Weekend wrap-up 7/7/15

Over the weekend, Cincinnati decided to jump back into the fray of racial tensions despite significant progress since the April 2001 riots.  Initial reports talked about a "mob" (translation, group of African-Americans) who punched a Cincinnati police officer (translation, "white" officer).  The mob had been rioting and police arrived on scene to deal with the situation.  Now reports indicate the "mob" was in response to an prior altercation between one of the mob and a white male.  Immediately whites began to question why the police were not calling this a "hate-crime" or "anti-white crime".  Info Wars published today a post showing the original police report identifying the incident as "anti-white" but official CPD and city hall are not calling this a hate crime.

To some, this affirms the bias in media reporting.  To others, this affirms Cincinnati's rampant crime problem (even though during this same period, Chicago had over 50 shootings resulting in 9 deaths).  From what I can tell from the reports, it appears the white "victim" was running his mouth and using vulgarity towards one of the blacks.  I'm assuming since this was at Fountain Square, either alcohol and/or drugs had been consumed by both resulting in punches being thrown and the victim being choked.  Racial tensions not being the best (especially after the media's coverage in the last year), the fight resulted in multiple people engaging in violence.  As politicians, city officials and the media try to assess blame one thing remains constant…people are afraid Cincinnati is more dangerous than ever.

Over the weekend, my favorite former CNN Anchor, Lynne Russell, and her husband were attacked by a would-be robber in a hotel in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  A gunfight resulted in which the robber was killed and her husband was shot three times.  Gun control advocates see this as a call for more stringent laws while gun rights advocates see this as proof why concealed carry should be allowed in all 50 states.  However whichever side of the argument you fall one thing is the same…more fear that the world has become more dangerous.

I hadn't really planned on writing about either event until reading the latest Rasmussen poll.  According to a poll published yesterday, fifty-two (52) percent think the US is a more dangerous place today than it was before 9/11.  John Mueller at the Ohio State University and the Cato Institute published a report back in April 2015 looking at all of the terrorist attacks in the US since 9/11.  There have been 61 cases resulting in 15 deaths (12 soldiers killed at Ft Hood and 3 civilians killed at the Boston Marathon).  That's it, 15 deaths according to the report.  The rest of the "attacks" were either unsuccessful or thwarted in advance.  Yet people are convinced the US is more dangerous than before.

Let's look at 9/11.  There were 2,997 victims (246 on the four aircraft that crashed, 2,606 in the World Trade Towers, and 125 at the Pentagon).  These deaths sent US troops into 2 different wars that lasted longer than any other US wars.  In comparison, 2001 there were 17,448 fatalities due to drunk drivers yet people are more afraid of a terrorist attack or random armed attacker than they are from a drunk driver.

If crime and terrorism aren't your thing, then the economy could be giving you sleepless nights.  The Greek economy has defaulted and may mean the end of the European Union.  Depending on how Anglica Merkel navigates this mess, the US may or may not be drug into keeping the EU afloat.  Things don't look better if Merkel is successful for China (yes, that up and coming economic superpower) just had a stock market crash seeing $3.2 wiped from the value of Chinese shares.  It makes the Greek crisis look infinitely more manageable.

And of course the US has its own economic crisis in Puerto Rico.  Even if the crisis is successfully mitigated (note I said mitigate, not avoided), Mr. Obama has set the stage for more economic woes with his mandatory overtime for salaried employees and support for raising the minimum wage to $15.  Employers are not going to be able afford mandatory health care + mandatory paid overtime + a $15 minimum wage.  Looks like more part-time employees, contractors and robots in our immediate future.

What all of this means is we are not going to be able to look to our government and elected officials to fix these problems.  We need to remind ourselves of the family and friends around us that aren't shooting holes in one another or planning to blow something up.  Keep those family and friends safe and focused on doing good.  No, this isn't some type of self-help psychobabble.  It is a practical strategy for weathering the next several years.  If we watch too much news or listen to too much talk radio, we will become paralyzed with fear and become incapable of action.  And that my friends is how they plan to win.

