Miami #1

You're not going to read about this in the Enquirer, but Miami is #1 in the nation in College Hockey.

Love and honor to Miami,
Our college old and grand,
Proudly we shall ever hail thee,
Over all the land.

Alma mater now we praise thee,
Sing joyfully this lay,
Love and honor to Miami,
Forever and a day.

Get an interesting take here on Miami Hockey from a North Dakota fan, the #2 team.

Sam Malone Owes Son Money

First He was charged with whipping his son with a Belt, but now he was spending his son's money too. This time the courts ruled against him. What is most horrible for this man to have done is the report in the article that alleges Malone used some of the money that belonged to his son to pay his legal fees in his defense on the charges for beating that same son. I guess Malone was going to take it out of his hide in more ways than one.

BRINK: A New Music Showcase

The Southgate House has a great line-up for this Saturday Night (Nov 3rd). If I can get gang to go, I'm going to check out the likes of: The Pomegranates, White Girls, Lions Rampant, Jon Justice, Kinsey Rose, The Read, Eat Sugar, The Delusionals, Eclipse, Cash Flagg and Nathan Holscher.

Council Supports Banks

All Nine voted in a joint subcommittee meeting to support the Banks plan. An assumed formality vote in a full council session is expected later in the week.

It appears like something is going to happen. I'm still foggy on the details. If they are out there, I've not seen them blanketed around for all to read. I'm worried about its success. It still appears to me that all of the political leaders are missing something about development of any area in and around Downtown: you need people to live there. Residency is the key to the Banks, to Fountain Square and to OTR. If you don't make it easy and attractive to live in Downtown, then these new projects will not make it.

I also see the double edge of the Banks. I hope everyone understand what the Banks is going to be: a play ground for the suburbanites. What they want is a place to play before and after the game. That is what is driving the Banks. Sure, it exists now in Downtown or over in Covington/Newport, but people are actually that lazy as to want it within yards of the stadium.

I think the Banks in concept is good idea, what I hope people don't do is see it as anything more than a loss leader. It is the way to give people a taste of the City, but what will make everything work is having thousands of new residents in Downtown and OTR. That will bring the retail everyone clamors for. It takes people to build a city, not an ESPN Zone. When I hear John Cranley joking about drinking beer in a big national chain restaurant, all I can think of is McMain Street.

What the city needs to attract now are two thing: residents and employers who like having residents live near by.

Police Union Assault

Once again Peter Bronson is attacking a union for fighting against the actions of large corporation, one run by a hard right Republican. I am still waiting for Bronson to write a column calling out the FOP for its assault on people of Cincinnati for its 2001 slowdown. Bronson is against every union there is, except for a chapter of the FOP that pushing GOP political views every change they get.

Prediction Monday #2

With media endorsements starting to come in: Enquirer, Downtowner, we can have round two of Prediction Monday. Here is how I see it:

Locks:
Cranley, Qualls, Crowley

Almost locks:
No One

Likely on council:
Bortz, Harris, Winburn

In the running:
Berding, Ghiz, Monzel, Thomas

Long shots:
Kaup, Eby, Fischer

The rest of the field has no shot. The betting man's game will be on who will come in last. The bottom usually has the independents, so look for one of them to take the last sport, but this year there are several endorsed candidates who haven't done campaigning to get the votes. The "honor" of being last should garner some type of award. I may create one, just for such an achievement.

Enquirer Endorsements Are Out

The Enquirer has picked their Nine and there are some interesting picks and non-picks. The list:

Chris Bortz
Laketa Cole
John Cranley
David Crowley
John Eby
Leslie Ghiz
Greg Harris
Chris Monzel
Cecil Thomas

The Enquirer did something very honest when it comes to Cole. I would surmise they had picked her prior to the story about the "physical altercation with another woman" came out last night. They didn't revoke the endorsement, at least not yet, but in the article's paragraph she got 2 postive sentences, and then 4 sentences on the scandal, ending with a call for Cole to give a full explanation. I hope that if Cole doesn't hold a press conference with a reasonable explanation by the end of the day Monday, the Enquirer should step up and revoke the endorsement.

The main surprises to me was in who the Enquirer did not endorse: Qualls, Winburn, Berding, and Fischer. All fit the traditional pick of the Enquirer, being more of establishment candidates. Harris and Crowley are two that I am very, very pleased they endorsed, but it goes against type for the Conservative Enquirer to pick two Progressive candidates. I am glad they have a better mix than their 2005 endorsements, which was a very Conservative Slate.

The endorsements from the newspapers in the past have influenced certain voters, but in recent years that influence has wanned. In a year with more than 9 candidates who can make a case as qualified choices, will voters pay more attention to who the Enquirer, the Post, and CityBeat pick for council?

