You Don't Say

All is well, please move along!

(Yes Junior, its open)

Pick Your Battles Better

I believe it is a waste of time for anyone to try and have the Banks oversight committee's makeup altered. Instead, they should lean on the Mayor, Council, and County commission to push the issues they feel should be addressed in the plans for The Banks. Worrying about the color of skin or sex of the committee members doesn't get anything done.

People talk about "inclusion," but don't make the case for what that is supposed to be. If you are talking about quotas, well you are not going to make much headway. I have not heard any details from anyone about what is wanted other than

"The big question is, who will be in the room when decisions are made that will affect where hundreds of millions of dollars are spent and decisions are made that will affect African-American, Hispanic, Asian and other communities?" Love said. "We cannot, a decade from now, look up and see that we are lacking fair and reasonable inclusion after the Banks has been completed.

In Ten years how can we judge anything if we don't state what we want to happen? Don't give symbolic goals if you want tangible results, instead give tangible goals with realistic and possible results.

Riverfront Park Plan Updated

Will this park be a product of the Banks or will the Banks just disrupt its completion?

It sounds like by itself this project is going to take forever to complete:

Carden said the park will be built in five phases with the first phase taking two years to complete.

I really hope stages 2 through 5 are minor compared with stage 1.

The Last Temptation of Da Vinci

It is a movie. It is a fictional story, not a religious edict. The more attention it is given, the more people will see it. Some critics don't think its a very good movie anyway.

UPDATE: We have local idiots protesting! Seeing a couple fools carrying picket signs always makes for good TV. Watch for the satellite trucks!

Butler County Has No Other Crime

It would appear that Butler County has solved all outstanding felony cases and have plenty of time to waste on Federal Laws.

Volunteer For Fringe

How to Fringe IT

We know you are dying to help out on the Fringe Festival. Well, here is your chance! Below is a set of directions as to how you can volunteer for the festival. Included are links to our website listing out the wide variety of shifts available. If you have any questions, please email us at fringe@cincinnatiadvance.com or just logon to www.cincinnatiadvance.com/fringe. For more information about the Fringe Festival, check out the mains site at www.cincyfringe.com.

How to Sign - Up

1. LOGIN / REGISTER - You will need to Login or Register on the Cincinnati Advance website in order to sign up for shifts via this website. If you see a box to the left that say's "User login," then you need to log in. If you don't see that box, then you are logged in, skip to step two! If you have never logged in before, you need to hit the "Create new account" link. Otherwise enter your "Username" and "Password." If you forgot your password, hit the link "Request new password," and follow the directions to have a new one emailed to you.


2. CHOOSE SHIFTS - Once you are logged in you are ready to review what shifts you would like to choose to work. Below are links for the shifts categorized two ways, by day and by venue. Select a date or venue and view the shift lsting.


3. CLICK ON DATE / VENUE LINK - When you click one of the links below, a listing for that type will show with the date, time and volunteer position for each option.


4. GET MORE INFO ABOUT SHIFT - n the bottom right hand corner of each shift box, there is a "more info" link that will open up more details of the shift, including the address.


5. ***VOLUNTEER*** - Click on the green button located on the bottom right hand corner of the box of the shift. If the button is red, that means the shift has been filled and you can go back to select another shift. IF there is a red button , then that shift is full, pick a different one.

By Day

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  Wednesday May 31, 2006


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  Thursday June 1, 2006


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  Friday June 2, 2006


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  Saturday June 3, 2006


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  Sunday June 4, 2006


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  Monday June 5, 2006


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  Tuesday June 6, 2006


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  Wednesday June 7, 2006


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  Thursday June 8, 2006


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  Friday June 9, 2006


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  Saturday June 10, 2006


• 
  Sunday June 11, 2006

By Venue

• CAC


• ETC


• Know Theatre


• Harry's Upstairs


• Kaldi's


• Mr. Pitiful's


• Art Gallery


• Bar Series


• Headquarters


• Promotions


• Kick Off Party

CiN Weekly Revamps Website

It is very different, much simpler, I think I like it at first glance. Once I start navigating, we'll see.

Crappy Law Enforcement and Racism

What happened to law enforcement doing something to prevent theft or catching those who steal property? Why are local political hacks playing politics by worrying about minor law enforcement issues, instead of going after the law breakers who do damage to people's lives by stealing their property?

