Bob Vasquez declines endorsement screening with Toledo Blade...

This just in from the Bob Vasquez for Toledo City Council campaign:

Dear Mr. Walton:

I write today to thank you for the opportunity to screen for the Toledo Blade’s endorsement; however I must respectfully decline your offer as I will not enter your building so long as your workers remain locked out. It would be unconscionable to me to cross the locked-out workers’ informational line to seek an endorsement.

My campaign has been, and continues to be, about the working families of Toledo. Each day as I meet the voters of the city, the dire economic situation that we face as a community remains the main point of discussion. Men and women of all backgrounds are concerned for their jobs and worry about their children finding jobs when they come of age.

I have the honor of being endorsed by many labor unions that together represent thousands of individuals. Those men and women go to work each day to make better lives for themselves and their families. They are not looking for a hand out—they are looking to make an honest day’s wage in exchange for an honest day’s work. My first job as a citizen and as a candidate for office is to keep their interests at hand. By not crossing a fellow worker’s line, I believe I am accomplishing just that.

I urge you to go back to the negotiating table to get these men and women back to work. They belong at the table, not on the other side of a locked door.

My thoughts remain with the employees of the Blade and my fervent hope is for a quick and just resolution to the lockout.

Sincerely,



Bob Vasquez
At Large Candidate
Toledo City Council

Auditor Debate tomorrow!

This email just in from David B. Cohen, Ph.D., so sharing it with you:

Dear Ohio Bloggers—as many of you know, the only debate for the Ohio State Auditor position will take place tomorrow (see info below). I wanted to alert you all to the fact that the debate will be live-streamed over the internet. Feel free to post about the debate & post a link for the webcast on your blog. The video from the debate will be archived there so anyone can watch it at anytime.

The candidates for the office of Auditor of the State of Ohio, State Representatives Barbara Sykes (D-Akron) and Mary Taylor (R-Green), will debate at The University of Akron Martin Center, 105 Fir Hill. The luncheon debate is co-sponsored by the Akron Press Club (http://www.akronpressclub.org/) and the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics (http://www.winningpolitics.com). The luncheon will begin at 11:45 a.m., followed by the debate from 12:10 – 1:10 p.m. Abe Zaidan, VP Akron Press Club, and Dr. Stephen C. Brooks, acting director of the Bliss Institute, will be co-moderating this debate.

Can’t Attend the Debate?

Time Warner Cable will broadcast the debate locally (tape-delayed) and make the broadcast available Free on Demand through Time Warner Digital Cable. The debate will also be live-streamed over the Internet. The Bliss Institute website (http://www.winningpolitics.com) will contain information and instructions on linking to the webcast. As of now, the link will be: http://www3.uakron.edu/dds/events/bliss/10_13_2006_auditor.htm.

:-)

Blackwell stops ads till October 30th...but the real news...

The real news as far as the local political front is also contained in that Toledo Blade article:

Democratic county commissioner candidate Ben Konop has reserved more than $60,000. Democratic auditor candidate Anita Lopez has reserved $50,000. Their GOP opponents, George Sarantou and Larry Kaczala, respectively, have no time reserved.

Two Toledo City Council candidates have slotted time: Democrats Lourdes Santiago ($30,000) and Joe McNamara ($40,000).

Backers of a COSI levy have $30,000 on the books for ad purchases; zoo levy supporters have nearly $75,000.

:-)

McNamara proposes "Ceasefire Initiative"

This from the Joe McNamara for Toledo City Council campaign:

Democrat Joe McNamara Proposes "Ceasefire Initiative" To Confront Gang Problem

City council candidate calls for appointment of “Gang Czar” to lead coordinated intervention and prevention efforts, reiterates need to put more police on the street
Toledo, OH – Democrat Joe McNamara will hold a press conference today, Thursday, October 12, at 1 PM in front of the Public Safety Building in downtown Toledo to announce his “Ceasefire Initiative,” a series of steps the city can take to stem the growth of gangs, reclaim our neighborhoods, and empower young people.

Central to McNamara’s proposal is his call for the appointment of a city “Gang Czar” to coordinate existing community efforts relating to gang intervention and youth crime prevention. Additionally, he is calling for taking tangible steps to strengthen the city’s Blockwatch program, for putting more police on the street, and for developing a Youth Master Plan for the city of Toledo.

“It’s time for a ceasefire,” says McNamara. “We need to aggressively confront Toledo’s gang problem and provide youth with positive alternatives.”

Toledo City Paper goes all political...

Can't say I agree with Hildo on some of his thoughts, especially when it comes to the Issues section but...I recommend taking a look especially the section on some of our local candidates and worth pointing out to those of you who are interested in the judicial races that the recent Toledo Bar rankings are listed there.

:-)

Zogby is doing a local poll for the Blade...

I just got the phone call from Zogby.

The typical questions such as if the election were held today on the senate race and the gubernatorial race, (only choices were Strickland or Blackwell). Then if the election were held today on some of the local races, Commissioner, Auditor and Toledo City Council (all six candidates were given)

An interesting question as to if the election were today would you vote for Carty Finkbeiner or Jack Ford.

Then your rating on only the local candidates for Commissioner, Auditor and Toledo City Counci to somewhat or very favorable or not at all favorable. Carty was included in this question.

Next was did you think the City was heading in the right direction or on the wrong track, the same question was then asked about the County.

The Zoo Issue and Cosi were the only two issues that were asked if you supported or did not support.

There was also an additional question as to if I or any member of my house belonged to a union.

How I know the Blade is involved is I was asked if I would be willing to talk to a reporter about my responses, when I said yes, I was told if a reporter was interested in talking with me they would be from the Toledo Blade.

So...it will be interesting to see when the results come out what they are.

:-)

Ohio Channel and copyright violations...

Yesterday Progress Ohio pulled their newly released video on Tom Noe and Republicans at the request of Daniel Shellenbarger of the Ohio Channel.

I'm a big fan of the Ohio Channel, that's why it's been on the side bar here at Glass City Jungle for quite some time as well as having been written about in the past here. It's a site I really recommend.