If I were to pick one candidate who may get on council because of this pick it is Greg Harris. Greg has been running a very strong campaign. He has been in the mix in most polls so far, giving him one of the lower half of the 9 slots. This kind of backing I think will solidify his hold on what the polls have been saying. He has reached a great position in the race with about 10 days to go. Some hard charging and as much media buys as possible and I think he gets on.

Ghiz may also back into a seat on council, but she will have to get the Westside Conservative vote. She has lost most of the moderate and progressive votes she had last time. Westside Conservatives read the Enquirer.

Who else is hurt or helped by the Enquirer?

Cole's Drama Outlined

Joe Wessels outlines more of the drama in the Laketa Cole scandal. It appears her boyfriend has a bench warrant for missing a court appearance.

Isn't Sam Malone single???????

Cole Train Derailed?

Council member Laketa Cole allegedly got into a fight with a pregnant 23 year old woman. What is most interesting is that Cole allegedly tried to have police keep her name out of the police report. It was thought that she was both a victim and suspect in the incident, so the confusion is pretty thick at this point.

What will this do for her chances to win back her council seat? Will anyone care she got into a fight and that allegedly resulted in scratches to the face of both the 23 year old as well as to Cole herself? Does this maybe move her from a lock to the bubble? Does this in some minds make her a better candidate? Scandals make the political world jump, but does the public care?

Give Me Fat, Or Give Me Death

Yates is going way too far with a bill to ban "trans fat". I understand we need to be more healthy, but this idea goes way over the edge.

Now, I am sure the smokers bitching about the smoking ban will take glee in saying this is the next slippery slope, but sorry Joe Camel, smoking doesn't equate to a form of food.

Details...Details...Details

Ok, there has been an anouncement of a deal on the Banks, but we don't have the details. We also don't have approval from City Council or the County Commission. This article implies something has happened. The Banks project has many hurdles ahead. I wonder if it will be set up for a pre-election approval vote? I hope the Mayor prevents the council from making a bad decision, just to get a good photo-op.

Prediction Monday?

Anyone want to predict council, yet again? I'm thinking the locks are:

Cranley, Qualls

Almost locks:

Cole, Crowley

Then the rest are just to close to predict, but those in the running:

Bortz, Berding, Ghiz, Monzel, Thomas, Harris, Winburn, Cooper, Fischer

Long shots:

Kaup, Bates, Eby

Who am I missing?

Also, shall we do this weekly until election day? Refine the list down a bit by Nov 5th maybe?

Shame

The local GOP should be ashamed of the candidate they endorsed. This is the candidate who has been accused twice of domestic violence.

Fountain Square Campaigning

Did anyone go to Fountain Square Candidates Meet & Greet? I am more than a little concerned about what TV commercial Sam Malone is going to air that will appeal to women. Does beating your kid with a belt appeal to women? Is that something new in the modern woman that I've just not picked up on?

$102 MillionStreet Car Plan Announced

The Streetcar plan has been outlined to City Council and the 5 member economic committee voted its support for Streetcars.

Details on the financing are here.

E.W. Scripps to Split into Two Companies

By splitting between a newspaper company and a TV/national business company the big question remains unanswered: Will the headquarters of either company leave Cincinnati? I would guess the TV Company will certainly move out of town. It appears to have not been run out of Cincinnati anyway. Will the Newspaper company stay in town is the bigger concern. Without a local paper, will they stay?

Ding Ding: Streetcar Plan's Coming

Today we'll get the plan for streetcars. The streetcar is the cornerstone of what will take the revitalization of Downtown and OTR to the next level.

Cincinnati Crime is Down

Crime is down in the City. There are a few neighborhood pockets were crime is not down, but OTR, Downtown, and West End have had significant reductions.

Will any Council candidates point out this decrease? Likely if you are someone like John Cranley or Cecil Thomas, you might champion this issue that what Cincinnati is doing to fight crime is working.

This also blows holes into last year's murder rate. It appears clear that the murders were narrowly sourced and not part of wide spread crime wave.

I will be interested in how this will be spun by the campaigns.

Ignorant Fools

In the Letters to the Enquirer one exposes the massive ignorance of the public where Gary Taylor of Oakley pines about Al Gore getting the Nobel Peace prize. His main beef is that Ronald Reagan didn't win one. Well, let's review a few facts. First, Nobel create the prize, in part, to make up for the military use of his invention, dynamite. So Reagan builds up the Military by building a ton of new bombs and weapons systems. This goes against the origin of the Nobel Peace Prize, so why would anyone but an ignorant fool think Reagan would have have one or deserved to win the prize?

UrbanCincy: Stop talking...start doing!

UncleRando has it right.