Monday, November 19, 2007

Change

Murder me God down in that basement,
murder my dreams so I stop wantin,
murder my hope of him returnin,
strangle the pride that make me crazy!
Make me forget so I stop grievin.
Scour my skin till I stop feelin.
Take Caroline away cause I cain't be her,
take her away I cain't afford her.
Tear out my heart
Strangle my soul
Turn me to salt
A pillar of salt
a broken stone and then...
"Lot's Wife"
Caroline Or Change
I had the opportunity over the last two weeks to catch three performances of the New Stage Collective's production of this amazing musical collaboration between Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori. New Stage Artistic Director Alan Patrick Kenny is really doing some daring things with this group. As Caroline, Taylore Mahogany Scott gave a heartwrenching performance in an emotionally difficult role. In yesterday's closing performance, she just blew the doors off the song "Lot's Wife" and left the audience gasping. The entire cast was great, so if you missed this show, you missed one of the theatrical highlights of the year. You also missed one of the most racially mixed audiences I have seen for theater in Cincinnati. Check out this theater on Main Street in OTR (http://www.newstagecollective.com). They are doing some challenging and daring things for our little town, including Take Me Out and Jerry Springer, the Opera. (Posted by Jack)

Welcome

Please join me in welcoming three new blog contributors: Julie, Donald, and Jack. I'll still be blogging, so you've not rid yourself of my brilliant typing.

Sunday, November 18, 2007

Last In, First Out, Crime Up

Why did Si Leis chose to cut the OTR patrols program? Why not cut the patrols in all of the townships? They don't have any crime at all to worry about, so they shouldn't miss the patrols. If they think they need more, let them incorporate and pay for it themselves.

Yes, I am kidding....on the square. I really am wondering why the sheriff would cut patrols that have been far more effective in catching criminals than worrying about speeders in Columbia Township. Is is using some kind of LIFO crime fighting technique?

Friday, November 16, 2007

Broomball on Fountain Square

Registration is now open for the 2008 Broomball season!!! Read all about it here; the league will have two conferences: one for beginners, and the other for "advanced" players. I watched a couple games last year, and it looked like a lot of fun.

Maybe we should have a Cincinnati Blog team.....[Posted by Donald]

Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown

I don't want to join the bandwagon of folks who can't find anything nice to say about Fountain Square. Frankly, I like the new square design; the jumbotron; and the increased number of events taking place there (does anyone know when this year's broomball league starts?).

But when I drive past the Christmas tree, I can't help but wonder: isn't it a little scraggly this year? Maybe it's just that the lights aren't up yet. Or maybe the summer-long drought kept the tree from being all that it could be. But I'm not loving this year's tree just yet. [Posted by Donald]

Yet Another Introduction

"I went on to Cincinnati. I had got a taste of the big cities and them bright lights. I stayed there until I was about 18 or 19 and then I went on to Detroit."


John Lee Hooker


In responding to Brian's gracious invitation for additional contributors to this blog, I told him that if he wanted a grumpy gay curmudgeon's perspective, I was the guy for the job. I am a 51 (almost 52, if anyone wants to get me a birthday present soon) year old attorney, a partner in a large downtown law firm -- so not a YP by any stretch. I am a civil litigator and also coordinate all of the pro bono work done by my firm. I also teach at the law school at the University of Cincinnati in areas related to legal ethics and sexual orientation/identity and the law. For the first 15 years I was in Cincinnati, I lived in Clifton (3 years) and then downtown (12 years). Currently, I live in the vicinity of Mariemont. I was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee and have been in Cincinnati for 17 years, having lived on the east coast for a number of years before that. Being an attorney is only one of several careers I have had in my life, having worked in prior incarnations as a political professional and then as a religious professional. I try to be an active contributor to the arts in Cincinnati, and I currently serve on the Board of the Cincinnati Opera. I am also active in a number of local, regional and national GLBT organizations, including serving on the Board of the Point Foundation, which provides financial support, mentoring and hope to meritorious students across the country who are marginalized due to sexual orientation, gender expression or gender identity. Anyone who knows me knows that I have a love / hate relationship with Cincinnati, having been frustrated by its narrowness and provincialism and elevated by its beauty and its artistic heritage. In my blogging I want to give voice to this tension, recognizing the beauty and potential of this town and calling out those forces that hold us back. And I hope to have some fun in doing this. (Posted by Jack)

Another introduction.

