CityBeat: Letters (2002-08-01)
This letter below is an example of what I think is a common attitude in liberal Cincinnati. However, the mainstream liberal no longer has a voice in this town, if it ever did.

Blacks Part of the Problem
The boycott organizers are killing our city. I've sat and thought on how to go about saying it and to whom, and it just comes down to that plain and simple truth.

I'm a college graduate and current graduate student; I believe in urban renewal and have lived in large cities that have learned how to live together. It's sad to see that this city with all its possible potential is in serious jeopardy of crumbling further.

I do realize that the history of this movement goes back to before Timothy Thomas' shooting and involves more than that incident. But my biggest concern with the boycotters' apparent position is that the city's problems are one of race -- at least that's the picture they've painted. The Black United Front (BUF) cries out from the oppression of the city's government and police force. The finger is always being pointed at others -- on both sides of the fence. That, to me, is the city's real current problem.

The BUF and other similar supporters cry foul at the other side while conveniently ignoring its own faults within its own communities or even go on to say that those very faults are a direct result from others' actions. It's a circular argument with no accountability -- there's a novel idea in today's society as a whole.

The people being "harassed" by law enforcement more often than not have every right to be under scrutiny. For every person wrongfully stopped or accosted by the police, there are at least 100 who go by unchecked. Is it fair to that one person who is honestly innocent? No. Is it unfortunate? Yes.

There is no "perfect" system anywhere. Should we strive to be better? Absolutely, but not at the sacrifice that's currently happening.

As an illustration of the fact that the members of the black community are part of the problem, I'd like to add some of my own experiences. Being a runner and living in the Clifton area, sometimes I like to run downtown in parts of Over-the-Rhine and Eden Park and areas like Mount Auburn and Walnut Hills. I get verbally accosted nearly every time, and a few times people have attempted to intimidate me through actions or vehicles.

My point is that many from the black community are as much a part of the problem, yet the media and organizers on both sides won't admit to it or bring it up. It needs to be recognized instead of this hypersensitive stranglehold that's currently happening in our city.


-- Mark Wagner, Clifton

CityBeat: Your Negro Tour Guide (2002-08-01)
I don't know what to say about this column. It is not good and it is not bad. It is rather all over the road saying little if anything. Kathy also seems to just be repeating last week column about Twitty. She is saying almost the same thing, just with different emphasis.

Al-Qaida linked to Web here
Well, here as in Dayton. Right in our own backyard. The website now has been changed and is being run by some Americans.

Lawyer named in shooting case
This nutty braud is lucky the Judge assigned her a lawyer. She would be toast if she represented herself.

Kroger stores to carry at-home Ecstasy test
I think this smells of a familial fascist state. I would not want to be a kid today. Parents want you to be an adult, but they treat you like a kid. When I was young, my parents treated me like a kid, but I tried to act like an adult. I think I turned out better than most of Generation Y. I don't know which generation is worse, The Boomers, Jones or Y.

2 Officers Indicted For Alleged Abduction
Jay Love on the Buzz was throwing a hissy fit on the radio today, because this indictment did not draw a press conference like the Twitty issue. Jay is either just stupid, or trying to gin up the audience. Twitty warranted a press conference because he was a senior member of the Cincinnati Police Department. 2 plain old cops don't warrant the media attention. Additionally, it was good PR to show that Streicher was whiling to hold even his top men to high standards. Attracting attention to the lowly cops who are accused of breaking the law is not a good PR move. Jay, get on the ball here. Don't play the rope a dope.

And of course the “victim” in this indecent is represented by Ken Lawson, so I assume a lawsuit against the City has been or will be filed.

Lesbian couple can adopt same last name, justices say
Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton sounds like a bigot to me. If not a bigot, then certainly a moronic dolt.