I'm not really a fan of the "cherry picked" statement or video clip, but what I do think should be made a very large point is, when asked to pull the video, Progess Ohio did so. I know they weren't happy about it but they did pull it. Ohio Channel has the following information listed on their website in regards to copyrights:

All website design, programming, text and graphics are Copyright © 2006, The Ohio Channel. All rights reserved. Any use of materials on this web site including reproduction, modification, distribution, or republication, without the express written consent of The Ohio Channel is strictly prohibited.

Yet, the Ohio Republican Party refused when they were told their use of a clip of Rep. Barbara Sykes was prohibited. I double checked just a few moments ago and they still have not honored the request of Ohio Channel...

So...in the Lisa book of Kudos, Progress Ohio gets some from me for doing what I think was the correct thing.

:-)

Sorry Sheriff Telb but those are not "kids"

I've been following the story on the three Lucas County corrections officers who were charged with aggravated burglary and felonious assault, yet when I read today's Blade in an article entitled, "Telb ducks blame in weekend fight", I had some thoughts.

First, of course we are not all perfect and even corrections officers are going to make mistakes at times. I don't think Sheriff Telb "ducking blame", but I do take issue with the impression the quotes give in the Blade that this is some type of youthful indescretion:

...was just some kids and whatever is going on in their personal lives, they let it get out control.

"If behavior patterns show that the individual doesn't fit, we need to get rid of them," the sheriff said. "But these kids had no records."


These are not children who are under the age of 18, they are not even under the age of 21 and given the fact that there were several of them involved in this, you'd think at least one of them would have demonstrated some common sense in saying "hey, this is a really stupid thing to do". While they of course have not been found guilty, the way the information is presented is rather troubling:

Police said the men fought with Mr. Rodriguez a short time after he arrived home to find Brian Wise at the house with Mr. Rodriguez's housemate, Kimberly Boswell, 28, who also is a sheriff's corrections officer.

After the argument with Mr. Rodriguez, who does not work for the county, Mr. Wise left the house and called his brother, Matthew, who was with Mr. Holzemer and brother Pat Holzemer. The three men met Brian Wise outside Mr. Rodriguez's West Toledo home, police said.

Pat Holzemer stayed in his vehicle while the others went inside, pulled Mr. Rodriguez from his bedroom, and beat him with their fists and feet, according to statements to police from Ms. Boswell and Mr. Rodriguez.

I'm sure more information will come out, but no matter what...these are not kids, they are grown men.

Toledo City Charter reform and some history...

Tom Troy of the Toledo Blade wrote an article with some of the reaction from candidates for the Toledo City Council seat on several of the proposals made yesterday by one of the candidates, Dave Schulz. All of the candidates including David Davison and James Mohn were asked their opinion.

I'll be perfectly honest in saying I'm not sure about making all of the Council seats district seats, I am not however certain that the current make up of six and six gives us the best representation for the entire City.

I do support the idea of looking at combining some of the current Toledo City Council Committees, because I feel less meetings would create a situation where scheduling could happen to make the process more accessible to a larger number of Toledo residents. Right now considering the large number of people who either work or have children in school most of the times set for these meetings make it very difficult for people to attend. That to me is not accessible government...

Now...on to changing the Charter on the issue of changing the way vacancies are filled...


Let's flash back to April 16, 1997 - in the Toledo Blade by reporter, Jeffrey Cohan:

Toledo council voted along party lines last night to transfer member Betty Shultz from her District 5 seat to a vacant at-large spot.

But the switch, approved on an 8-2 vote of the Democratic-controlled council, could trigger changes in how vacant council seats are filled.Council's lone Republicans, Gene Zmuda and Rob Ludeman, voted against the switch and called for a review of the city charter provision that gives the council discretion to make appointments to vacant positions.

The two Republicans argued that in filling vacant council seats, the city should have to refer to the results of the most recent election. The highest vote-getter among the losers should get first crack at the vacancy. If that person doesn't want or can't take the job, the next highest vote-getter should get the opportunity, and so on, they say.

Under such a provision, Republican Ron Scanlon would have succeeded Judy Jones, who resigned from her at-large seat Friday to join the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio.

Mr. Scanlon finished eighth in the race for six at-large seats in 1993, and the seventh-place finisher, Bette Ruth Kaye, has since died.

``I think if we were truly to represent the voters of Toledo, Ron would be on council right now,'' Mr. Ludeman said.

Mr. Zmuda accused the council's Democrats of ``circumventing the wishes of the electorate.''

He urged that the city's charter revision commission study making changes in the appointment process.

Mayor Carty Finkbeiner said he has no objections. ``That's certainly a valid recommendation,'' the mayor said.

Then, on April 22, 1997, parts of a Toledo Blade Pages of Opinion:

CITY council's appointment of Democrat Betty Shultz from her District 5 spot to the at-large seat vacated by Republican Judy Jones may be the straw that breaks electors' backs. It's the type of dirty pool that may backfire on the Democratic majority that got to fill two seats with one vacancy, Ms. Jones's and now Ms. Shultz's.

This is not to heap vilification solely on Ms. Shultz or the Democrats. Republicans are capable of the same kind of connivance.Republican Mayor Donna Owens had to break a 4-4 party-line impasse in 1987, and she didn't do it with a Democrat. No. She named Republican Jan Scotland to replace Democrat Linda Furney, who went to the state Senate.

Ours is officially a nonpartisan council, so technically it shouldn't matter whether a Democrat replaces a Republican or vice versa, but it does.

The public, which elected a member of one or another party, should get what it voted for.

What the charter commission should look into is not permitting appointments to local offices without an election. And if that means leaving a post vacant until the next primary, or the next general election, so be it. No one should be able to enact laws or spend the people's tax dollars without having been chosen by the people.

Appointing people to elective office is antithetical to democracy.

Of course this is now 2006 almost 2007 so ten years later it's obvious nothing was done when it came to trying to change how appointments to Toledo City Council are done. If you look at the most recent appointments that have been done, it's obvious that there could be a better way that more accurately reflects the will of the voters rather than the will of a political party.

I do agree with Joe McNamara that:

"None of this is going to increase the number of jobs or lower the crime rate in Toledo," Mr. McNamara said.

But I do suggest that restoring more of a say into the hands of voters and removing some of the power from the political parties would be a good thing for the City of Toledo and I hope that regardless of the outcome of this election in November that this is something that Council does consider...