Thanks, Brian, for allowing me the opportunity to guest blog. A little about me: I'm a 27-year-old, life-long resident of Cincinnati. I grew up on the west side, lived on the east side, and call Over the Rhine home these days. I graduated from both UC (BA) and Xavier (MEd) and work in the publishing industry as an editor. I'm very active in the arts here in Cincinnati (theatre in particular), and my blogging with primarily revolve around the Cincinnati arts community, education issues, general politics and an occasional food post for good measure. (Posted by Julie)

Joe Nuxhall: 1928-2007

Beloved Reds radio announcer died last night at the age of 79.

Thursday, November 15, 2007

No Room at the Inn

Kimball Perry reports on an exchange that occured in court this morning when a municipal court judge set bond for a man charged with possessing between one and five grams of crack cocaine (a crime that carries up to eighteen months in prison). The judge set bond at $5,000, but the prosecutor apparently thought that was too low. I doubt that the bond was actually influenced by the rejection of the proposed sales tax increase (after all, even if the vote had gone the other way, there'd be no more bed space today than there was two weeks ago). The only thing that's surprising is that Judge Burlew entertained further discussion about the matter after he announced his decision on bond; usually, once a judge announces a bond amount, the defendant is pretty quickly escorted back to the holding cells adjacent to the courtroom and the next case is called. [posted by Donald.]

An Introduction

Brian has graciously decided to permit me to guest-blog here from time-to-time. A little about me: I'm a thirty-three year-old criminal defense and civil rights attorney who has lived in Cincinnati since 2000. I live and work downtown. As you might expect, my blogging proclivities will tend towards legal happenings in town as well as downtown issues (including development, gentrification, or simply fun things going on). [posted by Donald]

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

MIAMI 59, XU 57

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.


Read about it here.

Much Ado?

Jason Haap is frothing at the mouth about something that one of his nutty candidate friends quickly saw in a document from the BOE. I wonder if what Michael Earl Patton saw was the canvass report from the BOE which listed the vote totals from each precinct. The total ballots cast listed there are 50,017. This is different than the total results which included the absentee ballots, which totaled 59,246. The difference in ballots cast are some 9,229. Is this difference Jason refers to when he stated:
It seems about 9,000 less votes were actually cast than originally reported.
The Canvass report did come out after the total results were listed, so it does fit. The Canvass report doesn't include absentee votes and the total number of votes cast in canvass document matches the number cast on the total document. Unless Jason has a different document, then he and Michael Earl Patton appear to have made a very foolish mistake. No, that would not be a surprise.

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Teen Club?

Ok, what teen club is near the intersection of Main and 12th Streets? Are we talking about a rented out club? Club Red maybe? Also, when the newspaper says "teens" do they mean over or under age 18 year olds?

Why wasn't the club named? Someone planned a teen night and didn't control things at all. They are lucky no one was hurt, at least no reports on that were made in the paper. If someone was hurt, the paper certainly would have made that known.

The last thing Main Street needs are teenagers. Please, oh please, keep the kids out of an adult entertainment area.

Monday, November 12, 2007

Help Wanted

I'm in need of guest bloggers. If you have the desire to chime in on this blog with a limited form of semi-autonomy, send me an email at cincyblog at aol.com.

Friday, November 09, 2007

The Blue Wisp Plays On

New owners of the Cincinnati Jazz institution plan on carrying on the tradition of the club, with some newness.

Thursday, November 08, 2007

"Bloggers?"

Greg Korte of the Enquirer is claiming:
"The issue made it to the ballot when an unusual coalition of bloggers, the NAACP and conservative anti-tax groups collected more than 38,000 valid signatures in order to put the tax to a referendum.
OK, bloggers plural? What blog beyond the Beacon supported, in more than lip service, the anti-jail tax petition? Also, how on earth do "bloggers" get top billing over the NAACP and the nuts in COAST?

I think Greg's bow tie was a little too tight on Tuesday night. I thought about getting a picture of him and post it, but the Less Nessman headline I was thinking of would have been just too snarky.

Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Voter Turnout Low

The voter turnout in the County was down slightly from 2005, but in the City Voter turnout dropped significantly:

County:
2007 - 34.14%
2005 - 35.87%
Change - 1.73% Decrease

City of Cincinnati:
2007 - 27.91%
2005 - 35.23%
Change - 7.32% Decrease

On Issue 27 this shows that the anti-tax faction got their base out in force. It is difficult to get a motivated electorate to come out in mass in an effort to raise taxes.

Counting Irregularities

The most in your face story from last night was clearly the screw ups with counting the votes. First of all, does anyone wonder why a paper trail is absolutely critical to any voting system?

