissed because he claims the City is trying to make the ballot language a bit more clear, preventing him from deceiving the voters. That is right, Finney is pissed because the forces of good are acting to thwart his efforts at deception. According to Finney's court filing, the city is considering removing the "(e.g., a trolley or streetcar)" part of the ballot language because it clearly is misleading. The ballot initiative will affect all "passenger rail transportation" and Finney (and COAST/NAACP) are knowingly trying to mislead the public into thinking this is just about the Streetcar. The "e.g." which is the abbrevation of the Latin phrase "exempli gratia" means "for example." Well, I just want to make it known that deceiving the voters is wrong, for example, how Chris Finney, COAST, and the Local NAACP are trying to deceive the public into thinking that their ballot issue is not anti-passenger rail, but is instead only about the Streetcar. Let's hope the forces of good will thrwart evil this time again.

Oh, and Finney will be costing the City and County more needless money if he fights this in court. Better ask him how many jobs will be saved if he accepts the clarity over his attempted deception. Oh, right, he wants smaller(None) government, so any government job loss is a positive to someone like Finney.

Happy Birthday Donald!

Give a cheer out to the Cincinnati Blog's Donald today. I am one less year older, for a while.

Eww!!!!

I'm not sure what else to say about the temporary closure of the Corryville Kroger to permit the Pied Piper to wander the aisles for a while.

But if I still lived in Clifton, I'm pretty sure I'd give up shopping there in favor of the Ludlow Avenue IGA. And if I really needed a Kroger fix, I'd probably head to the Kenard Avenue store (UC students: just head north on Clifton and keep going).

Derek Doesn't Like Our Weather...

That's not exactly true. But he has decided he'd be happier in a more "hurricane prone market." (I'm almost positive that only a meteorologist could ever be made happy by increasing his chance of being squashed by a house like the Wicked Witch of the East.) So he's headed to Mobile, Alabama.

I've made fun of Derek a couple times (here and again here, in a post that exposed my own meteorological failings). But in truth, I tend to look for his weather forecast, because I enjoy his on-air persona.

The good news, of course, is the possibility of more Randi Rico. (Yes, I'm a pathetic Rico groupie.)

But even with more Rico, I'll miss Derek. I hope he does well in Mobile, that the city is good to him, and that he doesn't miss too much having actual seasons (like winter and fall). Be careful, Derek: winter weather advisories are a lot safer than hurricane warnings!

GOP Heavy CincyPAC?

The voting is on for the members CincyPAC for the endorsements of Mayor, Council, and School Board. I've seen the CincyPAC Board of Directors' recommendation list and it surprisingly includes 3 endorsed Republicans and 2 very conservative endorsed Democrats. I am surprised this organization's leadership went that Conservative. For members of CincyPAC the voting is open until the 20th and the final slate will be announced at their big event on Saturday. It will be very interesting to see how the voting actually turns out, since the three Republicans have been negative on the Streetcar, but provide a 'maybe in the future' answer that gives a false impression of where their current position actually puts them on the Streetcars, which is against it.

It will be also be interesting to see how progressive the CincyPAC rank and file members actually are. The group I believe is very progressive on social issues, but on an economic front I don't sense an as progressive bent. The vote will tell.

Gotta Love Northside

Where else in world can you have your Brunch served by the lead singer of a really great band, then go buy her band's latest CD at the city's best record store?

Boo! Fixxed!

It is not humanly possible for the best bar in Cincinnati to be a bar I've never been to. Someone at the Cincinnati Man has some explaining to do!

Cable TV Bleg

Cincinnati Bell came a-knocking today, trying to sell me on their fiber-optic service. Their price for cable, phone, and internet beats Time-Warner.

I'm particularly interested in the television aspect of the service. (I've had Cincinnati Bell phone service before and used Zoomtown in a business environment.) Anyone have any experience with their cable service--either good or bad--that they'd like to share?

