Last Gasp or New Future for the Post?
The Cincinnati Post reports on itself today indicated they are consolidating their news rooms into the downtown Cincinnati location. From a business perspective, I wonder why this was not done years ago. I understand that Northern Kentucky residents was local coverage, and the Kentucky Post does an ok job of providing that, but being just over the border is a superficial element, that was only a symbolic tradition. I hope this buys E. W. Scripps some time to stabilize the paper. Rumor has the Cincinnati Post closing down once the Joint printing agreement with the Enquirer expires, keeping the Kentucky Post alive, but focused almost exclusively on Kentucky. If the FCC rules on ownership of newspapers and local TV stations stays in place, could the Post be sold to someone like Clear Channel? A news room connecting WLW, WKRC-TV and a new Cincinnati Post would be a conservative's dream. Would it bring new competition against an Enquirer/WCPO-TV alliance or just homogenize 3 news organizations into one? It is nothing but speculation, but is it plausible?

HERE IS Stonewall-Cincinnati's take on the Van Kuiken Removal from the Mount Auburn Presbyterian Church for marrying gays and lesbians. Small critique: this document needs a date published listed.

Bush Says Iraqi Weapons Sites Were Looted
So let me get this straight. Bush is now admitting that we know the weapons were looted? WTF? So the oil fields were more important to protect, than the WMD? We sent special teams to secure the oil fields, but no special teams in to protect the WMD sites? Do people have barrels of VX in their basements right now? How secure is that? This sounds like the worst attempt at spinning I have ever head. Bush did not even have to the balls to say in a more covered speech, he choose the routinely meaningless weekly radio address. This did not even make the 11:00 AM CNN or MSNBC top stories. Mike Tyson's arrest made it, but not Bush on the alleged looting of WMD. Nice, folks, nice. I guess Harry Potter was just to "big" of story to cover last night, so all of the reporters are sleeping when Bush breaks news.

Yet Another Religious Zealot
A letter to the Editor (4th) in Today's Enquirer got my dander up:

"Humanist ethics are subjective"

The letter ("Ten Commandments defenders don't get it," June 12) is part of the reason the United States faces a moral dilemma today. When the letter writer rejects the biblical foundation of morality that was used by our founding fathers to frame much of our government, he instead lays the foundation of subjectivity. He is only partially right when he says that "...Similar values and morals (found in the Ten Commandments) can be praised and taught in the secular humanist arena."

People should realize some of the things that humanism is offering as a replacement to what had been taught in American schools for over 200 years: Institutions with authority, such as governments, the United Nations, and the American Humanist Association can pick and choose what values should be taught. If that doesn't sound a little arbitrary, they can also modify, discard or acquire new ones whenever they like. That is the nature of situational ethics.

To make this system of morality more acceptable to the man who doesn't happen to like the 10 suggestions that some authority has forced upon him, he is free to make up his own commandments to live by. One is perfectly within the letter writer's humanist rights to do this, especially if they break with old traditions. But, if they are recognizably religious or old-fashioned, then you'd best keep them to yourself.

Paul McDorman, Mason

I hate to break some news to Mr. McDorman but morality and morals are subjective. How do I know this? Simple, I do not share Mr. McDorman's morals. His morals or belief system includes conformity, blind obedience, and well just plain old ignorance. I fall back into those states, but I try like hell to get out of them. I prefer not to conform because my religion tells me to for no reason I find valid. I do not trust a 2000+ year old books as anything more than fiction akin to Aesop's Fables or Le Morte d'Arthur. I sure try to reduce my ignorance at nearly every chance I get. Mr. McDorman on the other hand is missing a few things. Christianity is not the basis of our government. There is no democracy in the Bible. There are monarchies, kingdoms, lords, and masters, but no democracies, unless you want to count the Romans, but in the Bible they are the bad guys. The United Nations was created not by secular humanists, but mostly by Christians (USA, UK, and France). Life is made up of situations. They all differ. How I look at them and how Mr. McDorman looks at them differ. I would guess Mr. McDorman would handle a robber in his house differently than I would. He might shoot him, where I would try and stop him without killing him or seriously injuring him, using deadly force only if attacked. If I differ from you Mr. McDorman, how can you deny that ethics are subjective? We have laws to try and keep order in this society. Not everyone agrees with every law. Does that mean we should not have laws? Of course not. Should we have religious laws? Of course not. If you want to practice your religion Mr. McDorman, go right ahead, no one will stop you, as long as you don't force it on others. Teaching religious morality in schools is forcing it. I also remember something else that was subjective. For over 200 years people in this county own slaves. Because that happened for a long time, and worked well (for the slave owners) should we bring it back? Of course not.

BUZZ Boycott?
The Cincinnati Business Courier is reporting that WIZF-FM (100.9) and WDBZ-AM (1230) will be moving their offices and presumably their studios to Centennial Plaza on Central Avenue, which is across from City Hall. The move is slated to take place in October. The problem this brings is that both radio stations will be in the boycott zone. Will the Boycott Groups (A and/or B) modify their moving target boycott and not call for a listening boycott of the BUZZ and the WIZ come October? Is this a plot by the "man" (I guess I am one of them) to break the boycott? Is the BUZZ merely a pawn in the white man's oppression of the black man? (cough, cough). It couldn't have anything to do with Lincoln Ware wanting to save gas money by not having to drive to City Council meetings, could it?