Dave Schulz Press Conference on City Charter Changes

From the Dave Schulz for Toledo City Council Campaign:

Dave Schulz To Hold Press Conference On City Charter Changes

Schulz continues to propose ways to make government more responsive and make it easier for citizens to participate in government

City Council candidate Dave Schulz will hold a press conference in front of Government Center at 11:45 a.m. on Tuesday, October 10, 2006 and discuss the following city charter changes. He will call on the members of the Charter Revision Committee to go into session to begin addressing weaknesses in the city charter and updating it for the 21st century.

Schulz will call for the following three changes to be considered:

· Vacancy appointment reform

Change vacancy appointment method requiring Council to appoint to a vacancy someone from the same political party as the departing member or by the next highest vote-getter in the previous council election (Schulz will also discuss the Lourdes Santiago appointment)

· Referendum and Initiative reform

Change Initiative and Referendum provision signature requirements from 12% of votes cast for all mayoral candidates at the last mayoral election to 8%-10% of votes cast for all mayoral candidates at the last mayoral election.

The time period for gathering signatures for referendum on an ordinance would be extended from thirty (30) days to forty-five (45) days.

Other cities in Ohio and their requirements:

Columbus: 5% of last general election votes cast
Cincinnati: 10% of the last gubernatorial election
Cleveland: Initiative - 5000 electors, Referendum: 10% last general election
Toledo: 12% of last mayoral election

· Reducing the size of city council to 7 or 9 members from all districts.
Smaller districts will provide better representation and serve as campaign finance reform. City council elections will be more affordable to wage and it will encourage more civic-minded, neighborhood-oriented people to get involved in serving their community, not aspiring career politicians who will use council as a stepping stone for higher office. We currently have such a westward and southward bent to our council now and all but one of the candidates (Dave Schulz the exception) live in West or South Toledo.


Comparing Other Ohio City Councils

City 2000 Pop. Council Makeup
Akron 223,019 10 wards, 3 – at large
Cincinnati 364,040 9 at large
Cleveland 505,616 21 wards
Columbus 632,910 7 at large
Dayton 182,044 Mayor and four commissioners
Toledo 332,943 6 at large, 6 district
Youngstown 95,732 7 wards and president of council

Schulz will also unveil City Council committee reform:

Community and Neighborhood Development
Health and Community Relations
Youth Parks and Recreation - Would become Neighborhood Relations, Health and Recreation

Why? All three deal with making Toledo a healthy, fun place to live

Law and Criminal Justice
Public Safety - Would become Justice, Law and Safety

Why? Both deal with legal issues

Human Resources
Information Services - Would become Human and Information Resources

Why? All two deal with administrative functions of the government.

Economic Development

Intergovernmental Relations
Zoning and Planning - Would become Economic Development, Zoning and Planning

Why? All three have an impact on Economic Development

Finance & Budget - would stay alone due to complex and important nature of topics

Environment, Utilities and Public Service – would stay alone due to nature of its work

When elected, Schulz will push for rules changes to shrink the number of council committees and reorganize based on functionality. This will provide many benefits:

· Provide a more holistic approach to committee work so that the bigger picture is considered when debating subjects. Many issues one committee may have the jurisdiction over could affect another committee. Many committees have similar sounding jurisdiction
· Less committees will insure that only the most important issues rise to the level of the council agenda
· Allow for more efficient use of council members’ valuable time so that they can focus on their constituents’ needs. LESS COMMITTEE MEETINGS

Can Tom Noe get a fair trial in Lucas County?

I've been wondering that as the date for the trial has come closer and now that jury selection is beginning, I really have to wonder how a jury will even be able to be found that can honestly say they would be impartial. The most recent reporting from the Blade and other media on Joe Kidd was beyond the pale. Here is a man who was granted immunity and before the trial even starts? He's out there, adding to the possible corruption of a jury pool. Then of course the whole Bernadette Noe, "Stand by your Man" media episode. It's understandable that the media is going to cover this story and information on the trial such as rulings, witness lists, etc; but the amount of sensationalism is of almost epic proportions.

Take today's Blade and the quote from Bob Bennett, the head of the Ohio Republican Party:

“Noe lied to nearly everyone. He stole money meant for injured workers and he broke the law. It is as simple as that. The criminal is responsible for his crime and if people want to shift blame for Noe’s criminal actions, they are doing it for partisan political purposes,” Mr. Bennett said. “Tom Noe is a crook. He should go to jail.’’


Judge Osowik correctly took issue with "manipulation of the judicial process". "You lose credibility," the judge said. "To me it looks like a manipulation of the judicial system, especially so close to the trial date." However we all know the media is the one who also created this situation and obviously given the "I was afraid I'd loose my job" Joe Kidd two part series, and some of the quotes in the media the "manipulation of the judicial process" is still happening. If the Bernadette Noe reporting was wrong, then the Joe Kidd reporting and the numerous people all willing to line up and declare Tom Noe guilty without a trial are wrong too.

The legal system is designed so that everyone is supposed to be innocent until proven guilty. Yet, outside of the courtroom everyone is so quick to pass judgement. Many of our local residents seem to enjoy with a great amount of relish when someone who was "mighty" falls, some of them have gone as far as to comment with glee about what Tom Noe can expect when in prison. This behavior of course isn't just limited to Lucas County but we seem to do a very excellent job here in the grudge holding department.

Think about this for a moment:

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defense.

I'm not the only one who thinks the media and the public has killed the theory of innocent until proven guilty. While I don't agree with Doc Farmer on all of his statements (especially about the lib/dem/soc/commie media) he makes several good points:

A few centuries ago, a new nation was born. It was born in blood and fire, but based on principles, honor, and respect. Above all, it did something that no other nation had done previously – it put the rights of the individual above the rights of the state. It also did something quite novel for the time. In those days, if a crime was committed, the accused was assumed by the state to be guilty. He, or she, had to prove their innocence.

Then, America came along. With the outrageous notion that persons accused of a crime were innocent, until the state could prove their guilt. I'm sure it had George III's head spinning. Maybe that's what drove him nuts. That, or the fact that a piss-ant bunch of rag-tag colonists opened up a six-pack of whup-ass on his professional army. Oh, wait, they didn't have six-packs back then, did they? Well, a flagon of whup-ass, then.

