Turkeys Don't Surf!

Happy Thanksgiving Day!!

A Plea to Governor Strickland

Governor Strickland, please send the State Police to Over-the-Rhine. Since I have been living in OTR I've seen 2 State Troopers patrolling, one on Vine St. and one on 12th Street. If the Sheriff can't find the money for it (or find the heart) and history shows that the CPD can't do it, please send in the State Troopers to patrol OTR. We don't need a massive task force, we just need the cars going up and down the streets of OTR to help send street thugs and suburban drug buyers scurrying for cover. If we can get the drug and petty criminals off the streets, then everyday life will improve for all law abiding residents of OTR.

Poverty and Homelessness: Who Cares?

"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.' They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?' He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least among you, you did not do for me.'" (Matthew 25:41-45)

“And if anyone saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of the whole people.” (The Qur’an 5:32)

“Poverty is the worst form of violence." (Gandhi)

"Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons." (Woody Allen)

"Jesus answered, 'If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.'" (Matthew 19:21)

I thought I may as well weigh in on this discussion of homelessness and poverty that Griff and Donald have started. Perhaps I come from a very different place, but it seems that we as a society have decided in this The Second Gilded Age that we just don't care about poor and homeless people at all and see them as just reaping the harvest of their choices. For at least the last twenty-five years -- through the administrations of right wingers who believed in the literal word of scripture and Dick Cheney and left wingers who believed in both the holiness of scripture and blow jobs --, we have embraced social policies that destroyed the social safety net and that manifested a radical social darwinism. Systemically, we have said to poor people, "we are tired of you and your whining --- you are bringing us down --- don't you understand that the reason you don't have all that we have is because you have not worked hard enough, you are lazy and lacking in education, because you dropped out. Sorry that many of you had long long ago ancestors that lived in slavery, but we just don't care. You are on your own now. We have power and will move you where we want to move you and make social policy that is driven by what is convenient for us." So what happens when you to say to desperate people, "you are on your own to make do; you get what you get in this world because you get what you deserve"? A social policy built on the theology of the survival of the fittest means that it is power against power -- who knows who will win -- yet it puts us all in a war zone.

And, how can it be that we have a museum down the road a little ways dedicated to the literal truth of the Hebrew scriptures when it comes to science and creation, yet have a society of literal believers who do not believe Jesus literally meant what he said when he said "If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." So contrary to all scientific findings, dinosaurs and humans roamed the earth at the same time, but Jesus was just kidding around when he said this. Hmmm. . . . . .

Give a Bum a Fish

If you need more evidence that many charities servicing the alcoholics and drug addicts in Washington Park are not working towards helping these people live normal lives, then I don't think you read the article.

First you have three churches who bring food down for one day. Sure, that gives the bums something to eat for a day. Does it help them kick drugs or booze? No, it saves them buying food that can then be used for drugs or booze.

Second you have the "homeless" advocates (yes, I put that word in quotes on purpose) who in my opinion admit that they don't really want to help these people and improve the neighborhood, instead they want to force people to see the bums.

Well, how many times has Georgine Getty worked to move the bums away from the drug dealers and the corner stores with cheap booze? She does nothing but really make me want to protest her organization and the Drop Inn Center if they don't take any and every offer to move out of Over-the-Rhine. Her answer is:

"If you have a problem seeing homeless folks, you should end homelessness," Getty said.

If you are a person hanging out around the park there are three possible things wrong you: 1. You are a drug addict 2. You are addicted to alcohol or 3. You are mentally unbalanced and can't afford treatment. If the Georgine doesn't want to find ways to treat those problem, then she doesn't want to help anyone in Washington Park. Giving a man a meal for one day does nothing to help him with why he is in the Park.

Finally, if you have a problem with wanting the bums to live normal lives, then you want the bums to keep on being bums so you can keep the funding for your ineffective programs.

Feed the Homeless, Break the Law

Stories like this one (noting that a consortium of churches that organized a free lunch in Washington Park are acting contrary to Cincinnati ordinances, as the city won't issue a permit for such events) are likely to become more common as OTR development continues. If CityLink is built (and remember, our court of appeals just said that it can be), there no doubt will be an increased effort to shut down the Drop Inn Center.

Ultimately, the problem of providing for our city's homeless is going to be an excrutiatingly difficult issue for Mayor Mallory and City Council. It's true, of course, that many associate "homeless" with either "criminal" or "panhandler," and to the extent that happens (regardless of whether that mental association is based on reality), a visible homeless population hurts development efforts. But it's also true that in America's cities, the homeless have always tended towards the inner-city. CityLink probably won't cause a migration of our homeless population to the West Side (and if it does, what happens to redevelopment efforts there?).

True solutions (e.g., finding ways to eradicate homelessness) are unlikely, as both city and county leaders are likely to slash the few dollars that are presently slated towards social services. How we treat our homeless (who are often some of the most vulnerable among us) will say a lot about what our City will become in these transitional times.

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.

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?

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.

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]

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.

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.

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.

The Blue Wisp Plays On

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