CINCINNATI BLOG makes the Enquirer Website. I am mentioned towards the end. There is also a section on XRAY.

Shopping for Media Attention?
Since Nate and the rest of the Boycott B crew have lost favor in the local media, it appears they had to go attention shopping all the way to Cleveland. Now, which news reporter was the Boycott B crew able to reach? The Plain Dealer's assistant travel editor reporter seems to be the latest to take the bait. I wonder if a little bit of the reporter loved down playing Cincinnati's tourism industry, in hopes of promoting Cleveland. I hope not, but I have to question her with an article headline like: "Cincinnati feels pinch of boycott."

Downtown skywalk falls into disfavor
I am with the 65% in the WCPO/Enquirer poll; keep the skywalk.

Developer sues reporter over paper's articles
I am no lawyer, but I find it odd that the newspaper was not included in the lawsuit. Here is Dan Monk's article referenced in the lawsuit. I see no libel in the article at all. Monk reported facts, nearly all from publicly filed documents. This is most likely nothing more than a legal manuver in what is legal feud between a developer and some of his investors.

2nd Study Finds Gaps in Tax Cuts
I wonder if Peter Bronson has read this article. Again, more evidence of the lies that are coming from the Bush Administration on this new tax law. Everyone is not getting a tax cut. 8 Million taxpayers are not getting a tax cut. That number does not include the extreme poor, who already pay no federal income tax. Now, this type of lie is not new to politics. Everyone does it. What I find disingenuous is that there are people out there who think this President is somehow different. I guess these same people think their congressman or senator does a good job, but the rest are corrupt. The other lies are that this will be an immediate stimulation to the economy and the gimmicks used to limit the initial "cost" to around $350 million. I am beating a dead horse here, but I don't really care. Tax policy is all ready tedious and sleep inducing. Repetition will not harm it at all.

The Cincinnati Post also had an Editorial on this earlier this week.

Bronson: You can pay my taxes
Mr. Bronson, if I had a tax break to give you, I just might do it. Since I get no tax relief, I therefore can tell you to pound sand. If your boy Bush and his crew were honest, they would address the fact that I get nothing out of the latest tax cut. I wonder if Peter is expecting every parent to be eligible for that $400 in a tax credit. If he were to read the fine print he might realize that not every parent, not every lower income parent, will be able to get that $400 tax credit. Peter does not want to waste his time on the fine print while he can trumpet the trickle down economic policies of the Bush Administration.

Ohio workers' comp premiums to rise 9%; employers to pay full cost
So much for a raise next year.

Cincinnati's old-line third party wants big change
An interesting picture of non-incumbent Carterites. The question is, will they get the exposure need to be elected? This article will surely help.

Volunteer Slavery: Thoughts on Jayson Blair's screwup at The New York Times
An interesting perspective from Kathy Y. Wilson. It has the usual assumptive blame white people tone, but her own personal experiences add credibility to the situation. One fact I hope Kathy agrees with me on, but was missing from her column, is that Jayson Blair is finished in serious journalism. He will get offers from tabloidic outlets, but not any significant outlets, significant in respect to reporting hard news.

Bob Hope: Entertainer's local legacy
I had first hand exposure to the Bob Hope 100th birthday celebration on my visit today to the Ronald Reagan Library in California. They currently have a special Bob Hope exhibit, and they were serving cake today to all visitors in celebration. Four local TV news crews were in attendance to cover the event, and my backside was even filmed briefly. The Library, really a museum, is pretty good. One must accept going in the propaganda of the GOP on Reagan's legacy, but the place is worth the visit for history buffs. They are working on expanding it to include one of the old Air Force One jets. That will be worth visiting all by itself when they finish next year.

Tax-cut cash is on the way (not for me)
The Enquirer provides the GOP talking points on the Tax-Cut, but fails to include the fine print. For starters, I do not get a tax cut. As I have been screaming about for months now, I get nothing. I am in the 15% bracket based on my AGI. I have no children, and I am not married. All of my investments are in my 401(k). Add that all up, and you get the hard facts. My tax rates are not being lowered, and I do not get any increased tax credits. Not a penny. Let no one fool you into thinking that everyone is benefiting from this plan. Single people are not, unless they make some serious bread. This tax cut is far more tilted towards the higher income brackets than the 2001 tax was, by far. Add that to the fact that some of the child care credits originally set for lower income families was taken out of the final plan.

Columbia Parkway up for repairs
My drive in to work will now suck rocks. Well, it will suck when I get back from vacation.

Vacation
I am on vacation. My blogging will go on, but at a pace that fits in with my tourism schedule.

Group steps up campaign against violence
Billboards are their answer? Why not just pass out flyers? This is nothing but a dog and pony show to make people think the Boycott A is "doing something" to prevent the out of control violence in OTR and other intercity neighborhoods. Advertisements are not going to deter drug gangs. If "Just Say No" will not stop the drug dealers, than "So Many Tears" has little more chance.