For the next two centuries or so, this belief, this legal institution held sway. I'm sure some guilty men and women went free in those intervening years. And sadly, some innocent people were jailed – or worse – in that time. On the whole, however, the system did work...

Now, if the media or political opportunists decide you're guilty, then no amount of proof, no amount of truth, no amount of law will protect you. You no longer have any right to innocence in the court of "public" opinion.

Anyone who is totally honest can't lay all of the blame on the media, we are the ones that they are trying to "entertain or inform" and if more of us made it perfectly clear that we want this type of media reporting to stop, if we "voted with our remotes" or with our subscriptions or even with letters of complaint it would stop because the bottom line of most media is revenue.

What I find most ironic is in a country where it is said nine out of ten adults believe in God, we can't follow something as simple as:

Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured unto you.

Or those that prefer the "modern" translation:

Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.

Even the bible has a name for that...Thou hypocrite...

:-)

UPDATE: 10/11 - Toledo Blade:

Judge Thomas Osowik dismissed 15 other potential jurors yesterday, seven of whom made it clear they felt Noe was guilty as charged.

With so many jurors jettisoned from the jury pool, Judge Osowik ordered an additional 75 jury candidates in hopes of finding 12 who can be “fair and impartial.”
..........................


This post was included as a part of the Carnival of Ohio Politics, where some of Ohio's best bloggers share their posts with you thanks to Paul Miller of Northwest Ohio Net.

Mark Dansack Press Release on Endorsements and Appearances

From the Mark Dansack for Ohio House District 46 campaign:

Mark Dansack announces endorsements and appearances

Monclova Township Democrat Mark Dansack continues to pile up impressive endorsements from labor groups and individuals. Mr. Dansack announced the endorsements he picked up over the last week which include the following:

Toledo Area UAW-CAP Council
The Ohio State Legislative Board of the United Transportation Union
Toledo Area AFL-CIO Central Labor Council
Teamsters Ohio DRIVE
Teamsters Local 20 and Joint Council No. 44


"It is extremely gratifying to earn and receive the support of such a diverse group of organized labor, as these folks understand that the current representative and Governor Taft are more interested with assisting those folks at the top of the income brackets in Ohio while ignoring the plight of ordinary, hard working Ohioans", Dansack stated. "I am proud and humbled to accept the support of these major labor institutions across our state, and pledge to work in the areas of education and job creation, retention and retraining for displaced workers to attempt to lift the status of Ohio's workers who have been left behind by the Taft administration".

Dansack also announced the support of Ohio Democratic Party Chairman, Chris Redfern, and House Minority leader Joyce Beatty. Beatty calls Dansack a "prime example of just how energized Democrats are in 2006". When Dansack saw that no one was running against Taft supporter, incumbent Mark Wagoner, he immediately "jumped at the chance to get on the ballot". Beatty stated, "In cities and small towns throughout Ohio, there's a fight going on for change, and Mark Dansack is part of that fight". Beatty added, "Mark understands that Ohio is headed in the wrong direction after a decade of failed policies from the likes of Bob Taft and Ken Blackwell. We need more people like Mark Dansack fighting for change in Columbus".

Redfern added, "Mark Dansack will be a strong voice in Columbus for the families of Lucas County. As a state representative from Northwest Ohio and Democratic Party chairman, I am proud to support Mark for the Ohio House".

Dansack will be at a candidate forum on Wednesday, October 11 on senior issues at the Sunset House on Indian Road in Toledo and will be in Sylvania on October 15 for the Sylvania Fall Festival from 11am though 3pm. More information about Dansack's campaign can be found at dansackdistrict46.blogspot.com.

Young Dems talking trash...

Okay now that I have your attention (lol)

What: LCYD Adopt-A-Highway

When: Saturday, October 14, 2006 - 10 am to 2 pm (rain or shine)

Where: I-475 at Airport Highway (St. Rt. 2)

We want to demonstrate the Democratic Party's commitment to a making Toledo and Lucas County better place to live, and to show that we backup our fundamental principles with actions.

If you want more details on the event or to RSVP please contact Kevin Cooper, kjcoop at yahoo.com

:-)

Toledo City Council Candidate Debate...notes...

I understand the initial decision to have only three candidates answer each question but considering two did not end up appearing, it would have made it easier to compare/contrast the four present if they would have all answered the same questions. To describe how last night was done the questions started with one candidate then the next two candidates answered the same question. Then the next candidate was the first one to be asked a new question with the next two answering that question and so on...


The first question was about Brain Drain, Joe described a little about his ten point plan that his campaign released on this issue mentioning his idea for the Heritage Festival among them. I don't think James understood the question since he responded that he felt that the term "Brain Dead" wasn't something we should be using. Dave responded that he felt the key to ending Brain Drain was to provide a better business climate and that "bells and whistles" like the Heritage Festival would not help.

On the topic of the City Council being divided, James stated that if he is elected he will represent the you not either party and he will not be connected to back door politics. Dave stressed his work on the issue of ethics and how he has worked with both Frank Szollosi and Rob Ludeman to get results. Bob stated that he is a Democrat running for neither team and that he would not make any deals and that the person who was appointed did make deals.

The next question none of the three really answered, it was about the candidates position on tax incentives given to out of state businesses rather than local businesses. Dave brought up Joe's campaign not using a local vendor and stated that he is supporting local businesses and pointed to his business survey. Bob stated that he also bought his campaign material locally and mentioned his proposal to decrease the sales tax for local businesses by 1%. Joe stated with the creation of his new law firm that he was a local business and hoped that people would use local attorneys for all of their legal needs. After the laughter stopped, Joe continued with regionalism is important and we should be competing with China and Japan not local suburbs.

Joe, James and Dave all agreed that neighborhood groups like Westgate Neighors are important. Joe mentioned his plan for Citizen based budgeting and the Citizen Academy and his support for open government. James stated that citizens should always be involved and that he believes that declaring most acts voted on as emergencies in City Council is wrong. Dave stated that seeing the citizen response concerning Glass City Academy demonstrated how important citizen and neighborhood groups are.

The candidates were asked their position on the legality of snow piles that obstruct the view of a motorist. James felt it should be illegal and should be covered under the current nuisance laws. Dave stated they should declare it an emergency, then after the laughter stopped, agreed it should be looked at under the current nuisance laws. Bob stated this is illegal and it should be enforced.