Secondly, why the hell did it really take this long? Who was unprepared? Were the poll workers not trained correctly? I would surmise that may have only been a small issue. It sounds like to me the real issue was how the counting programming was set up. It was a BOE problem. Someone needs to either get new a new system, or get someone who knows how to operate the system they have. This is not the first election in which they used this new voting system.

While they are at it, could the HC BOE get a new website? Could they put the results online in a form other than a pdf? Why can't they also give real time precinct detail? Also, why can't I find a listing of the Cincinnati precinct locations online? Hell, I'd take a map of the wards to know where they are? I was personally very displeased with the efforts of local election officials. Cincinnati will again be part of the Ohio swing state mess that certainly will fall upon us in 2008.

Meet the New Boss, Same as the Old Boss

I don't believe anyone predicted that all incumbents would keep their jobs. I am very surprised that Ghiz, Berding, and Monzel all stayed on council. Here are the results:

John Cranley 32,663
Roxanne Qualls 32,648
David C. Crowley 30,112
Cecil Thomas 26,206
Chris Bortz 25,677
Leslie Ghiz 24,163
Laketa Cole 23,853
Jeff Berding 22,906
Chris Monzel 22,712

Charlie Winburn 21,267
Minette Cooper 18,141
Sam Malone 16,767
Melanie Bates 14,863
Pat Fischer 14,570
Greg Harris 13,734
John Eby 13,684
Wendell Young 13,432
Brian Garry 12,710
Joan Kaup 8,184
Andre Harper 7,223
Justin Jeffre 7,065
Mitch Painter 4,944
Steve Pavelish 4,058
Michael Earl Patton 3,025
George Zamary 2,112

This election is one where analysis of which Wards/Precincts voted and who voted for which candidate is going to be looked at with intense research.

Tuesday, November 06, 2007

Coming Down to the End

As of now I am resting my laurels for a while and grabbing dinner before heading over to the BOE. The polls are open for a just over an hour an hour. What's the feeling on turnout today? What issues are going to pass or fail?

Ok, the CCV are Irrelevant, but....

We can learn about at least one councilman's views on evolution. I don't really care what Monzel thinks on social issues, as long as he doesn't make them into law. In the poorly written question he gives a bad answer. Chris is a good guy with just many, many bad and oppressive stances on social issues.

Is the CCV actually losing all of its influence in the city? In the questionnaire referenced in the The Bellwether Daily only two council candidates are listed on the as having responded to the survey. I mean, where is Charlie Winburn and Sam Malone's response? Sam Malone carried the CCV's water in their crusade to oppress gays and lesbians in the City. Sam can't be bothered with the CCV? Or does the CCV not want to associate itself with a guy who allegedly whipped his son with a belt. I think I can take away the allegedly part, but I am going to be on the safe side.

City Link Winning?

Kevin Osborne of CityBeat reports on a court win for the Cit Link group.

Vote Early, And Often

Ah, that saying never gets old! Well the polls are open and will be open in Ohio until 7:30 tonight.

Chime in with your voting experiences. So far it is cold and Sunny out. The forecast via weather.com states:
A mix of clouds and sun with gusty winds. Much cooler. High 48F. Winds W at 20 to 30 mph.
So, there is no excuse to not get out there an vote.

Monday, November 05, 2007

Council Predictions 2007 - Final Round

Ok, it is time for the final installment of council predictions. Today, I'm going to make a full prediction, including order of finish. Other than the top few, I have no real way to know who will get on, and the order of finish is nearly always a surprise. I'm making my guesses based most only my gut. I couldn't afford a crack staff of 25 analysts this year. Sorry about that, maybe next year for the big election. Anyway, here is what I say will happen:

John Cranley
Roxanne Qualls
David Crowley
Chris Bortz
Laketa Cole
Charlie Winburn
Chris Monzel
Cecil Thomas
Greg Harris
Leslie Ghiz
Jeff Berding
Minette Cooper
John Eby
Joan Kaup
Sam Malone
Melanie Bates
Pat Fischer
Wendell Young
Brian Garry
Andre Harper
Justin Jeffre
George Zamary
Mitch Painter
Michael Earl Patton
Steve Pavelish

Voter turnout will be the key factor this year, with the last few to get on council still up in the air. The two in the top that could really move are Cole and Winburn. Cole will unfortunately likely still win. She could drop like a rock to 7th or 8th place. Winburn could move up, depending on voter turnout and if he is keeping both the Conservative and Black votes he has had before.