Trent Lott's Ohio
How soon do we forget? Senator DeWine`s Annual Ice Cream Social is detailed as follows:

Date: June 22, 2003
Time: 1PM-5PM
Special Guests: Senator and Mrs. Trent Lott
Location: DeWine Farm, Cedarville
Contact: Barbara Schenck (937) 376-3080

The Boycott B (CJC) has issued a press release stating they will be protesting the event. Nate has invited the likes of Rev. Al. Sharpton, Kweisi Mfume, Jerry Springer and Ohio Senate candidate Eric Fingerhut, to join the protest. Odds are that Sharpton, Mfume, and Springer will be no shows, but if Eric Fingerhut wants the black vote in the primary, he might do well to go. This will be a long haul for Nate and company. Cedarville is northeast of Xenia, but is located relative close to Central State and Antioch, both schools might actually provide a significant number of protestors, assuming a large enough population of kids are still on campus. If the protests only amounts to the usual suspects from the Boycott B, then it will be a laugher, and attract no attention. The most ironic thing is that racists are protesting a man accused of being a racist. Lott's statements are tame compared to those of the "Black Fist" and other CJC allied groups, who are admitted black nationalists/separatists and racists. The boycott B's tactics do take a new low from their press release:

”CJC leader Nathaniel Livingston, Jr. also questions Senator DeWine’s commitment to family values. Livingston has filed suit to gain access to the divorce records of Senator DeWine’s son, Pat DeWine, a member of Cincinnati City Council. In the Complaint, Livingston accuses Senator DeWine of threatening a local television reporter, John Damschroder, for attempting to report on Pat DeWine’s extramaritial [sic] affair with an African American woman.”

Nate has reached a whole new level of scumbag with that kind of action.

Back to DeWine and Lott. It is very unseemly for Mike DeWine to be hanging around with Trent Lott. DeWine just perpetuates the GOP's reputation as being soft on bigotry. There are 50 other Senators DeWine could have asked to visit, in place of Lott. If Mike thinks he has to get out the KKK vote to help Voinovich beat Jerry Springer, then I think he might be a bit paranoid. At this point Springer is a weak candidate and Voinovich is moderate/libertarian enough to hold on to the middle of the road voter. The Democrats should be all over this, but will they drop the ball. The question that should be on everyone's lips: will State Senator Doug White join his compatriot in shame Trent Lott? White's comments about Jews placed in the same league with Lott, but it did not cost him his leadership position. Will the two of them cost the GOP any votes? I wonder....

UPDATE: Link to the CJC's press release.
UPDATE#2: The Ice Cream Social made the Dayton Daily News, but no mention of Trent Lott, not even a mention. A cancellation or an omission?

DeWine Has a Point?
It is an election year for Cincinnati City Council. That of course means that City Council members will be doing and saying things to try and get elected. Pat DeWine is clamoring about the method in which Council plans on paying for the cost of settling the "racial profiling" lawsuits. DeWine's beef is that instead of fitting the cost into the budget now, most on Council want to issue bonds for it now, and after the election offset the cost of the bonds against unknown budget items. For once I agree with DeWine. If council is going to settle the lawsuits, they should announce to the city what is going to be cut to pay for it. If certain programs, summer jobs programs for example, have to be cut, then let us know now. I am sure the money being to spent to keep Kroger downtown will no doubt drive the boycotter's bonkers, as well as the transnational progressives over at CityBeat. They should be thankful that Kroger is not going to walk away. The nearly 1,200 jobs at the Kroger HQ would be impossible to replace, and so would the tax revenue it creates.

Living in a Van, Down by the River
Pearl Jam's concert slated for tonight was cancelled. I will now wait for the Boycott B groups to issue a press release claiming to have caused the flood of Riverbend Music Center. I guess they either have a lot of buckets, or they drank a lot of beer. Chalk up another “victory” for Nate and the gang. I am sure fans will instead look inward and see the error of their ways. What kind of a person goes to a rock concert, when there are racist groups boycotting the city? What kind of person indeed.

Doug Trapp's Last Tango
In a biting CityBeat Editorial Doug takes on the ills of Cincinnati. Doug is off to Africa as part of the Peace Corps.

CityBeat: Trafficking in Peace
CityBeat News Editor Gregory Flannery is a free man. It appears the Prosecution had limited evidence to convict Greg, and might have wanted to avoid a high profile case with a member of the media. Extra attention is not something a DA wants, unless it can get him reelected.

OK Corral
Since Governor Bob Taft is backing the concealed-carry bill, I wonder if he is going to back the Boot Hill funeral fund?