COAST Wrong, Again

The Provost at The Phony Coney details how COAST's Mark Miller wrongly tried to revise history.

Also, 5chw4r7z asks a great follow-up question to Mark (I paraphrase): If John Schneider is wrong and Miller is not the only COAST officer to live within the City of Cincinnati, then what other officers do? My additional question would be: what percentage of the COAST membership lives inside the City?

Has the FOP President Read This?

I don't like suggesting reading material for other people, but it would be a good thing for FOP President, Kathy Harrell, to read this new article. She might learn a valuable lesson.

A Plan That Falls Short

I can give Tony Fischer credit for being the only candidate for office to put forth his own plan to save more police officer positions. His play sorely likes in details on how departments are going to cut 10% of non-payroll. Additionally, how does one transfer a whole function to the county without the county paying for it? The translation is that his plan wipes out building inspection in the city, it just will not happen, the county can't pick up the slack without funding, which it doesn't have. If Tony wanted to make the politically difficult choices, like his press release suggest, he might look to trim the fat in the police department. In case people forgot, we survived a riot with fewer police than we have now. The issue is not the number of police, is issue is how we deploy the forces we have.

Additionally, and most importantly, his numbers don't cover the full shortfall. There is another 413,000 needed to reach the level of filled full time positions needing to be cut to meet the 28 million dollar gap.This doesn't even consider if the non-payroll levels listed by Fischer are above and beyond other non-payroll cuts provided by City Managers Plan. Fischer has taken a step, but it falls short and is incomplete. He is trading FOP votes for building safety. I don't see that being a fair trade.

UPDATE: Councilmember Laketa Cole tears the Fischer plan into shreds.

Was There a Blue Flu?

Did the FOP or any of it's members stage a "sick-out" over the weekend? The Chief thinks they did and is pissed and is making it known. It is a widely held belief that in 2001 the FOP staged a work slow down as a means of political and/or social retribution for the black eye they took after the Thomas shooting and resulting riots.

If the police union is conducting any type of blue-flu, then how many layoffs can be preempted with justified firings? If any police officer is not serious about doing their job, they should save us all some trouble by quitting now.

It's Downtown Restaurant Week

I love the idea of exploring Downtown's many varied Restaurants. For the price of $35 you can find some deals at some of the higher-end places. This is a good month to do it, from the perspective of business, where August is generally considered a slow month, where many people travel. I have not made plans of where I would like to go, but I am starting to think about it and would like suggestions on where, likely on Wednesday or Thursday. Anyone have thoughts?

(If you predict how fast it takes for the first snotty anti-city comment, then you may when a special prize.)

Another Place to Watch Soccer

Molly Malone's in Covington appears to be the place to watch soccer in Northern Kentucky, both the US Nation Team and the English League.

Buried Treasure

It would appear that lawyers for the FOP and CODE for some reason believe the City has buried treasure somewhere in city, likely they will claim it's in OTR. I don't know where else they could hide it. I wonder if X still marks the spot and I wonder how long before I see a bunch of cops with shovels roaming up and down Vine Street.

Layoff Battle Doesn't Have Clear Heroes Or Villains

Well, there's one clear villain. But it's not human. We'll get to that in a minute.

This is a rare instance in which I disagree with Blogdaddy Griff. The current fight in Cincinnati over the city manager's proposal to lay off 138 police officers--over ten percent of the uniformed complement--is not one where the folks in white hats are easy to sort from those wearing black hats. There's merit to both sides of the dispute, and plenty of blame to go around for our leaders' apparent inability to handle the current economic crisis in a manner that inspires the confidence of the citizenry.