I'll be doing more blogging tomorrow during the day. Keep me posted on any voting problems. This is another year where we have to have ID to vote. I just moved, and I have the electric bill as back-up ready to go!

Does First Place Matter This Year?

Other than for ego, will coming in first place for City Council actually do anything for the candidate? For Cranley or Qualls will be number get them anything? I would guess that Crowely will remain Vice Mayor. Will they get better committee chairs? The article makes the point that convention wisdom states that the top vote getter can use the status being number one to get higher office. Would Cranley or Qualls run for Mayor next time around? Will Cranley take on DeWine for the County Commission? Yes, I'm looking ahead, but Cranley and Qualls are going to win, so we can start looking ahead for them.

Friday, November 02, 2007

More on the the Murder on Main

Yes, the alliteration is a bit much, but here's a story on the murder near 12th and Main on Wednesday night. This article reports that police are investigating the possibility that the shooting stemmed from an argument inside Club Red. Was Club Red even open that night?

More on the Brink

Get the lowdown on the Brink music showcase tomorrow night, including a nice background on the bands from the organizer of the fest, Dan McCabe.

Takedown of Winburn and Malone

In case you missed it, here's the website that exposes certain sides of Charlie Winburn and to a degree Sam Malone. Malone is toast anyway, so this really hits more on Winburn and his extreme odd church.

Thursday, November 01, 2007

CityBeat Council Endorsements

I am somewhat surprised by some of CityBeat's Endorsements. Here they are:
Chris Bortz
Laketa Cole
John Cranley
David Crowley
John Eby
Brian Garry
Greg Harris
Joan Kaup
Roxanne Qualls

I am a little bit surprised, but pleased they support John Eby. I disagree on some issues with John, but he is a good guy, and is the best Republican in the field.

I am very surprised about Laketa Cole. Even without her recent Drama, she's not been a good council member, and how she's been working with the fiscal five should turn her off from the usual CityBeat philosophy.

I am also surprised CityBeat has a very white slate. I think Cecil Thomas is worthy of consideration, even with his conservative social views. With CityBeat's choices as cover, I might be able to avoid some of the White Guilt crowd's anger when I say this year there is a clear lack of good minority candidates. There by comparison an increased number of non-minority quality Urbanist-Progressive candidates attractive to CityBeat. This does not fit the demographics of the city, however. Does this bode well for the future?

More Thugs on Main?

I think I saw a couple of cop cars fly down my street last night racing towards Main, but I didn't notice a crowd at all. They didn't run down 12th Street my way. With another murder on Main two things need to happen. Firstly, the corner of 12th and Main needs to be cleaned up. Station a cop there all the time. Drive out the criminals. The Jordan attracts criminals. The section 8 housing on Main and 12th needs better management to get the problem people out or in jail when they break the law.

Secondly, if the clubs down there are at all to blame for bringing in stupid wannabe gang bangers. It is a rather simple thing, don't cater to the thugs. Do promote gang life, don't glorify it and the thug will stay away.

What is funny, if I hadn't read about this today, I wouldn't have know this happened 2 blocks from where I live. Who would ever have guessed that 12th and Vine is far safer than 12th and Main Street?

Wednesday, October 31, 2007

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.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

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.

Monday, October 29, 2007

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.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

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???????

Friday, October 26, 2007

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.

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

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.

Monday, October 22, 2007

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?

Friday, October 19, 2007

Shame

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

Thursday, October 18, 2007

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?

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

$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.

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

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.

Monday, October 15, 2007

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.

Saturday, October 13, 2007

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.

Fountain Square Graeter's Opens Monday

More great news for Fountain Square as one of Cincinnati's most popular establishments opens a new location downtown with a seven day a week schedule:
6:30 AM to 10 PM Monday through Friday,
7 AM to 10 PM Saturdays
11 AM to 7 PM Sundays
It's starting to get cooler, so ice cream isn't going to be the hottest seller this fall, but the full bakery and limited candy selection should offer a nice treat when you are on the Square to watch a Bengals game.

Question for Republicans

Do you care who your Ohio State Rep endorses in the GOP Primary for President? I certainly don't care who Dale Mallory is endorsing in the Democratic Primary.

"Fire the Fiscal Five" Video

Here's another video I was linked to. I think there was a similar video a while about the five. This may be the same video, anyway, an interesting piece of propaganda.

Friday, October 12, 2007

Mythos Mania

Another new self proclaimed "middle-class" restaurant is opening on 4th Street in Downtown.

