Taft’s Approval Rating Plunges
A 40% approval rating, 48% disapproval, totally amazing numbers. How fickle we Ohioans are. Just four short months ago Taft won a handy victory. Now I think he a popular as Liver and Onions. Who is most pissed with Taft? His own right-wing of the GOP. The Bronsons and the Brinkmans are ready to lynch Taft. I love watching the vermin eat their own. I am happy that I can gloat by saying: don't blame me, I voted for Hagan.

Coverage: Enquirer, WTOL, WLWT, WKBN, and Statenews.org (Real).

BRONSON: You have the right to carry
Therefore Peter, people can strap on a leg iron and hang out at the OK corral. There is no right to carry a concealed weapon, which in reality defeats the intention of the gun fanatics. Supporters of conceal and carry laws always site the need to make "criminals," which really means everyone not like exactly like them, fearful that they might be carrying a gun. Why is there the need to create any doubt as to whether or not one is packing heat? Peter, if people want to carry a gun they should want everyone to know: "don't mess with Texas." Fear of death is what gun fanatics want everyone to feel when they walk down a dark street, so why do they fear being labeled a gun toting citizen? Wear your metal badge of courage on your leg. Make it easy for me to stay away from you. If anyone fears they are ripe for attack, I do not want to be standing anywhere near them. That is the safety warning I want, if they want to carry around guns.

Muslim P.C. in Cincinnati
I missed this article from the Conservative Weekly Standard. It is an interesting take on the trumped up controversy that is the play Paradise. The article brings out problems with a bizarre bending over backwards to appease some local Muslim busy bodies. However the biggest problem with Christopher Caldwell's article is this:

THE PLAYHOUSE sits in the middle of Eden Park at the top of a winding driveway in Mount Adams, an island of century-old townhouses and alleyways and coffee shops almost completely cut off from the rest of Cincinnati by highways. Towering over the city, it is like a chunk of Berkeley that somehow got stranded in the Midwest.

Now, Mt. Adams is an island, but to call it another Berkeley is a laugh. I think the folks at WLW would really beg to differ, since they broadcast from what used to be called Mt. Jacor.

Instapundit Praises Pro-War Rally
Glenn reports on a rally in Houston. The article he sites reports this:

The only speaker who was opposed to military intervention in Iraq, U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Houston, was greeted with some boos as she stepped onto the stage midway through the two-hour rally. She and her party later were led from the plaza under protective police guard.

Glenn's response was "No Stalinists were involved in the event's organization, so far as I can tell." He did not care that an anti-war speaker had to be escorted by police out of the rally. Now, there may have not been any overt threats or actions warranting police protection, but I too would have wanted protection in that crowd. I wonder how much "taunting" and harassment occurred? Could it have been more than allegedly occurred in Maine to about dozen school kids? I hope to see a storm of conservative media outlets report what happened to Rep. Jackson Lee. (cough, cough)

Week of trade talks concludes

The private negotiations, at the Millennium Hotel in downtown Cincinnati, have been the target of picketing by activists.

I saw no protestors as were expected on Friday and I found no other reports of protests in the media.

Amber Alert Issued
Be on the lookout for an Indiana man who reportedly might be headed towards Cincinnati with a 14-year-old girl Lindsey Diana Ryan of Jones, Michigan.

Authorities believe he is a 56-year-old Indiana man, possibly armed, driving a 1995 Dodge Dakota with Indiana license plate #406211A.
He is described as a white male, 6' 2", 180lbs, brown hair, and hazel eyes.

The girl is a white female, 5'0", 115lbs, blue eyes, shoulder length hair and braces, last seen wearing blue jeans and a t-shirt.

Ohio begins celebration today in original capital - Chillicothe
Happy 200th Birthday Ohio, you SOB!

If you get bored, check out War is not the answer, a local site of an anti-war activist spewing a lot of propaganda. The site asks: "Will there be a massacre of civilians in Baghdad?" The answer, Saddam has been doing that for over 20 years, so yes he will continue to do that while still in power. Will the American Military do that? No! Jeesh, how ignorant do people have to be to believe the Stalinist dogma (lies) spewed from groups like A.N.S.W.E.R.? That was a rhetorical question; so don't expect me to answer.

Boycott panel answers questions
The article seemed to lack much in specifics. I doubt there were many. The boycott has gotten down to its core purpose, a power grab. The CJC is battling the CBUF for the top spot in the black activist pyramid, doing nothing but illustrating their greed and lust for control. This forum was a failure in my opinion, but I expected failure. Only having 50 people show up is a sign that people don't care about this issue, and kids at UC would rather be out getting reading for a night of drinking. I can't say I blame them. This situation has but one real solution: ignore the boycotters. Then to spite them, take the handful of demands that make sense and enact them. That has already happened on nearly half of the demands that the City could act upon. The boycotters will not stop until they fill their pockets with either cold cash or the power to gain cash.

Operation Troop Trax Update Michele from www.asmallvictory.net left a comment saying that "blacklist" was put there by the original page designer, and she has removed it. I applaud her actions and I think she will get more support by doing so, starting with a donation from me.

Operation Troop Trax is a group out to send CD's to the troops. This group has decided to Blacklist musicians that have spoken out against military action. Now I think war is the only choice at this moment, but I am totally disgusted by this group and any service person who blacklists someone because they don't want to send people to their deaths. I wonder if these folk were inspired by the recent McCarthyism debate in the Blogosphere. Right-wingers can't seem to shed their old ways.