A Pepper Burn
Greg Korte of the Enquirer reports that City Councilman David Pepper was recently slammed by the GOP for an old photo-op in front of a theater with Developer LaShawn Pettus-Brown, who is wanted by the FBI on fraud charges for misappropriation of funds in the renovation of that theater. Pepper's response was:

"Are they talking about the theater that Ken Blackwell stood in front of and said, 'LaShawn Pettus-Brown doesn't just talk the talk, he walks the walk?' "

Ken Blackwell is currently the Ohio Secretary of State, and a Republican. Ken also was formerly mayor of Cincinnati. I wonder when they are going to start in on each other's mother?

Our Men Flynt
Überfascist Simon Leis and political social climber Mike Allen are off wasting time with a needless prosecution of the Flynt brothers. Last I checked we had countless cases of burglary that have yet to be solved. Why haven't these crimes been solved? Hmm, I wonder if media attention has something to do with it? One last windmill charge for the old sheriff. Here's a summary of that media coverage.:
WLWT, WXIX, 12 WKRC, WCPO,Enquirer, and the Cincinnati Post.

Church tosses defiant minister
The bigots had the votes. Little anyone could do.

Sheriff's deputies seize Hustler videos
Jack booted thugs are off on another snipe hunt again. When will Leis stop his crusade? We have had how many shootings in the last week and the Sheriff’s manpower is wasted on this non-crime? We have real crime going on in the rest of the county. Why does Leis start working some theft cases? Surely fighting theft is more important than working about a few harmless videotapes. Well, I guess in Leis's mind, since he is not aroused by porn, no one else should be either. Nottingham is getting restless. I hope the CAC hides the topless pictures.

West End Community Members Push For Private Security
We have a police force. If there is a special need in a neighborhood, then add more police coverage. If people want private protection, then local businesses can pay for it themselves like every other business does. When bars have off duty cops working outside most of them are paid by the bar or local business association. Set up something similar, but don't use public funds to pay for it. If only public funds are available, then instead hire more police. Outsourced police forces will not fly. The other idea that is often floated to quell West End or OTR crime/violence is hiring the Nation of Islam's private security firm to patrol the streets. Subsidizing a hate group is the last thing the City of Cincinnati should be doing. The bad apple bigots in the CPD are bad enough. Adding racists will just increase the racial conflict. If people only want "black" security firms because they think only "blacks" can secure “blacks”, which some have professed, then those people are professing racist beliefs. Appeasing that racism will become a permanent City policy. I hope the racist vote is not such a big key to Mallory’s or Cooper’s successful political future.

Post Editorial: Weaponsgate?
Compare this to the Enquirer's editorial on this subject. Odd split of local opinion. I like the name, "Weaponsgate", but I would also consider "WMDgate", "Intelgate", or even "Iraqgate". I wll settle for a full-scale investigation with full media attention.

Councilman breaks up fight in Corryville
Tarbell gets involved. Good for him. I find it funny that Jay Love of 1230 the Buzz feels Tarbell should just had called the cops and wait for them to break up the assault. If Jay were watching a murder take place, would he let the person die while waiting for the police to arrive?

Theater protest only grows
So do ticket sales, which this article promotes. I wonder if Peter Bronson has seen the play yet, or is he busy burning porn?

Enquirer Editorial: Ten Commandments
On the issue of erecting a monument of the Ten Commandments on a public school the Enquirer is correct to support the court ruling requiring their removal. They are however wrong in their contention:

There is nothing wrong with exposing children to the moral truths embodied in the Ten Commandments. Teachers are free to explain the moral underpinnings of the commandments and how they influenced the development of our laws and society, just as they free to explain the principles and historical contributions of other religions. But public schools must not show deference to one religion over another, and that is exactly what the stone markers in Adams County were meant to do.

There is something wrong with teachers trying to explain morals to children. Whose morals are you going to choose? I do not want my future children taught that the first four commandments are "moral." The remaining six are in most incarnations good rules to live by, the "Golden Rule" being a better one, and are covered to varying degrees in criminal and civil law. The problem is that how do you teach these rules? Do you teach a kid that killing is wrong, and then ignore the death penalty?

Religion should not be taught in schools beyond the scope of the cultural impact it played in various societies and nations over time. This is useful in understanding history, social studies, and other similar disciplines. One can't study European History for example without understanding the influence of the Roman Catholic Church or the various reasons for war, which often had a conflict of religions element to it. That does not mean the teacher advocates the "morals" taught by a particular religion.

This editorial is a crafty one on a PR basis. The board took the valid legal and logical position of the court ruling, but did not want to come across as "anti-Christian" that stance is perceived to have by fanatics. They therefore chose to raise the issue of a pantheistic type approach to religion in school, which is in my opinion still unconstitutional. A pantheistic approach from a Christian perspective all to often is really a monotheistic approach, where monotheistic religions are acknowledged, while polytheistic and non-religious perspectives are ignored. If not monotheistic, then an institutional religious perspective is the bias, where individual religious beliefs or other minor religions are ignored or viewed as "nutty." The nearly never ending string of possible set of religious beliefs, not to mention the lack of religious beliefs, makes teaching their principals difficult, except in specific historical contexts. Keep moral lessons in the home and/or place of worship. Let teachers stick to the secular world.