Thursday, October 11, 2007

PSA for Sam Malone

I think Sam Malone needs to read this post in CityBeat to learn about how to be proper parent. If he learned that "Real Men Don't Hit" he might become a respectable human being.

Cranley Care

CityBeat is reporting that Councilman John Cranley is teasing the electorate with a health care plan that would provide a means for low cost health insurance for City Residents.

The plan on the first glance lacks enough detail to determine if it is just way to expensive or if it more of a pea shooter firing on an artillery range.

One of the problems that comes to mind first is what will happen when an employer wants to pull out of the insurance plan or if they can't afford to pay their portion or they just go bankrupt. If having a job is a requirement for the insurance, then it can help the working poor and working class, but if they loose their job, it doesn't help fill in the gaps.

The fact that the plan will not be "officially" brought forth until after the election makes this a massive trial balloon. Cranley is not in danger of losing the election next month. If he has his eyes on running for Mayor in 2009, then this might be a way to build up an accomplishment before a future election that at this point has many viable candidates being mentioned as running.

Tuesday, October 09, 2007

Bandwagon UC Fans

Ok, I am getting sick of the bandwagon UC fans who all of the sudden get upset about UC football. Hell, as a Miami fan, I bet I've been to as many UC football games over the years then a large portion of UC alumni.

If they were not ranked, few would have cared what was on Fountain Square (I think only a few care now). When UC is no longer ranked, they will go away. I really can't stand fans who jump on the bandwagon only when "their" team is winning. It is yet another thing wrong with sports today.

UDPATE: Paul Daugherty Chimes in.

CAC: Odili Donald Odita

Harris and Eby Cooperation

Something fairly new for Cincinnati, a Democrat and a Republican have come together to promote a plan for the city: Common Sense Cincinnati.

Monday, October 08, 2007

Cincy YP PAC Endorsements

The endorsements are out and the list is very underwhelming. I agree with logic behind Harris, Qualls, and Bortz. Cranley's prior mocking of YP groups does nothing to demonstrate he cares about the efforts of YPs to help the City. Cranley is a YP himself, which makes it more troubling. Berding, Cole, and Fisher all I feel are not championing the 5 issues Cincy YP PAC lists as the most important.

Joan Kaup clearly is one I would say is on the side of YPs, I would be interested in knowing why she did not make the list. I might trough George Zamary into that camp as well, with him being a much better choice to reach out to the Republicans than Pat Fisher.

Bottom line, I was very disappointed in the picks. Politically, if you are trying to spread your eggs into many different baskets, that has some logic to it, but in the long run helping the candidates who are not squarely in your corner will comeback to bite you in butt.

Louisville Dises Ohio

Via the Urban Louisvillian:
If any part of Kentucky really wants to compare cultures with Ohio, I think they are in way over their heads. And yes, we have plenty of women in Ohio with tattoos on their butts. The key difference is that they are not our sisters.

Sunday, October 07, 2007

Ghiz' Westside Digs

A Hyde Park Republican, Leslie Ghiz, is having open house at her HQ located in Westwood, the heart of the Westside. Did the Eastsider locate her HQ way over there because she desperately needs to get every Westwood vote she can get, or was the short term office rent cheaper?

Saturday, October 06, 2007

Charity for Charity's sake

Joe Wessels has an excellent post on the misguided "do gooders" are trying to do something, instead of doing what is best.

FOP Endorses Man Who Beat His Kid

It is remarkable that the Police Union in Cincinnati is so blind they overlooked Sam Malone's arrest on domestic violence charges (he was acquitted). Malone's son testified in court that his father repeatedly whipped him with a belt.

The Cincinnati FOP has ignored the actions of Malone and endorsed him for City Council.

Never mind that they endorsed nearly all of the Republicans running, which is a given with an organization that has recently be a shill for the Republicans. How can the union representing the law enforcement agency for the City support a man who has never denied he hit his son with a belt. It is disgusting that the representatives of the local police force would let a man who uses violence as tool to control his son represent the City in any capacity, let alone at its highest level.

The sad part, this isn't a surprise.

Friday, October 05, 2007

Roebling Point?

Will a new marketing plan help put the "other" Covington entertainment district on the map?

Thursday, October 04, 2007

If He Were a Democrat....

Si Leis would be run out of town on a rail for this kind of crap if he was a Democrat. Talk radio would want his head. Peter Bronson would be calling for him to be put into jail. The Enquirer would be pushing for a recall vote.