First, what do we know? Milton Dohoney has announced that he'll order the layoff of 138 uniformed police officers. But he says he has a plan to do so that will not reduce the size of any district's complement or affect "street strength," commonly understood as the number of officers on patrol. In the last few days, we've heard some officials say publicly that the Vortex unit would be effected or altogether eliminated in the layoff. I'm not sure why this is surprising. Anyone with even a limited understanding of CPD's organization understood that if officers were being cut but district force levels weren't being impacted, the layoffs had to be in non-district-based units, like Vortex. I don't think Vortex has 138 uniformed officers (I could be wrong), so you have to wonder about the status of other units, such as Vice, Special Events, and others.

Next, why has this turned into such a mess? Frankly, the process foisted upon the City by its own charter is the real culprit. In this pandemonium, we see the problems with a manager form of government. Milton Dohoney has never stood for election in Cincinnati, yet he's the one empowered to make all the decisions. The Mayor can't do it, and Council's budget votes turn into advisory statements of policy rather than legislation with the force of law. As I've previously argued, Cincinnati should have a truly executive mayor. Under the current system, the real power lies with an appointed (in other words, unelected) official. I don't doubt Mohoney's competence, integrity, or sincerity. But a city our size should be led by an elected mayor, not a politically-insulated manager.

The structure created by the charter created the chaos of the last week. City councilmembers have been free to do anything they want because they all realize that their actions don't matter. That means that the Dems on Council were free to do as they did: shrug their shoulders at the thought of laying off that many officers and and defer to the expertise of the City Manager. Similarly, the Republicans on Council were free to launch bottle rockets in the general direction of Dohoney without proposing any real alternative. An alternative proposal, by the way, does not have to find $28 million in cuts; instead, those who oppose police layoffs need find only an additional about $3 million, the amount to be saved this year by laying off police.

Even within the flawed process created by the charter, though, some of our leaders could have behaved better. Mayor Mallory was wrong to stifle debate at the Wednesday council meeting. That meeting was the only scheduled session prior to Labor Day. That meant that had the mayor had his way, the public would have had no opportunity to weigh in on the proposed cuts before they were enacted. And Council would have had no opportunity to publicly question the Manager about the necessity and breadth of the cuts. That's bad government.

Leslie Ghiz and Chris Monzel were right to call a special meeting of Council. Their action permitted the public, as well as Council, to be heard on the manager's proposal. Public debate is not grandstanding; it is political discourse, and essential to the healthy functioning of a representative democracy. If you disagree with NAACP/COAST's excessive referendum efforts (as I do, even though I do not support the streetcar), then you must favor a transparent decision-making process by our elected officials. For representative democracy to work, we must have access to our elected officials, and they must have open, public debates that explain their decision-making to their constituents.

Finally, what about the merits of the decision? When I first saw the numbers, I was aghast. 208 full-time positions are being eliminated city-wide. 138 of those--or 66%--are uniformed officers. No one (or at least no rational person) expected the police department to be entirely spared. Had 20, 30, or even 50 police layoffs been proposed, I'd have not been surprised. But the scope of the layoffs was startling, and immediately struck me as the position the administration would take if it were playing a game of chicken with the FOP. The problem with this particular game of chicken, though, is that the FOP has no reason to swerve. They take issues with the priorities the City has set. But more understandably, the City has been unwilling to give them any assurances about the 2010 budget. Why should the FOP give back bargained-for benefits if their members only keep their jobs for the next four months?

And regardless of whether the end result of the current dilemma is 1 layoff or 138, it is (and should be treated as) a sad decision by the City. The officers to be laid off will be young officers, fresh out of the academy. These are individuals who made a decision to serve the residents of the City; many are people who could have done what many others their own age did and left the region in pursuit of other professional opportunities. Their decision to stay and to serve and protect should be honored, and we should not make light of a decision to add them to the unemployed in our region.

As long as we have a weak mayor and an overly strong city manager, Cincinnatians will be spectators to overly dramatic but non-productive political theater. But the players in that theater need to behave like adults, something almost all of them forgot this past week.