"Our city has no image"

At least according to Councilwoman Laure Quinlivan, who chairs the City Council's Quality of Life Committee.

For those unfamiliar with Ms. Quinlivan's credentials, she is a former TV reporter who now runs her own marketing business in addition to being a first-term council member. Apparently her background ill prepared her to know the following about the city which she now serves;

- Cincinnati is the birthplace of such luminaries as President William Howard Taft, Doris Day, Tyrone Power, Steven Spielberg, Roger Staubach and of course Pete Rose.

- Cincinnati at one time had three professional sports teams; Cincinnati Reds (the first professional baseball team in the country), the Royals, and of course the Bengals (okay, I know this may be a stretch)

- Cincinnati is home to Proctor and Gamble, Chiquita Brands, GE Aircraft Engines, the Kroger Company, and Fifth Third Bank (I picked companies that have been around the Cincinnati area for a while and are probably familiar to readers outside the Cincinnati area).

- Cincinnati has the Art Museum, Taft Museum, Music Hall (home of the Cincinnati Ballet, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, and Cincinnati Opera), the College Conservatory of Music (at UC), the School of the Creative and Performing Arts, and the Museum Center (which includes the Natural History Museum).

- Cincinnati was originally called Losantiville (hmm, I wonder where I've seen that name before?) and Porkopolis. Cincinnati was the premier pork butchering center in the world during the 19th Century until Chicago surpassed it for beef butchering (which could only happen because of the invention of refrigerated rail cars).

-Cincinnati was major part of the Underground Railroad (hence the National Freedom Center), had at one time as many as 14 breweries (thanks to the German immigrants), invented Cincinnati style chili (thanks to Greek immigrants) and eats goetta (a type of sausage made from pork and pinhead oats, again thanks to the Germans).

Despite all of this histroy (plus much I either left out or forgot), Ms. Quinilvan thinks we have no image.

The Bengals have never won a super bowl and residents born after 1990 can't remember ever seeing them win a divisional playoff. Those same residents can't remember the Reds winning the World Series. The Cincinnati Royals folded so long ago that most residents don't remember that we ever had a NBA team.

But once upon a time there was Oscar Robinson who played for the Cincinnati Royals. Once upon a time there was Pete Rose, Johnny Bench, and Joe Morgan and they all worked for this guy name Sparky Anderson. Together they and their teammates were called The Big Red Machine. They won back to back World Series championships (1975, 1976)

They was this guy named Ezzard Charles. Although not born in Cincinnati, we claim him as our own. He was once heavyweight boxing champion of the world (back before they invented MMA and UFC). He won 93 of his fights.

There was this really neat lady who was a radio and television broadcaster and probably is most responsible for creating daytime talkshows. She was also incredibly generous and created a charity to make sure hospitalized children received toys. Her name was Ruth Lyons.

Apparently Ms. Quinlivan has missed out on the fact she owes her previous profession to Ms. Lyons. But we have no image.

Cincinnati does have an image, it just that people like her and the rest of city council are too busy bickering to tell the rest of the world our story.




Article Here

Urban Circulator

Looks like Cincinnati is one of six cities as part of the Urban Circulator Program. Part of the Obama Administration's Livability Program, the Urban Circulator will provides grants and should allow the streetcar initiative in Cincinnati to finally get going. Now to actually have some destinations for these streetcars. I don't understand the obsession Cincinnati city councils have historically had with north/south access routes to the exclusion of all else. For those who don't live in the Queen City, you can travel in a north/south direction fairly easily (minus congestion) but just try to go from Delhi to Madeira (west to east). You could drive from downtown Cincinnati to Middletown or even Dayton in less time. Hopefully the streetcars will address some of the gaps of east/west travel in Cincinnati. After all, we decided to have the "flying pig" as our mascot so I guess anything can happen here.