What is sad, is that this has been Si Leis's style for years. It surely is not the first time he has done this. The problem now is that the far right wing in Hamilton County are against Leis on the Tax issue. That makes him a target and they have had this kind of dirt on him for years?Wwhy wait until now to bring it out? What people will do to put their political views forward on a tax issue is really remarkable.

Change at CinWeekly

CinWeekly's Kari Wethington is moving over to the Enquirer to cover news in Northern Kentucky. This I believe is a plus for Kari and I hope helps her career. What she should be doing, at least part time, is writing about local music in Cincinnati on a regularly. The way the Enquirer has been assigning reporters, I find it more likely she will only have a geographical beat, not a topical one. This is an Enquirer trend that is not a wise way to build up the skills of reporters. It is instead a way to use them as machines to churn out copy.

Furthermore, I hope CinWeekly does not drop coverage of the local music scene. We didn't have a local blog coverage this year from Cin on Midpoint. I would surmise that Kari's move caused a gap that left open the coverage. Cin needs to step up to the plate and continue the level of music coverage Kari was providing. They could still do more! The Enquirer has no care about local music or much of any local news. Cin has many issues, but one of their highlights has been Kari's music coverage over the last few years. I for one will miss her weekly column. I do wish her well on her new job.

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

Over Kill?

I think the issue here is that some kids are acting like jerks and not getting out the way of the car. I mean, where did "Car! Game On" come from? As a kid we played whiffle ball and football in the street all the time. We did it on side streets and we got out the way when cars came down.

All you need to do is get a few of the kids parents to drive by and give them crap for not getting out of the way. This is a parenting issue, not one the city should be worry about.

The exception is on busy streets. It should be a rule already that you just can't be out on medium to high volume streets. That is simply a safety issue. Practically, no one is foolish enough anyway to be out playing touch football in the middle of Reading Road.

Tuesday, October 02, 2007

How?

Winburn has started his campaign of fear. I've not seen the ad, but the article claims he wants to bring down violent crime. Again in the article is states violent crime is down 12.6% from last year. What magic bullet does Charlie Winburn have to get crime down? Is he going to perform a mass exorcism to rid the City of violent demons or something?

Monday, October 01, 2007

Blog Debate

The Enquirer's Editorial Page Blog is holding what can best be described as a blog debate among candidates for Cincinnati City Council. I'm confused how this is going to work efficiently, but it should be interesting.

Friday, September 28, 2007

Thursday, September 27, 2007

MidPoint Debate

I don't have the time or the energy to debate the structure, style, motive, themes of MidPoint. It is not time to be MidPoint. I will be discussing the issues discussed in CityBeat and in the two blog posts from Each Note Secure Here and Here.

There is much, much, much to say about this, but not now! Look for comments after 2 AM later Saturday night. Well, not really until later on Sunday, if that soon, but anyway.....

Doing the MidPoint Thang

I'll be blogging Midpoint over at The Conveyor all weekend, as wifi alows me it will be live. Otherwise, look for my recaps in the morning.

"Pro-Life" Bronson Loves Him Some Death Penalty

An example of the duality of the answer man. His answers change depending on the situation. Something conservatives label as a weakness.

Coco's Closed

Well, this throws out the contention that having smoking in Covington would increase business from Ohio.

Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Midpoint Begins!

Tonight head down to Fountain Square for the official kickoff and CD Release for the 2007 Midpoint Music Festival.

The showcases start tomorrow. My top picks are Here on the Conveyor. I also have my top picks for local bands.

For everything offical about Midpoint, including schedule updates, head over to www.mpmf.com for details.

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Bortz Ads on MySpace

Councilman Chris Bortz is the first local politician I've seen who is hitting Myspace with banner ads.

It is always a little creepy when they can read your zipcode on Myspace, or town I guess. I am not sure how affect it will be to advertise on Myspace, as opposed to using it as a tool to get your message out more directly.

Midpoint Tech Tools

Midpoint has has an entire suite of tech tools to enhance your festival experience. The most interesting to a data smasher like myself is the Excel scheduler.

I will be putting the Wifi to its max used while out at Midpoint. I'll be lugging around laptop at least one night for some live blogging.

It will be all over on theconveyor.com in our special Midpoint page.

Fear and Loathing in Cincinnati

Is Charlie Winburn out to get 'white' votes by scaring people? If the reports of his commercials are correct, he will fuel the misplaced fear people have about the City. Winburn appears to be trying to get elected by denigrating the city and driving people out. How is that leadership? That sounds like opportunism, that comes at the expense of the City's economy.