On the question of Urban Sprawl, Dave talked about his business survey the results that showed that businesses want a decrease in their taxes as well as a more business friendly city. He then continued asking Joe since he proposed reducing taxes for teachers and safety personnel people wanted to know where was their tax cuts. Bob stated that our neighborhoods need to be revitalized and that we should partner with the public school system to make neighborhoods and schools keep people in Toledo. Joe felt that urban sprawl is an issue with Toledo that drains our tax base and that the use of water rights and a Smart Growth plan are needed that a strong Urban core is critical to the success of our City and that a City without a good downtown is a city without a soul.

Bob, Joe and James are all against the municipal fees, Bob stated he would not support new fees and would work to repeal the one in affect. Joe stated money should not be wasted on things such as lights/city pride signs and showers that money could be spent more wisely so that such fees were not necessary. James also stated that he felt it was wrong for an out of state company to be collecting a ten percent fee.

Point of Sale ordinace Joe, James and Dave all agreed that the solution is enforcement of what we have now and hiring more housing inspectors. James, Dave and Bob all agreed that City Council should follow the same ethics rules as the Mayor and his staff.

On Gambling...Joe stated he was against gambling. Dave in humor referring to the Commissioner's debate stated he'd give a politician's answer, limited gambling downtown done responsibly could be a potential boost. Bob felt that the societal problems with gambling were large and that it was not a solution to our area's problems, he got a chuckle with the statement that he's not much of a gambler, that he's not lucky. He then reaffirmed he felt gambling was not good for Toledo.

The question was then asked if the candidates would sponsor a resolution by Toledo City Council to end the war in Iraq. Dave felt that was not the role of City Council that the focus should be on City services. Bob stated he was not against the idea of City Council making resolutions and that he would sponsor that resolution. Joe stated that elected officials are leaders and on important issues should take sides, he would also support such a resolution.

When asked how long would you stay in office, Bob pointed out that one of the candidates in this race ran for judge before and that if he is elected he will not run for any other office that he is not a career politician. Joe stated that he felt public service is the way to help people. James gave a response that elicited a laugh from the crowd, "if you elect me you are stuck with me".

On would the candidates report unethical behavior, Joe, James and Dave all said yes. On the Environment, James, Dave and Bob all felt it was important, Dave and Bob support recycling. Dave stated he was a "Teddy Roosevelt type of Republican" and Bob stated that a Smart Growth plan was important and the City should be a leader when it comes to environmentally progressive ideas.

The three most critical issues facing our City according to Dave are Economic Development, Ethics and Public Safety. He stated his 13 years experience in purchasing would be an asset to City government. Bob stated Jobs, Safety and Neighborhoods, that all of these were interelated with Economic Development and revitalization. We have to have neighborhoods that people want to live in. Joe stated Jobs, Crime and Sprawl and feels that the City needs a full time economic development person that there are not enough hours in the day for the Mayor to be able to be a full time mayor and a full time economic development director.

That is not all of the questions but a good majority of them to give you an idea of what was discussed and what the basic responses were of the candidates who attended.

Closing statements Toledo City Council Candidates Debate

Last night the Toledo City Council candidates who attended were given two minutes to make a closing statement. As I did with the earlier Commissioner debate I recorded these closing statements and I will do my best to accurately transcribe these statements in full.


First closing statement was by Bob Vasquez:

What I would like to do is to have you consider a couple of things, one that I want you to look at is Leadership, I want you to look at that because I have served on many committees here in the City of Toledo. I have been involved for a long time on these committees as a volunteer citizen, there is a list of them in my hand out for you to take a look at rather than state them now. Listen to what we have said up here, a City Council meeting right now is that the Mayor comes up with a proposal or his staff and he pushes it down to City Council and City Council says Emergency, yes no, yes no and this continues on. What we really need is leadership on City Council right now and by that what I mean is that first of all I don't know why City Council people aren't doing research on their own and not just saying yes or no; saying 'Have you considered this alternative' or 'I have a problem with this part' and send it back up to the Mayor, maybe make a suggestion on how that proposal could be stronger. I also think that takes away from the A Team B Team kind of thing because you are not just saying 'yes no' you are not just voting with your colleagues you actually have some original ideas of your own. We have 12 people sitting on City Council and all they do is vote 'yes no yes no'. We need to start looking at long term planning, they need someone there to force people to look at long term planning and they need people there to show strength and to come up with new ideas when ideas are needed but you have to have someone who knows about government. That's why I'm talking about asset management, infrastructure management, because that sets out goals past one administration and into the other administration. Because of the type of government we have now, strong Mayor, we're going to get this thing over and over and over again, we have to stop that. Who is going to give you consistency in government? It's going to have to be City Council and it's going to have to be coming up with plans, documents, assessment plans, business philosophies, those kinds of things to carry thru. I would like for you to vote for me if you want to see a different way of doing government on November 7th.

Dave Schulz was next:

I actually have a little show and tell here, a vote for me is a vote for results. This is my new sign that will be seen, unlike the Mayor, I really get results. Look at ethics, I beat the drum on that issue during the last City Council race, it's being addressed. I exposed two Councilmen for violating the City Charter, our City Charter, your City Charter. I stuck with that issue and I fixed it, but I encourage you to vote for it again obviously I will be doing it I am the number one champion this issue. I don't have anything else to say, I get results, just think what I did as a private citizen, I will do for you as a City Councilman.

James Mohn:

About the only thing I can say to you is that I am available to you people, I hope you vote for me and in my summary is all of the things that I stand for. My idea is that one person isn't going to change the make up of City Council. I can tell you that right now because they are so indebted in their two cliques. They have two cliques there and it is so obvious, they got the Republican and Democrat clique and then they have the Democrat clique. One person isn't going to change that. They may be able to change the vote sometimes by focusing on parliamentary procedure but the one thing you will see is a difference in the vote. Right now it's always a 12-0 vote, it's always an emergency and it doesn't have to be that way. They do not discuss anything, there is a lot of behind the doors stuff. If you vote for me, I will not go behind the door. They will discuss this stuff out in the open because I will bring it out in the open. I will ask them 'How did you get that decision', in the last meeting that they had it was so devious, some of the members weren't even at the committee meeting, they were somewhere else. But yet, when it came to the meeting to vote on it, it was a good old division, they voted that way so it became law. It will not be that way with me, I will bring it out and they will have to discuss it because I'll point to them 'How did you get to this decision'. Thank you.

