BoycottCincinnati.org Forum - Spike Lee Joins Cincinnati Boycott
Just in case Nate deletes my post or anyone questions it authenticity, here is what I posted on the website:

For the record, the "cincyblog" posting on this message board is not Brian Griffin from the Cincinnati Blog. Someone else, most likely Nate, has created that username for a purpose that can only be viewed as nefarious in nature. Please do not confuse the views of the username on this board called "cincyblog", with the views of Brian Griffin or Cincinnati Blog.

Additionally, the blog post credited to me is from my blog, but was not published with my permission. It would be both considerate and wise to at least include a link to said post to allow readers to see the original, allowing any potential editing or misquoting to be judged fairly. Thank You.

Brian Griffin

In case anyone is nitpicky, yes I did add a missing word to the above post, which was incorrectly left out because of my haste to post to the message board. May the grammar "gods" forgive me.

[Link via John Schlagetter]

Socialist organization meets despite interruption
And they loved every second of the attention they received.

Spike Lee cancels under pressure from boycott
UC's News Record reports on Spike Lee's cancellation and a letter sent by Nate Livingston to the News Record and Student Body President Darren Tolliver. This quote

"Your actions in attempting to convince artists and entertainers to break the boycott are disturbing to me," he continued.

could be construed as something more than a complaint. I wonder if the News Record will release the letter in full. Does the letter come across as blackmail? Does the letter imply or overtly state that unless the New Record and the UC Student Body President endorse the boycott and/or do the bidding of the boycotters, then the boycotters will then entice or intimidate those coming to perform, appear or work at UC. This would be the same spin and tactics allegedly used to put fear in the performers themselves, which is part of the reason they stayed away. Fear is not the tool of the honorable. Fear is the tool of thieves, scoundrels, and thugs.

Gangs of New York to Cincinnati?
What article on mobs and riots as they relate to the movie Gangs of New York could be complete without mentioning Cincinnati? It is only in passing, but the 2001 riots have, at least in this author's opinion, achieved an equal historical importance as the 1992 LA riots and the 1968 riots after MLK's assassination. It is far to soon to judge the importance of the 2001 riots, but that will not keep columnists from judging it prematurely, providing their opinion a more contemporary spin. Short-sheeting history is a common side effect of current-events writing, and I am as guilty as the next writer, but this article tries to connect some dots that are generations if not worlds apart.

Senate president took rural route to power
A puff piece if there ever was one. Did White's staff write this? This reeks of damage control and of weak rationalization. When does being from a rural county excuse boorish or bigoted behavior?

In case you don't remember Senator Doug White, review it here and here.

200 locals march against abortion
More evidence of the Enquirer's bias. How many stories can they run praising the efforts of anti-abortion protestors? If anyone wants to call the Enquirer "liberal" they might want to qualify that assessment. Just because the Enquirer does not proclaim the progressive income tax structure as a Stalinist plot does not mean they are not conservative. It just means they are not totally ignorant. The Enquirer caters to the large conservative base in this town. They know who their masters are and they, like FOXNews, tilt their coverage to what their readers want to read. This does not mean the Enquirer’s opinions are equivalent to the GOP or any other conservative movement, it just means they cover stories more often that conservatives want to hear.

BRONSON: Pushing life
Pushing Religious Propaganda is a better title for this trite fluff piece on the paleoconservative's 3rd rail of politics. That 3rd rail languishes only slightly behind the fear of taxes and a military spending fetish. Owning guns and being anti-homosexual rank 4th and 5th, but sometimes can create as much frothing at the mouth as number 3.

Pete's diatribe is nothing but the rantings of a closed minded religious chauvinist, bent on instilling his artificial religious dogma on the entire country. Bronson is a classic anti-gray person. He only sees things in a black and white, an affliction most conservatives and all extremists share. It would be nice if Pete could dance a little bit closer to the truth, instead of falling prey to his fear of rubbing up against her and panicking his preacher.

Spike Lee backs out of Feb. appearance at UC
Is this a boycott of downtown or is this a boycott of the entire city? It appears that the boycotters will take what ever gets them attention and what ever can harm someone. Spike Lee is a bandwagoner. He sees a boycott against "whites" and he joins in. What is odd here is that he seemed to change his mind. He agreed to appear at UC and knew fully of the boycott, but he now changes his mind.

I have two theories as to why he changed his mind. One is simple. He had to cancel for other reasons and choose to or was asked to claim it was to support the boycott. The other theory is that, like other people have alleged, he was warned that his appearance might cause more riots. That warning would logically come from one of the boycott groups and would by some be interpreted as a threat.

Most people in Cincinnati will not care about missing Spike Lee. I did not even know he was to appear in at UC. This does nothing but hurt Spike Lee fans and UC. If they boycotters want to prevent the visit of any and all famous black people that is not going to hurt most people. If they are going to do that, why are they not pushing the professional sports teams to comply? Why aren’t Griffey, Larkin, and Dillon front and center in line with the boycott? Why haven’t other city players refused to play here? Why are they black players on UC and XU still playing? Why doesn’t the boycott have a consistent boycott target? The answer is obvious. They boycott cherry picks who they can get to comply to their demands. They have but one plan: Gain power, seek revenge, and get rich.

UPDATE: Matt Weiler comments on Spike Lee's cancellation.