The classic thing form the post had Jane Prendergast asking Sam Malone for thoughts on Winburn's ad. Where's Sam's Ad? Here's what I think his commercial should include. I'm thinking Sam should just be pictured looking in the camera. The shot widens to show him standing in his living room. He takes the belt off his pants and says "Vote for me, and I'll beat this city into shape!"

Smoking Ban in NKY?

The Enquirer reports on this study that included this gem:
Ohio voters adopted a statewide ban on smoking in bars, restaurants and other public places last year.

No one’s calling for such a measure in Kentucky yet, but Stricker said he’d like to see such legislation in Northern Kentucky, at least.

Consumers who don’t smoke don’t like smoky environments in Northern Kentucky restaurants and bars, and it’s costing the area business, he said.

“My guess is they’re going to Cincinnati, ‘cause they hate the smoke. I know we’re losing business because of it,” he said.
Yea, there's not much I can say, so I won't spoil it.

Monday, September 24, 2007

6 Votes?

Six to Ten votes is what I count the tally to be so far. I don't see this as newsworthy, but, yes, look at source.

Sunday, September 23, 2007

MidPoint Week!

This is Midpoint Week. The Enquirer started it off yesterday with a story on the background of music festival on the sixth annual event.

This are a little smaller this year. Main Street is in total transition right now. Three venues are opening up this week and hopefully they will stay open. Jardine is way behind their prior announced opening. The rumor is that Q and Speakeasy are going to be open past Midpoint. For a couple of them they will need some work to be functional. Pizza Bar is also opening, but I've heard only vague rumors about it staying open beyond this weekend.

Stay tuned to the blog and to The Conveyor for Midpoint coverage this week. I'll be listing my picks of bands by Wednesday, so make sure you get you three day wristband. For more information and to buy said wristband, hit www.mpmf.com.

Saturday, September 22, 2007

5th and Race Theatres?

The plan to move Playhouse and the Children's Theatre of Cincinnati to a new Theatre complex at 5th and Race Street still is in the works. This move would put a mammoth cultural in the heart of downtown. A shot to the heart of downtown such as this would solidify the growth we are seeing now.

Friday, September 21, 2007

Drink More Beer

Get out the waders and loosen the belt a little, Oktoberfest Zinzinnati is here.

Things to look for: Which politicians are out in force. The sticker test is always a fun way to watch the political message flow through the crowd.

Thursday, September 20, 2007

OK Corral

In an interesting twist the Enquirer has two articles today where they chose a description of Gun Fights in different ways. What I find interesting is how they defined things. Compare Running gunbattle covers four blocks with the headline Shootout passenger gets prison. What makes a gun fight a shootout and what makes a gun fight a gun battle?

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Screw the Poor and Screw the Environment

The logic of the City of Mason appears to be as clear as I-71 during rush hour. They refuse to subsidize bus service that brings workers to Mason and the surrounding area. Who do think can afford to work at Kings Island or work at the fast food restaurants along Mason-Montgomery Road and own a reliable car? Few can. A big reason people move to the exurbs is to avoid the poor, but honestly, do they think they are going to get conservative housewives to flip burgers? When you drive out the Latinos with a horrid witch hunt, then you vote to keep bus riding workers out of your community, what kind of economic development, or for that matter just keeping businesses running, can occur when wages go sky high to attract workers over qualified for lower jobs?

Furthermore has anyone on Mason City Council noticed the clogged roads during rush hour? Do they care a lick about reducing the amount of traffic, and fuel used? I guess they drive their SUVs around the Deerfield Town Center, AC on and windows down.

Northside Candidate's Forum

Nate Livingston gives his take on how the candidates did at the Northside Community Council's candidate forum. Anyone else go with a different take? How are the candidates doing on the trail?

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Is Bates Toast?

As a challenger, Melanie Bates was fighting an up hill battle, but does losing a key conservative endorsement dry up a key demographic Bates was counting on?

Bates' campaign was based on crime and her personal experience with it, after the murder of her husband. That was alone a hallow campaign, but what makes it more difficult is that the Democrat turned Charterite had to appeal to the conservative West side. POWR PAC is a key influence on Westside opinions. With the loss of their endorsement, the opinion of Bates on the Westside has just dropped to a point that likely will eliminate any change she had of getting elected.

Antioch Appears to Have a Future

Antioch College in Yellow Springs has a potential new future. Administrators had announced the college would closed at the end of the current school year because of financial issues, but Alumni have come together to raise 12 million dollars to keep the school going.