Last up was Joe McNamara:

First I want to thank the League of Women voters and the Westgate Neighbors for putting this forum together, I know much work it is first hand and I appreciate it and I had a lot of fun. I also want to thank my opponents for joining up I had fun talking, it wasn't fun when I was attacked but it was good. It's important that you the voters get a chance to see candidates side by side, it's really a shame that not all of the candidates came so that you could compare and that's kind of telling but at any rate, Toledo is facing serious challenges. We are ranked 196 out of 200 cities in job growth by the Milliken institute. Seventy five thousand people have left the City of Toledo in the past thirty years, we can't wait another ten years when twenty five thousand more people have left then try to start something new. I propose new ideas to stop the brain drain, to create jobs and protect public safety. I have a four part to increase the number of police on the streets, and I've been endorsed by the firefighters. You are not always going to agree with me and I may not always get it right, but it's not going to be for the lack of trying, it's not going to be for the lack of hard work and it's not going to be for not trying to put new ideas out there to fix the problems that we are facing. I need your vote on November 7th to turn Toledo around and I promise I'm going to work extremely hard, I love this city and thank you so much for coming out.

Lucas County Commissioner Debate notes..

After reading this morning's Blade a few things become clear. One, people should make it a point to attend these debates since that's the only real way they are going to get information. I took 8 pages of notes just during the Commissioner debate. Many really excellent questions were asked.


Both George and Ben agree on regionalism being important to this area, Ben stating that there is too much competition in Lucas County that we as a region need to compete together for jobs outside of this area and George pointing to Louisville and Indianapolis as examples of successful regionalism and he used the recent radio system coordination with the City of Toledo and Lucas County as one example.

On the Sports Arena and the 80 million dollar price tag, both candidates are cautiously optimistic and both believe it is important that Lucas County residents see no tax increase.

There was a very detailed question about why the Lucas County Dog Warden does not use a scanner to help owners locate lost dogs even though it was stated that one had been offered to them for free. The person who wrote the question wanted to know if the candidates would support this since the cost of training staff to use the scanner would be small.

Ben stated this was one example of how our County is behind the times in technology that we are years behind the curve. That he would like more information on the specifics but it was something he felt should be looked at.

George stated that he would also be interested in looking into this issue and learn more facts about it. He then brought up the issue of the Dog Warden not being available on weekends as a concern as well.

The question was asked as to how each candidate is different than the two current Commissioners.

Ben stated that he was not afraid to criticize the two current Commissioners and he gave two examples that he has promoted where he believes changes should happen. One was the switch to Open Source Software, the other was the better promoting/assistance related to Earned Income Tax Credits.

George said that with Tina having a background in Social Work and Pete having a labor background that he would bring his 24 years of Business and Professional experience as a contribution. He also felt that as a Republican he would bring balance to County government and stated that effective government is not a partisan government.

When the question was asked if either man would be a full time commissioner and would they quit their other employment, Ben answered yes with the exception of one class he had agreed to teach in the Spring on Election Law and he would donate the money earned for that class for a scholarship fund. He stated this was a part of his ethics pledge and he pointed out that George had not signed that pledge.

George said he would be a full time commissioner but he did not come out and state that he was going to quit his other employment. His response was that he had put in numerous hours as a City Council person, that he had treated that as a full time job and would make the Commissioner's Office his number one priority. When responding to the issue of the ethics pledge, George stated that the two current Commissioners had not signed it either.

It was asked how each candidate felt about the Urban Village model.

George stated that Lagrange is a good example of this being successful as well as Point Place but that the urban village model is not for every neighborhood.

Ben stated that this area is a sleeping giant architecturally and that he is all for the Urban Village concept.

Issue Three and Gambling is something most people know I have been paying close attention to. I respectfully disagree with the way Joshua Boak presented that answer. While George did make it very clear that he supports the concept of limited casino gambling in a location such as the Marina, he also made it clear he does not think Issue 3 is fair to our area and I think it's important for local voters to know how the candidates feel on Issue 3.

Ben's position as to being against gambling as written in the article is accurate, he stated that gambling creates societal problems beyond the financial gain.

If you read the closing statements in full as I've transcribed in the post below I think it shows you the differences in the two candidates as well as some of the information that I've posted here.

Lucas County Commissioner Debate - closing statements...

Okay in opposite order, the closing statements transcribed as best I could from my tape recording. Both George and Ben had three minutes to make a closing statement.


George Sarantou closing statement:

I want to thank the League of Women Voters for this great opportunity to be here tonight, as the son of Greek immigrants I value this kind of discussion. I'm running for County Commmissioner because I think it's time we had a balance on County government, my twenty four years of business, financial professional experience is very very important. We are talking about a 138 million dollar general fund budget and the fact is I've worked with a one and a half billion dollars worth of budgets all of which have balanced and we've maintained our bond rating and Mr. Konop, the city is in great shape financially, we're running at 4 percent ahead of last year in revenue collection and last month's activity was 3/8% so I'm not ready to sound the alarm that we're at a panic stage. I'm also committed to economic development in this community and I have experience in doing that, the GM Powertrain project, Dana Tech project, G2 and the US Coking are just a few. I've also worked with numerous new businesses and small businesses out there to get them to relocate into our region. The other hot issue in my opinion is our cost of utilities, residential utility rates are nine percent higher than the average for the State of Ohio in Lucas County. Our Commercial rates are digustingly high 33.9% higher than the state average. I as a councilman have taken on this issue along with Democrats on City Council like Ellen Grachek and I am committed to continue in this battle. Just last week Mayor Finkbeiner and I and other Democrats and Republicans had a press conference where we called on both Gubernatorial candidates to tell us what they are going to do to lower the high cost of utilities in Lucas County. Ladies and Gentlemen, that's leadership, that's the difference between myself and my opponent, I've done it and he hasn't. I have not only talked the talk but I've walked the walk and I have a track record as a life long Toledoan, as a husband, as a father of three children, I'm committed to this community. I'm not going to move to another area to run for the Congress, I've chosen to live here in this community, I'm grateful for the opportunity to serve 300,000 residents of Toledo and if you think I've done a good job, if you think I've worked well to bring change to this community, if you think that our best days are still ahead of us, then I ask you to give me the opportunity to serve 450,000 people in Lucas County, to bring more jobs to this community, to lower our high utility rates, to make sure that our children and grandchildren have a future in this great community. I believe our best days are ahead of us and I'm committed to making postive changes in this community. Thank you.