Federal Transit Administration - U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood Announces $293 Million for New Transit Solutions, Economic Development Nationwide

Where in the world is Losantiville?

Hopefully if you are reading this, it means that you have either heard of Losantiville or come from the Tri-state area. However in the event you don't, Losantiville is the original name for Cincinnati. In 1788, Israel Ludlow, Matthias Denman, and Robert Patterson purchased eight hundred acres from John Cleves Symmes along the Ohio River at the Licking River's mouth. They called this area "Losantiville" the name being a convoluted contraction of the idea that this was a "city across from the mouth of the Licking River."

I've always thought this to be a more elegant name for the Queen City rather than its later name, "Porkopolis" or even its current Cincinnati. I don't know, perhaps if we had kept Losantiville our city would have a different identity today. We may have become a more quaint city such as Ashville in North Carolina. Or we may have become more hip destination like Lexington. Instead, we are known as the city featured in WKRP in Cincinnati (which is one of my favorite sitcoms from the past). Or the home of the Bungles (sorry, Bengals), or the Big Red Machine (which was 30 years ago), or that funky chili made with cinnamon. Trust me, having lived around the country that's pretty much our pedigree.

It seems like everyone has a blog now and like others, I feel I've got something to say. Losantiville will be primarily focused on my observations of current events based on being from Cincinnati and having spent my formative years here (I went to St Xavier high school and the University of Cincinnati). I can still tell the difference between Skyline, Gold Star, Chili Time and Empress chili. I am not proud of but have consumed Burger, Hudepohl 14K, Hudy Delight, Little Kings Cream Ale, Schoenling and Sir Edward Stout (with a little Wiedeman and Cost Cutter thrown in for good measure). For those not from the area, those were all local beers with the exception of Cost Cutter which was a generic beer sold by Kroger's.

I spent over 2o years in the military (a combination of time in the US Air Force and Air National Guard). I now teach at Cincinnati State Tech and Community College which has really gotten me back into all things Cincinnati.

Right now the radio and TV news are sharing equal time between the super bug (multiple-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) and whether Chad Johnson will be traded later this year. I just don't get it, from all indications this super bug is very difficult to treat. The best bet is to never get it in the first place however thorough hand washing and following good sanitary practices will greatly reduce the risk of spreading infection. Unfortunately the track record for people doing these simple steps is not good. Just look at what has happened with out food supply recently. A number of produce items have been contaminated with E. Coli and recently a beef supplier went out of business for processing contaminated food.

My initial research into the superbug shows that the biggest risk for exposure is at hospitals (not schools as it would seem to be the case according to a flyer sent home with my kids). Why? Because Staphylococcus aureus normally enters through cuts and abrasions. Nothing like an incision to provide the type of exposure for this bug. But aren't hospitals the epitome of cleanliness and sanitation? Not necessarily so, other microbes (such as flesh-eating bacteria) run around hospital wards and operating rooms. All it takes is for someone to miss a disinfecting a bed rail and these germs have a ready made petri dish. Think of all of those human hosts with depleted immune systems.

But instead of providing us further information on this we get the latest soap opera courtesy of professional sports. Hey, don't get me wrong. I like watching football as much as the next guy but why do we allow ourselves to get so distracted by the antics of grown men (or women) who play games for a living?

Or what about the Bearcats? We haven't had a nationally ranked football team since 1954 so what happens? We lose two in a row and now people want to put Brian Kelly's head on a pike. Give me a break, this is his first year. Let's give the guy a chance to turn things around before we throw him under the bus.

But again more effort goes into discussing college sports than the proposed street cars. I may be in the minority but I actually like the street car concept, except the question becomes where exactly are they going to take us? Street cars may help commuters get to work but after quitting time, where are you going to go? Most of the destinations are either in Mt Adams or across the river in Kentucky. A real vision needs to be created for our city BEFORE we go about creating (and paying for!) the infrastructure to support it. Otherwise, we will just end up with a pink elephant on our hands (and another tax levy)