Monday, September 17, 2007

Chicago Notes Good Things Are Happening in Cincinnati

Carol Coletta President of CEOs for Cities and Bold Fusion keynote speaker comments on her day in Cincinnati and starts it out by being surprised. Her blog post provides a prime example of the main problem that hurts Cincinnati: perception. She was surprised at what she found was happening here. I think most people would be surprised what is happening here, if they could see their their misconceptions and explore Cincinnati for themselves.

This goes not just for people who don't live here, but more importantly those who already live here.

Sunday, September 16, 2007

Midpoint Needs Volunteers

Midpoint needs people to make it work. If you want to work a shift and get free stuff (like entry to the festival), click on this link and sign up.

More specifically, Midpoint also needs MCs for the showcase stages. Here's their blurb:
MidPoint Music Festival is looking for emcees to host each venue.
You will introduce bands, keep the crowd pumped, and have a great time. Free admission for the night you mc, free t-shirt, and free compilation CD. If interested, please contact Dale at dale@mpmf.com or 513.403.8258.
If you have a voice and a little cool charm, give it a go!

Friday, September 14, 2007

Textbook Red Herring

It hasn't been more clear in a while how much the Right Wing does not care about Iraq Policy. Instead of discussing the lack of long term policy of the Bush Administration, the Republicans are worrying about a newspaper ad that very few people read.

The attack plan is to divert attention from the self made statement from Bush that he is punting the fate of Iraq to the next President and divert attention from the fact that Bush has no new policy and is just staying the course. Finally, the plan is to divert attention from the fact that Iraq has no effective army or police force and a government that has no control. Those facts are something the Peter Bronson just don't care about. They worry about Hollywood.

I guess Peter Bronson is not voting for Mr. Hollywood himself, Fred Thompson.

What Peter Bronson should know is that the term "Jump the Shark" did indeed "Jump the Shark" about 3 years ago.

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Green City

How effective will Mayor Mallory's energy saving efforts go? What is most interesting is that I would think anyone who cares about saving money (hint hint to the Republicans), that they would be behind this effort 100%. Are any of the Council Candidates putting their efforts behind this program?

YPKC Shakeup

It has a been a year since the Mayor's YP Kitchen Cabinet was announced and the news is that new leadership for the organization and a call for new members. Coby Williams and Clara Rice move up a couple of positions to President and Vice-President respectively. No reason was given why Candace Klein is no longer the President. If you are interested in being in the cabinet, you can get an application here (pdf).

The Mayor's Press release is here (pdf).

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Kelly Is a Pussy

The UC Football coach is hiding behind the skirt of his superiors because he fears playing Miami in Oxford. If your football is as great as you claim, you should have no problem winning on Saturday. It is also pathetic that a coach would not care a damn about history and tradition with even his hint at scrapping the series. His statement to the contrary was as hallow as it could be. He hated losing to Miami when he coached at Central Michigan, so fears are founded in his past.

Grow a pair, Kelly!

Council Predictions

I still see the field wide open. Natelists his updated predictions. Nate is placing heavy emphasis on prior indicators of who will contend (money, name recognition). I still think things have lots of room for new face on council, with few incumbents safe and few locks for challengers. I would agree that there will be 4 to 5 easy predictions for council, but who that will be won't be set until October. At the same time we'll know who of those with a chance now, will have lost their chance based on how their campaign stand closer to the election.

Tarbell Can't Run as a Write-In Candidate

I never knew it was Ohio law that individuals who try to get on the ballot, but fail, can't run as write-in candidates. I don't know why this would be needed? What is this law trying to prevent? If you failed to get on the ballot because of fraud, then sure, I see why you should be a write-in candidate. If you just turned in signatures and didn't get enough, why should you not be allowed to file as a write-in candidate?

Drunken Fools

I myself took in most of the game while at Fountain Square last night and I walked right behind the WKRC van parked on Vine near the Square. I walked by on my way home early in the 4th Quarter. It had it's remote satellite hook up hoisted up in the air and was running.

It really sounds funny that some drunk guy tried to steal the van, I say he was drunk because real thieves would know better than trying to steal a TV van. In the end some normal guy with a job will likely face jail time.

Friday, September 07, 2007

Bold Fusion and Agenda 360

Yesterday many gathered for Bold Fusion. I've not be a fan of the event in the past, but this year the inclusion of Agenda 360 is something with actionable ideas, not just more talk about talking with same people who always to the talking.

Did anyone go? What's your take on the event and on Agenda 360?