Ben Konop closing statement:

Well, you know this area of town is especially important to me, my grandfather and grandmother immigrated to this country with little more than the shirts on their back. My grandfather's first job was selling flyswatters door to door and then worked at the Willy's Overland Plant and saved up enough money to open a small business and eventually was able to buy a house and their second house I believe was on Goddard Road right down the street from here. My mother is here today and she grew up on Goddard and was blessed to be able to live the American Dream and the American Dream was bestowed upon our family because of the warm generousity and economic opportunity that Lucas County offered and if you think things are going well and you think that our government is performing it's job to the best of it's ability and you think job creation is where we need it, then I'm probably not your candidate frankly; but if you we can do better, if you think we need new ideas and fresh vision then there is a contrast that has been pretty well illuminated today here in this debate. My opponent talks alot about his experience as Finance Committee Chair and all of the things he's done on City Council so apparently things are going pretty well in Lucas County so then why is everyone leaving? Why is economic opportunity not to be found? Why are ethics in government so questionable at best here in our community? I propose to you today Ladies and Gentlemen that there needs to be a change, the politics of the past have not got the job done. We are in very challenging times economically, very challenging, probably the most challenging our community has ever faced frankly and if we think the politics of the past are going to help us weather this storm I think that's a mistake, as I go door to door getting the chance to talk to citizens face to face I realize that the time is right for change and I'm excited to be the agent of change frankly, I'm excited to make sure that the future citizens of Lucas County have the opportunity to live the American dream like my grandparents have. I'm not a career politician, I'm not a politician, I don't give politician answers, I'll say straight up are we going to cut seven percent, are we going to cut (couldn't get) and I still haven't heard that answer and that is why so many people are turned off by the political process, it's time for a change, it's time for straight talk, it's time for new ideas and I ask for your vote on November 7th, thank you very much.

Lucas County Commissioner and Toledo City Council candidates Debate

The Westgate Neighbors and the League of Women Voters of Toledo-Lucas County sponsored two debates tonight. The first one was between the two Lucas County Commissioner candidates; Ben Konop and George Sarantou. The second was was for the candidates running for the one at large Toledo City Council seat. All of the canidates were invited, all stated they would attend. However, only four candidates appeared tonight, Joe McNamara, James Mohn, Dave Schulz and Bob Vasquez. At first it was thought that Lourdes Santiago and David Davison just might be running late but they did not appear.

I have pages of notes from tonight and I did tape the closing statements of all of the candidates both Commissioner and Toledo City Council that I will transcribe in full so it's very doubtful I will have this done tonight. What I have planned at this moment is transcribing tonight and linking any tv media coverage and the coverage by the Toledo Blade then supplementing that from what information I have in my notes rather than duplicating information that is being provided.

I thought the turnout was pretty good and the quality of the questions from the audience was very impressive. Those in attendance were asked to write their questions on index cards which were collected thru out both debates then asked. Infact there were so many questions asked that it was not possible to ask all of them.

So...more specific details will follow tomorrow and I want to thank both the Westgate Neighbors and the League of Women Voters for arranging this debate tonight and all of those who attended both citizen, candidates and candidate supporters.

:-)

Konop Press Release on School Safety...

This just in from the Ben Konop for Lucas County Commissioner campaign:

Konop to Call for Greater County Commitment to Safe Schools
Democratic candidate to speak to class at Lincoln Academy for Boys

(Toledo, OH) In the wake of several recent school shootings and a recent Blade article detailing security lapses within local schools, Democratic candidate for Lucas County Commissioner Ben Konop will call for a Safe School Task Force at the county level, a county-wide safe school conference, and greater funding to the sheriff’s department to address safety in the schools. Konop will outline his proposal at 10:30 am, Monday, October 9th at the Lincoln Academy for Boys at 1801 N. Detroit Ave. Media is welcome to attend the event.

“Students, teachers, and parents deserve the maximum resources of county government directed towards making schools safer,” stated Konop. “We live in a violent world, and although there is no fool-proof plan for safety in schools, as Commissioner I will work with the Sheriff’s Department to make sure our students are as safe as possible.”

During his talk with the students, Konop will also discuss public service and constitutional law. Konop, an attorney and professor, has taught classes including Legislation and Election Law at the University of Toledo College of Law, as well as the American Political Process at Bluffton University .

Toledo motor vehicle accident response fee and the myth of "easy money"

Tom Troy of the Toledo Blade has an interesting article concerning Toledo's motor vehicle accident response fee in today's paper.

The logic behind these types of fees are that insurance companies will simply pay the fees, so it's being touted as "easy money". The Toledo Police Department is also looking at instituting similar fees for their services, this idea has not yet been voted on by Toledo City Council.

Just like there is no real "free lunch" there is no "free" or "easy money". It has to come from somewhere and if even if Insurance companies and private citizens were being billed fairly (many claim they are not), the money would still come from the pool of insurance dollars and eventually rates will have to increase to cover these additional costs. Or in the case of private citizens, it would come from their income. I don't see any difference in this type of behavior than ambulance chasers, they sue because they know most times they can get a settlement and the insurance companies will pay for it or medical professionals or facilities that pad their bills to get more money from the insurance companies.

In the end the consumer always pays for this which means it is the consumer that has less spendable income. Less spendable income means less money that is spent on consumer products which realistically means less money is spent locally.

If you want more information on how Ohio Insurance companies view this after reading the Toledo Blade article, I'd recommend visiting here.

Need help finding dog's owner or information - UPDATE! Owner found!

My daughter Megan found this dog shaking under a tree, it is very elderly and appears to have totally lost vision in one eye and has limited vision in the other eye. The dog is also very hard of hearing but was obviously cared for at one point in time because it was groomed. Either some how someone lost this dog or it was dumped, we of course don't know which.