Racism is driving this:

"It's bigger than our economy tomorrow, it's our heritage," he told Fox. "It's our way of life. ... This sounds prejudiced maybe, but this is our country. This is not Mexico. ... Are we willing to have the whole face of America change?"

That didn't sound prejudiced, that sounded racist, Mr Fox. These are the word of an elected official. When does Mr. Fox get his white sheet fitted?

Miss Me?

I didn't think so!

Open Thread!

Congratulations to Wes Flinn

Give a big shout for Wes Flinn! Wes and the lovely Jawa Girl are getting married TODAY here in dazzling SW Ohio. It is nice having Wes and Jawa Girl back in town and it will be great being there when they tie the knot. Here's to their long future together!

Supply and Demand's a Bitch

The Continetal Lounge is opening up its restaurant to non-members of the club. I would surmise that membership is not generating enough business, so they need some of the little people to provide patronage to help keep the endeavor going. I am not a fan of the concept and structure of this club, so this is sign to me that the economics of the situation are becoming more clear to the operators that this type of entity will not survive as it was structured for very long. That is a good thing.

City Beat Blog

Greg Flannery and the City Beat News Team have started a blog. Bout Time Greg, Sheesh.

Diner Location to Become Vinyl

Main Street is getting a boost from a new restaurant called "Vinyl." Great news. Get out and support it when it opens in July.

A Casino at Broadway Commons

I really don't think a casino at Broadway Commons is going to work. Gambling Grandmas are not the type to attract to Main Street. On the river is where it otta be, down past the Brent Spense. I favor casinos, I just don't favor them being the focus of tourism efforts for the city.

But How?

Peter Bronson does his best to booster his nutty buddy Charlie Winburn in his latest column, but neither tells us how we can reduce crime. Peter notes Winburn's quick fix solution

Winburn says he can cut homicides in half in six months by going after "500 African-American families who commit 80 percent of the crimes, homicides, drugs and use of guns in Cincinnati."

Ok, fine maybe that's true. Maybe if you somehow pick certain people to go after things might get better, for a while. Killing cancer cells does not rid you of what caused the cancer in the first place.

What about jail space? When is the county or state governments, controlled by the GOP, going to pony up the money and build a new jail up in Sharonville? I say Sharonville because no one wants a jail near by, but why not up in Sharonville? The Sheriff Deputies would have a shorter commute.

All we get is talk-talk. We get conservative Bronsons out there saying stuff like "So what does it take to finally do something about it?" My question is: so what does it take for people in the suburbs to stop being a bunch of chickenshits? How do you fight crime? Outside of the police getting aggressive, which they should, it takes individuals building a community (an entire METRO community) that prides itself on cooperation, communication, and interaction. Don't let irrational fear drive you to the burbs. I've said this before, and I am going to get the pussies scared of their own shadows saying they are staying behind their cul de sac moats because they can't risk their little kids lives on some poor inner city black kid they'd rather stay away anyway.

As long as you create and maintain an "us and them" attitude, live in seclusion, and experience nothing outside your villiage, society will feel like a monster out to change you. Society can only change you if you let it or want to change. Change is not bad, but if you want to claim to be tuff and strong, then face the fears of difference and of violence with a real simple thing, don't let it scare you. Go places you are told to fear. If you then still fear it, ask why. If you no longer fear it, ask others why they still cling to fear like a security blanket that would make Linus blush.

OHIO's FIRST - Cranley v Chabot

New blog in town called Ohio's First. It will be on the blog roll soon. Give it a read.

Enquirer Bodyguard Poll

Who sings the song "I will always love you" better: Whitney or Dolly?

Happy Cinco de Mayo!!!

Take it easy Stratford Avenue!

Universal Grille

More bar blogging here. Hamburger Mary's is changing its name and its menu and Cincinnati Advance was honored to gain a special preview sample of their appetizers. Maryoke and Wifi make for a mean combination.

Banks Deal Reached

Hamilton County and the City reached a deal yesterday and in the process have propelled Reds CEO Robert Castellini into a place of power that could rival Carl Linder before long.

The Reds are the real winners here, with Castellini getting two seats on the oversight board. What I wonder is that is there more to the Reds wanting the Banks to succeed other than wanting a neighborhood right next door to help their attendance?

The Enquirer's Editors like the deal. (Enquirer full coverage of the banks is here)