Cracks showing in boycott movement
Well, it appears the big media are agreeing with me on the state of the Boycott. At this point it is fun to watch. If it was not sad to watch people corrupted by the lust for power and wealth, I would really enjoy their self destruction. I think the credibility of Boycott B, Nate and Company, is as low as it can be. The Press should be on notice, assuming they read the Enquirer, that Nate and his crew are on the fringe, and represent no one but themselves. Any attention given to the Boycott B from this point on is nothing but sensationalism. I will try and avoid it myself, but sometimes the tawdry is just to hard to resist.

The AP's Version.

Al Qaeda’s Summer Plans
Did they include Ohio? This paragraph from the Newsweek Article indicates that there is an Ohio connection:

The Feds have identified a few Qaeda soldiers already in the United States. Intelligence sources tell NEWSWEEK that during his interrogation, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed fingered an Ohio truckdriver. In a major breakthrough, the Feds picked up the truckdriver, who began to cooperate. According to law-enforcement sources, the truck- driver was involved in plots to bring down a bridge and blow up an airliner. The truckdriver was asked by his Qaeda masters to obtain the proper tools for loosening the bolts on a suspension bridge. As for the airliner, the truckdriver said that cargo trucks could easily drive underneath passenger jets without arousing suspicion.

Cleveland has a significant Arab and Muslim population, so logically speaking the truck driver would be from the Northeast Ohio area, but he could have lived anywhere. What the article does not indicate is where the bridge or airport are located. The truck driver could simply live in Ohio, but could have been planning the attack anywhere he ran his route. Ohio has 43,075 bridges statewide, second in number only to Texas, according to this ODOT report(pdf). Most of those are small minor bridges. Logically in Ohio the bridges to attack would be on a major highway in a major city. I don't know of any major bridges in Columbus, and there are not that many in Cleveland. If you are going to go after a bridge in Ohio is would be in Cincinnati. The only other place would be trying to close down I-70, I-75, or I-90, causing the price of freight to jump in the region sky high. Gladly this person was caught, but this does mean that terrorists can target anyplace. Ohio is still much less likely to be a place where civilians would be targeted. Industry and commerce are the soft underbelly of the State and the country. I do wonder if this relates at all as to why Cincinnati and Cleveland got Federal anti-terrorism funds, but not Columbus. The more likely bottom line reason is that both Cleveland and Cincinnati have major Federal facilities to target, that Columbus does not. Targets include Federal Reserve Branches, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, a NASA facility, and an IRS processing center. Those would be bigger targets for domestic terrorism, instead of the Al Qaeda brand, which still is more likely in the this part of the country.

U.S. to host 2003 Women's World Cup
This is great news for women's soccer, but great news for Columbus, Ohio. Crew Stadium was listed as a site in the orginal proposal for the revised tournament.

Stars and Stripes: BBC, DOD differ on Lynch rescue news
Fair and Balanced reporting on the Pfc. Jessica Lynch rescue from a newspaper that is affiliated with the U.S. military, but is nearly exclusively published for the members of the U.S. military. This story is mostly a summary of the facts, but it presents them in an objective manner. This story is getting minor coverage in the U.S. media, and will likely get little more. The press is scared to death to dare question the veracity of the story surrounding an American "hero." This young woman's story is riddle with problems, none of which are her doing. The military PR machine at a minimum pumped up the story. The report that she has amnesia is the cherry on a skeptical Sunday. I was please to see that FOX News Watch did cover the story, and did so fairly credibly.

Taste of Cincinnati

Above you can see the mighty boycott B in action. Can't make them out in the crowd? Well, there were less than 10 present, so they were easily missed. As I took this picture the man with the video camera trained in on me. I guess I made him suspicious. You never know when the "man" may try something dangerous with a digital camera. I was sure to wave back at the camera once I had taken my picture.

City Council candidates were also out campaigning. I had a very nice chat with Charter candidate John Schlagetter on his chances and city politics in general. I also briefly met Nick Spencer, an independent candidate for council. Pat Dewine was also out, but I doubt he would have been open to wasting his time talking to a blogger, even a fellow Miami Alumnus.

Oh the Things You Get in Emails
When someone calls you a white supremacist it can sting. When that someone is a black supremacist it tells you that you are in the right. In an email I was call just that. The email writer was a hotheaded boycott B bigot. Saying the pot is calling the kettle black does not do this irony justice. I am the furthest thing from a racial supremacist as most anyone can be. I am an individualist, if anything, but a humanist as well, creating one entertaining combination. What I am not, is supremacist. I am a bit of an intellectual snob, but I make up for that with my countless other faults. I laugh when I am labeled. I laugh because I am lumped into one group by one nutcase, and in another group by some other hardliner. Being called names is fine. I call people names all the time. I usually mean it when I do, at least when I being serious. When I am called a white supremacist simply because I refuse to bow towards a fringe group of black nationalists/racists bent on seeking revenge on non-black people for all of their personal failures, I tend to chafe a bit. I can be magnanimous however. When someone has to call me a racist, they must have little other ammunition to through at me. When I point out anti-Semitism and anti-homosexual beliefs in people and groups, they try to dodge my charges, but making stuff up, but I will not be fooled. I will maintain my observation and commentary. Bigots can hide, bigots can fool most people, but when you don’t worry about gaining influence on image, you can’t be muted. I guess Mr. “wanna be” Al Sharpton will have to find a new name to call me.