Brad's Gone Fishin'

So, the Republican Mayoral candidate, Brad Wenstrup, has time to read the Mayor and Council's emails, but he doesn't have time to provide a detailed budget that fills the $28 million deficit? I mean just last week he was complaining about the need to save cops jobs, but now he is off the deep end with a new attack on the Mayor. It appears Brad can play politics, but doesn't know the first thing about running a government.  He cares more about winning an election, than about letting the Mayor do his job by balancing the budget.  What a complete political tool, being led around by the non-city Republicans who care more about tearing down the city, than helping it grow. To make matters worse it seems Wenstrup is now taking his lead from Chris Smitherman, wow, that's a doozy of a move.

Enquirer Takes Down COAST's 'Poison Pill'

Readers of this blog have known that COAST's effort to destroy any type of rail plan was clear in their actions and their language of the anti-passenger rail charter amendment. The Enquirer has reached a similar conclusion.

Where is the Republican Budget Plan?

The last 24 hours have seen the City Republican council members, candidates for council/mayor, and conservative activists all blatantly Grandstand, stomp their feet like children, over the tough decision, the kind leaders and adults make, to cut 319 city jobs. Where is their Plan? What is preventing any of the Republican leaders sitting down and coming up a list of cuts they would make instead of those outlined, especially the 138 jobs from the Police Department they are apparently claiming they wouldn't cut if elected? The city manager listed in detail how he would reduce the 28 million to zero. There are a few gray areas left to fill, but the big numbers and big cuts are on the table. You don't get that from the likes of Leslie Ghiz, Chris Monzel, Brad Wenstrup or local GOP hack supreme Alex Triantafilou. All of these Republicans are Grandstanding and misleading the public on what these cuts means, which they don't really know, and don't know what can be done to offset the reductions.

So now is their chance: put up or shut up! If you claim you can make things happen, then do it! Post it here, email me, or hell put it up on anyone's website. Just stop making the false claims and promises you know you can't keep.

The New Outlet Mall: Be Wary

Cincinnati's traditional media are agog over tomorrow's grand opening of Cincinnati Premium Outlets (here's the Enquirer's coverage). The media coverage--almost at a frenzied pitch--interests me, largely because I'm in the midst of reading Ellen Ruppel Shell's new book, Cheap: the High Cost of Discount Culture. I suspect that in the next few months, I'll succumb to the temptation and visit the new outlet mall. But Ruppel Shell's chapter on outlet malls ("The Outlet Gambit") should be required reading for anyone who can't wait to grab the kids, hop in the car, and drive out to Monroe.

Ruppel Shell argues forcibly that when we go to the outlet malls, we're not really getting the deal we think we are. There's two reasons for this. First, the outlets tend to use exaggerated reference prices to convince us we're getting a better bargain than we really are. (You know what I'm talking about: those price tags that say something like, "Normally: $1,000, Your Price: $1.50.) Second (and perhaps more nefarious), the merchandise offered at an outlet often isn't the same as what's offered in a department store. Does the price on a bag at the Coach outlet seem great? Sure. But that same bag is probably not offered at a regular Coach store. In fact, Ruppel Shell tells us, about eighty percent of the stuff at Coach outlets is lower quality merchandise manufactured specifically for the outlet store.

Perhaps most interesting is Ruppel Shell's discussion of the geographic placement of outlet malls. They always seem to be a not insignificant distance from urban areas. Doesn't it strike anyone else as a bit cheeky that a shopping center outside the I-275 belt--more than a half-hour's drive from downtown--appropriates the name "Cincinnati"? This is all no accident, but instead helps the outlet perpetuate a certain atmosphere:

Generally [the location of an outlet mall] is a long drive from any particular population center--25 to 100 miles outside the metropolitan shadows, where real estate is cheap and the tax incentives sweet. . . . But the remote location of outlets is not merely a defensive, cost-saving maneuver. It is also a deliberate strategy. In the public mind, convenience is a trade-off for price, and price is traded off for convenience. Inconvenience connotes cheap, while convenience connotes pricey. . . . In a very real sense, outlets are the anticonvenience store. Visiting the outlets demands an investment in time, deliberation, and energy beyond what we invest in most other leisure activities. And because the effort to reach and shop at them is substantial, even extraordinary, the experience of going to the outlet is elevated in our minds to "special occasion" status. . . . The mall has extracted a price, and in demanding repayment, we are in fact taxing ourselves. Our expectations are raised at the same time that our guard is lowered, and in making this bargain we are willing to forgo many things that we once demanded from a satisfying shopping experience: variety, serendipity, aspiration--and fun.

(Cheap, p. 91.) I'm not suggesting that you shouldn't go to the outlet mall. I'm just saying that when you do, go with your eyes open.

Lead By Cooperation, Not Conflict and Blame

I am fairly flabbergasted at the conservative members/candidates of/for city council, at least the one's I was able to follow on Twitter today during the Council meeting.  Honestly I don't know if they are playing ignorant on purpose or are so hot headed to make a mockery out of democratic governance.  Ghiz, Murray, Monzel, Cordrey et al are up in arms about the Mayor shutting down discussion on job cuts.  When the unions are making noises that might consider making more concessions in place of layoffs, why would any City official want to start taking about ideas that the unions could do during an open session?  Why not wait to hear what the Union has to say, or more importantly willing to say, behind closed doors. Then try and negotiate with the unions for a better solution than layoffs.  Getting one’s dander up and putting on a show for “the public” might get you more Westside votes, Leslie (who I single out as one who should know better), it will not reduce the number of layoffs in the police department. Instead, stop campaigning for a little while, and start leading by example through cooperation and team work WITH the Mayor and the rest of Council. Blame is a game used by those who when times are tough, lack the courage to get in the batter's box and take a swing, instead of trying to push the other team under the bus.

City Job Cuts: Over 300

WLWT has the known details on the job cuts, which includes 138 from the police department, but none from the fire department. In his memo the city manager stresses that the number of police on patrol is not being cut. It is not clear what functions are being cut. It would be helpful if sitting council members, council candidates, and activists DO NOT push the panic button. Nothing shows a lack of leadership more than using fear as a political tactic on an issue like public safety. More to come later. If you have facts with valid sources, share them. Keep you rumors and baseless speculation to yourself.

Uncivilized Teabaggers Are Parrots

This article plays down the report I got from an attendee that those heckling Congressman Steve Driehaus were spouting talking points, literally. The "Harassment Policy" as posited in Washington Monthly's Political Animal yesterday sums up the tactics and play book being used by the GOP and its many fronts. This is another example of how the Teabaggers, the new collective term used for GOP activists, are not grassroots people, they are organized by the party and its affiliated groups. The article even quotes one of the so called activists who doesn't even live in Driehaus's district, she from Anderson Township. I guess she is willing to travel into the scary city to spout propaganda. Here is her quote right from a talking point and has nothing original in it:

“I think the bill as presented is going to eliminate a competitive market and the private insurance industry.”

In other words: "Raymond Shaw is the kindest, bravest, warmest, most wonderful human being I've ever known in my life."

Great Business Courier Editorial

In case you missed it, please have read of a great editorial from the Courier's Publisher Doug Bolton. This gives one of the best layman's take as to why we need the Streetcars. Being bold is exactly what we need and those opposing streetcars have nothing to replace this bold idea, at least noting that will actually have a positive impact on the city.

For those without a subscription, CityKin has the whole editorial.

Just Plain Guts

I stand in awe of the courage and guts on display every time Erich Kunzel conducts the Cincinnati Pops. When I see how he faces the challenges ahead and he still can muster the strength it takes to conduct, then yes as Jenelle Gelfand wrote, I would have had a huge lump in my throat last night at Riverbend. If you are looking for a person to emulate, I don't know if you can go wrong with Erich Kunzel.