My latest Polstate.com Post is up.

Jerry Springer's Support Appears Weak
Jerry Springer made his first campaign like appearance in Ohio since rumors made the national mill that he was considering a run for U. S. Senator. His appearance was at Miami University, in Oxford, Ohio. He spoke at Millett Hall, home to the Miami Redhawks basketball teams. The event was set up for around 2,600 people, but at $3.00 a ticket only 300 people managed to show up. Now the speech was held on the night before Valentine’s Day, so early love birds might have been otherwise occupied, but on a campus with a large conservative segment, and very non-political style apathy, it was not a shock that many did not attend. Full Post

City Councils Pass Resolution In Support Of War
When I criticized members of Cincinnati City Council for trying to pass an anti-war resolution, I had no idea that other City Councils were planning a similar, yet opposite resolution. I must take the time now to say as I said before, these opportunistic politicians should be ashamed of themselves. The is no more reason for the City of Hamilton to support war as there is for Cincinnati to oppose it. These resolutions are meaningless and nothing but political grandstanding.

Spin or Bias?
The UC News Record reports on BET's Ed Gordon's cancellation stating:

He has not disclosed his reason for canceling.

Where the "he" is Mr. Gordon. The Cincinnati Post reports

UC Student Government said Gordon's cancellation wasn't related to the boycott. He decided not to participate in the event because certain requirements he made weren't met, Tolliver said.

Where "Tolliver" is UC Student Body President Darren Tolliver. I find this conflict interesting. Either Mr. Tolliver is spinning the issue to his benefit, not acknowledging that the boycott may have influenced Gordon's cancellation, or more likely, that the News Record omitted Tolliver's opinion because it editorially favors the boycott, and preferred to have Gordon cancel. It is obvious that Tolliver talked to Laurin McLain of the News Record, he was quoted for the story, and it is logical to assume Mr. Tolliver would have made it clear to both the Post and News Record that Mr. Gordon's cancellation had nothing to do with the boycott. So which is it? Spin from Mr. Tolliver or Bias from the News Record?

Police union to challenge Owensby firings, suspensions
This is not a big shock but when Roger Webster says, "We stand behind these guys 100 percent," one can't just be taken aback with a total lack of concern for what happened. The case of Mr. Owensby was different to all of the other cases trumpeted by over reaching activists back in 2001 after the riots. The Ownsby case was what even Bill Cunningham called "troubling." Mr. Webster's role is to defend his police officers, but it should not be to defend them no matter the circumstances. The two officers, who were fired, clearly should have been fired. Both men should just pack it in and not appeal it. If they do, all it does it create more grief for them, the image of the FOP, and the City. Cut your losses Mr. Webster, don't pick fights you can't and should not win.

Dawn's Life on the "Great White" fire. I am glad she waited a week to post this. Her basic premise is a valid one. I was never a fan of the more prissy hair bands of the 1980's. I might have expected a crowd this size for a "Quiet Riot" show, but I don't know if their reunion tour was worth it, and whether it continues from over a year ago. This was a horrible tragedy, but it was an avoidable one. Dawn is also correct that stadium/Arena shows cannot be replicated in a club, which is just a bar with a big dance floor in most cases.

Hey Howard, You're an Idiot!
Howard, could you point me in the direction of this new department store chain called "Federated Stores?" I know of a Federated Department Stores, Inc., but not a "Federated Stores." Is it too much to ask that you know the name of a company headquartered in downtown Cincinnati? I also have to ask: What about Lazarus? Federated Department Stores does own Bloomingdale's and Macy's, but what about the policy change at the local FDS chain Lazarus? Could Howard have picked up a phone and called Federated Department Stores and asked if the policies covering Bloomingdale's and Macy's were also covering Lazarus and all other retail stores for Federated? Howard could have called the Lazarus Gift Card hotline to get his answer. Howard seemed to have phoned this one in.

Kroger to expand use of self-checkout machines
I hope Biggs Target do the same. I love these machines. K-Mart has them, as well as some Wal-Marts. The only problem with having these machines is the idiots who try and use them with a shopping cart full of crap. These are meant for a small number of items. Soccer Moms, please use the regular check out lanes!

2 Officers Fired Over Owensby Investigation
Unfortunately this is not over. Both of the officers can still appeal the decision, and the family of Mr. Owensby is still calling for Federal Prosecution. This case was from the beginning a total mess. There was no other choice but to fire these two police officers. This will not satisfy any of the activists who have been pushing this issue. The response to this act will be at best mixed. They will approve of the firings, but will want more. The problem is that the city can't really do any more. The level of spin will be interesting to observe. I imagine a bit of tough talk will come from the mouths of the CJC and the CBUF, but nothing will come from their hollow words. WCPO's version and the AP version.

Trade pact negotiators meet public
This is a nice column about Cincinnati and the role it can play with international trade. Chiquita provides a positive history of international trade experience, but some of that history is mired in bad labor relations. P&G is an international juggernaut that has the clout and experience to make up for Chiquita's failings.

CAFTA meetings one might think would bring out the Stalinists or at least the Unions. I have heard about little except for this blip from the indymedia.org folks, better known as the mouthpiece of the transnational progressive movement and the quasi-anarchists.