More than half of Ohio's military reservists summoned to duty
I am not sure how this compares with the rest of the country, but Ohio seems to be taking a hit from this military build up. It will cost private company's money while these solider are on duty, and they will all get their jobs back when they return along with retirement benefits as if they took no time off. Many police forces are reported to have been hit especially hard by this action. I don't think Bush has any assistance for local police or private business to help relieve the stress this deployment has on people back home, as well as the soldiers doing their duty.

Buzz Planning for the worst?
Is 1230 the Buzz planning for the worst by keeping this web page on its site? They have kept this page too, I assume, in case they ever change their minds or if they loose a pending lawsuit on appeal.

Talk show host Jerry Springer said he's considering a run for the U.S. Senate
This is not a new story. The rumor has been going around for a few years now. It would be one fun campaign, but it would be a huge mistake for the Democrats to waste a nomination on a ratings grab for a declining TV circus.

City Appoints Director For Review Panel
$96,000.00 a year. I hope he does something positive for that kind of salary. I also hope this is a full time job.

Developer missing with $184,000 in tax money
Council Man Pat Dewine wants answers from Luken? Luken may have some blame, but where was Dewine? He did vote against the loan, but why, as Finance Committee chairman, did he not oversee the project it he found it objectionable?

The story also incorrectly reported "Mayor Charlie Luken voted for the city loan to the theater project to help revitalize Over-the-Rhine." The Mayor, under the new strong Mayor form of city government, does not vote on measures before the council, as the minutes showing the approval of the loan indicates, but he can execute a veto.

Dueling abortion marches see urgency
This section seemed to a be a problem:

As is traditional, Mr. Bush broadcast a message to the anti-abortion rally, saying Americans "must protect the lives of innocent children waiting to be born."

As is traditional? It is not traditional for the President of the United States to Address an anti-abortion rally. It might be considered traditional for the President of the United States to address the side of the debate he supports.

Anti-abortion rally causes stir
With a GOP run House, Senate, White House, and Supreme Court, why is it a surprise that the Smithsonian Institution would be abused by a gang of Kentucky Republicans? The Smithsonian is not a place to play politics, but the anti-abortion protestors generally adhere to an "ends justifies the means" attitude about their cause. If any left-leaning group abused the Smithsonian like this, the White House and Congress would be calling for an investigation. Instead, the Smithsonian is left to fend for itself. This breakfast was sponsored by a Catholic Group. Did that group lie to the Smithsonian officials, or did they participants just take advantage without any warning? I am glad the Enquirer reported this story, but I wonder who else did? The problem with the Enquirer's story is that in an accompanying puff piece on anti-abortion protestors who went to D.C for the protests, the story reports that they were at the breakfast at the Smithsonian. Why didn't the reporters ask the participants about the political activities at the breakfast? Did the reporters go to the breakfast? I see a bias, but is it in the reporting or in the editing? Yesterday's Enquirer editorial on abortion sounded like a slightly less than an extreme position on abortion, but one still riddled with propaganda. I have to keep on reminding myself, you live in a right-wing town. They know not what they do.

Taft Smack!
Chris Anderson gives us a super insider look at Bob Taft's State of the State speech. His initial draft takes Taft down a peg or two. Chris better watch out, SNL might want to steal this bit. I know I busted a gut laughing while reading it. I wish more voters could have heard about Taft's plans before last November's election, but who ever heard about a politician telling his constituents his real plans before an election? If you really care, here is the final version of the speech.

John Schlagetter has cornered Nate Livingston's html programming fingerprints. I wonder if anyone still thinks the http://www.friendsofkarendewine.com website is really run by a disgruntled conservative. If they do, I think they might be waiting in line to buy season tickets for the Red's Riverfront Stadium season opener all alone.

Tri-State Blog Round Up
Chris Anderson on Denise Smith-Amos's column and Article XII.

John Schlagetter on the State of the City Address. On Problematic for the People Jon is asked "What Am I Contributing?"

Rob Bernard tries to make hay with Jack Nicholson's alleged anti-abortion stance. This statement is from National Review's the Corner and has no support listed, so I don't trust it, and it does not preclude the possibility that Jack is both anti-abortion and pro-choice.

Abortion: 30 Years after Roe v. Wade.
Abortion should be legal. The debate can rage for hours about the issue, but it should be legal. The details as how it should be legal are not set in stone. There is room for compromise in how it is legal. In my opinion very few limits, if any, should be made, but those are elements that States can regulate. Beyond that, it is the choice of the women and those she wishes to confer with and confide in.

The Local Media has shown a dichotomy in coverage. The Cincinnati Enquirer has an amazing bias against abortion. They run stories praising kids for skipping school to go protest in D.C., but don't ask the kids why they don't protest against the War, a reasonable question for those who claim to "defend life in all stages." The most amazing element to this is that the reporter, Maggie Downs, filed the story in D.C. Either she went along with the protestors, or she is based in the D.C. area.

The Post on the other hand ran a serious of stories that analyzed the local availability of abortion, the current legal standing of the issue with the US Supreme Court, and the status of the law nationally.

John Schlagetter also provides his thoughts on today's 30th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision.

Marc at Chili Madness says Chicago was DAMN great, and no, he says he's not gay. It is on my list to see, along with Gangs of New York.