Blogging Isn't Cool: Hamilton County GOP Power Grabs

Quimbob sums up the Hamilton County Republican last minute effort to move the Board of Elections out of Downtown with this quote:

"The HamCo GOP is so hellbent on rigging elections & attaining power, they will sabotage public safety without a second thought."

If the GOP cared about providing the best services over-all, they would not be rushing to move the BOE in an attempt to reduce the number of early votes from Democrats. Instead they would look at all County Departments and find the right fit for the Mt. Airy location.

Reducing the number of voters is not good public policy, but that will be the result if the BOE moves to the location Republicans want.

This effort is transparently a long term effort to both reduce the importance of Downtown and the Democratic vote. Is it worth $29 per early vote to keep the BOE right where it is?  Hell, yes.

Portune is Living in a Vacuum

Hamilton County Comissioner Todd Portune announced he is running for Ohio Governor on Monday. The local Democrat will face off in a primary against Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald, who already has received the endorsement of the Ohio Democratic Party.



Yes, with the State party and the vast majority of county party organizations backing Fitzgerald, Portune then decided to jump into the race.



One word comes to mind: WHY?

I have no logical reason why Portune would get into the race for Governor. I don't see how this helps him, or the party, or anyone other than the Republicans. I presume he thinks he can win. I presume he lives in a vacuum. I know he's going to lose the primary.

Cranley is Sucking in the Seventies

Quimbob over at Blogging Isn't Cool is pondering if Mayor John Cranley is stuck living in the 1970's based on what he chose to offer up in return to a bet from the San Diego Mayor on the Bengals-Chargers playoff game this Sunday.

Cranley rolled out the old Gold Star/Montgomery Inn Ribs/Graeter's rubicon.

Quimbob wonders why Cranley didn't match the San Diego Craft beer offer with Cincinnati Craft beers in return. After all, this bet was reported to have been made at his own personal expense, so why not offer up something with a little more oomph and more of a developing industry in the area? An industry that could use some more attention outside of Cincinnati that only a Mayor could give at very little expense.

There is nothing wrong promoting Gold Star/Montgomery Inn Ribs/Graeter's, they are solid business here in Cincinnati, but they represent the past. The past is all Cranley seems to know, and it's a selective knowledge at best.

The Brew Professor Ranks the Top 10 Cincinnati Beers in 2013

The number of Cincinnati Breweries is growing and we keep drinking there beer, so someone had better rank the best for 2013. Well The Brew Prof has taken care of that for us. Note the number of breweries include in the list. They are seriously good and there are a TON of them. Yes, tons of breweries right here in the Cincinnati area.  Makes me think of this old Cincinnati toast I read about in the book Images of America: Cincinnati's Over-the-Rhine.

“Here’s to Cincinnati, the Queen of the West,
A dirty old city, but nobly blest.
For it’s here that fine arts with the frivolous twine,
A veritable Deutschland just Over the Rhine…
The kindliest greetings from all, whom we meet,
A good draught of beer every ten or twelve feet.”

WIRED: A Triumph for Transit in Cincinnati

Wired.com had an article Friday discussing Cincinnati's Streetcar project and the triumph in keeping the project going.

We Have a Streetcar! (Cue the White Smoke...)

What was a long three weeks of December came to a joyous apogee, compared to how the month started out.  The Cincinnati Streetcar project got the necessary votes to resume construction and all signs point to it being a done deal.

Much thanks need to be given to all of those who got this done:

1. The six on council who voted to resume constructions, with special thanks to council members Seelbach, Simpson, Sittenfeld, and Young.

2. The organizers of Believe in Cincinnati and Cincinnatians for Progress who kept the hopes alive and gave us a plan to make a difference for Cincinnati.

3. All of the volunteers who worked hours to gain signatures for the Charter Amendment, keeping the pressure on council going right up to the vote.

4. Everyone who signed the petition for the Streetcar Charter Amendment.  We showed the powers-that-be that thousands of activists were behind this effort and I truly believe that support was a large reason why we got the two extra votes needed on council.

5. Eric Avner of the Haile Foundation was the knight in shinning armor for the Streetcar. Along with the members of the business community he organized, they got the agreement done and won the day.

If I missed anyone, please let me know!

Walking through OTR last night I don't know if I felt the joy all around me or if it was just in me. I'm going to believe that it was in everyone.  Hope was all we had for a couple of weeks.  When that hope becomes reality, it really feels good. We still have a long way to go here in Cincinnati, but yesterday was a great step forward. We came close to taking a step back, but the voices of the people were heard and We Have a Streetcar!

Cranley Wants Cincinnati of the Past (1974)

The Cincinnati Business Courier had a stinging opinion piece online yesterday that exposes the core problem with John Cranley and his approach to the City. Here's the key section:

"His vision of what Cincinnati should be most closely resembles what Cincinnati was."

Canley is trying to emulate the Lukens (Charlie and Tom) in both the style he interacts with others, on all levels, and in what he sees as priorities for the City. It is like he is living in 1974 (the year he was born) and wants to attract the first Walmart to town and is hoping to build more roads to make it easier for suburbanites outside the city to get where they want to go and he's not seen the damage that type of development plan did to the City. I will state that again, DID to the City. That's not something to come, that is the past that happened because of people like Tom Luken, who John is emulating. Focusing on the suburban lifestyle (Strip Malls, Cul-de-Sacs, and cars) is the core of the past that killed Cities in post-WWII America and reached it's zenith in the 70's.  This isn't a new idea for Cranley.  He didn't just pick this up to get elected.  He's been that way, and that is leaving his allies to be mostly Republicans, as they are the only ones still pushing the Suburbanist agenda forward.

It is such a shame that so much of the Progressive Vote (the Future!) stayed home on election day and left 'Past Cincinnati' to sweep in and give Cranley the chance to be another Luken and drive the City back 40 years.

When I think of Cranley I think of a "real square cat, he looks a-1974."  Other than the Big Red Machine, he's reaching into a time when things here were not good. The City Government was squarely against the Urban Core.  If John really wants to emulate the past, I suggest he not pick the 1970's subia and instead look to the example of something else.