If you know anyone who has lost this dog or if you are a groomer or anyone who might know who this dog belongs to or any further information on him please contact me via email or comment here. I've brought the dog to my house because Megan could not find any of the humane organizations that would help her.

Another picture

More on alley garbage pick up in Toledo...

I headed on over to read the City Journal today and I saw there was a section entitled: Appendix B, Rules And Regulations, Issued By The Director Of Public Service, Regulations Governing Refuse Collection. I did a quick search of the Toledo Blade but only found the article that was written on September 8th. Some changes that should especially be noted by those of us who have alley trash pickup:

Trash bags set out for collection in alleys that are not in a regulation refuse container are prohibited and will not be collected.


You should also be aware of what type of container is considered a "regulation refuse container":

Section 205 – Acceptable Refuse Containers/Weight Limits. Regular refuse containers must be of relatively sturdy plastic or metal construction, have two handles, and a maximum capacity of thirty-five (35) gallons. The total loaded weight of the container shall not exceed sixty (60) pounds and shall not have an attached lid.

Containers manufactured with one handle shall not exceed a total loaded weight of forty (40) pounds.

And this is of note:

Section 409 – Date of Effect. These regulations shall take effect and be in force thirty (30) days after the date they are published in the “Toledo City Journal.”

This was published on September 30, 2006.

Which means if I am interpreting this correctly alley trash collection still exists however it now has to be in approved trash cans not the current system of cans or bags. If you have curbside trash pick up you can still use trash bags or trash cans.

If you'd like to read this particular City Journal for yourself it is linked in the title and here. Also of note is several one way streets are going to have sections become two way.

Sherrod Brown, Luke Perry and meeting Connie Schultz

Tonight's rally at UT was a great one, really nice turn out. I liked the music, people seemed to enjoy the pizza while they were waiting for Sherrod and Luke to arrive. There were a few Mike Dewine supporters, there is a picture of one young lady who didn't give me her name but said she's a reader of the blog, all of the pictures from tonight are at the title link. There was some heckling from the DeWine supporters during the band playing which they handled quite well, some more heckling during Luke Perry's speech which he handled too. Someone yelled for him to go back to Hollywood, not realizing that Luke Perry was born in Ohio and has had a very long relationship with the Brown family. Sherrod's father who was a doctor delievered Luke. Luke introduced Sherrod who focused on college education, jobs and turning our state around. I think the largest cheering came when it was said that Ohio was going to turn blue with this election. Sherrod also dealt with some heckling from the DeWine supporters but he kept on his message. The majority of the crowd was very vocal in support of Sherrod and there was some of the same sign jostling infront of the cameras that happened at the UT event that Ted Strickland attended.


Ben Konop was there for the whole rally with some of his supporters, Joe McNamara was also there as well as many of his supporters. Peter Ujvagi arrived with the group who accompanied Sherrod. There could have been others there that arrived later but that was who I saw.

I didn't get a chance to talk with Sherrod, he was busy doing interviews and doing the candidate meet and greet thing. However, I did introduce myself to Connie Schultz who was someone I really have been wanting to meet for quite some time. Before Glass City Jungle even existed Connie and I exchanged a few emails and even prior to that, I made it a point to try to read her Cleveland Plain Dealer column. That for me was a cool moment because she remembered who I was. She also talked with Aubrey for a few moments and told her how great she thought it was that Aubrey was getting involved in politics and told her that when she was about Aubrey's age that was when she had started getting really interested in politics too.

Yes, the picture is from tonight during the rally Aubrey was holding Sherrod Brown signs and doing some dancing to Ten Mile Creek...

:-)

Judge Linda Jennings campaign website released...

This just in via email:

judgelindajennings.com

The website has some biographical information, a question and answer page as well as other information about Judge Linda Jennings for voters of Lucas County.

Judge Jennings was appointed to the Lucas County Court of Common Pleas for a term beginning May 17, 2006, replacing Jack Zouhary. She is currently running for election for the term beginning 1/06/07 which is the term Judge Wittenberg is retiring from. James Nusbaum is the other candidate for Judge for that particular term. The seat that Judge Jennings was appointed to is the one being sought by Michael Goulding and Stacy Cook which has a beginning term date of 1/2/07.

So, stop by and welcome her to the internet, I've also added the site to the list of NWO Candidate Websites on the sidebar. I think it's awesome that more and more of our local candidates are reaching out to voters via the internet.

:-)

Is the Toledo Plan Commission going to pay the rent?

Ever wonder why Toledo gets the reputation of being not friendly to businesses? Here's a recent example of miscommunication and now public statements being made that don't have a friendly "come on downtown" tone.

Last week it was reported that:

A new maritime-themed charter school opened yesterday in Toledo's Warehouse District, but just hours after children left for the day, city employees posted a sign forbidding the school to continue operating.

Tom Kroma, Toledo's director of neighborhoods, said the Maritime Academy of Toledo does not have a needed special-use permit to operate at 44 South St. Clair Street.

"They have made application, but that will not come before the Toledo Plan Commission until Oct. 17," Mr. Kroma said. "It's kind of odd that they would have been starting up there [before approval]."


Obviously there was some miscommunication that gave the school the impression they could open in that location.

Now today the Toledo Blade is reporting:

Toledo Plan Commission Director Stephen Herwat said his staff's recommendation will be to deny a special-use permit requested by the charter school.

"We don't believe that is the best use of that space," Mr. Herwat said.

Yes, let's repeat that last sentence just one more time....

"We don't believe that is the best use of that space,"

How does the Warehouse Association feel about this Charter School? After all you'd think their opinion would matter:

Kathy Steingraber, executive director of the Toledo Warehouse District Association, said all the tenants in the building and nearby business owners were thrilled to have the charter school move in.

"They see it as a wonderful thing and new customers," Ms. Steingraber said.

and:

Kathy Steingraber, executive director of the Toledo Warehouse District Association, said she hopes the commission will allow the school to come back to the neighborhood.

"I believe that there are so many misunderstandings about what is going on here," Ms. Steingraber said. "I don't think anyone fully realizes that this is a learning center with a minimum number of students."

Ms. Steingraber said the school intends to remain in the apartment until the hardware store at South St. Clair and Lafayette Street moves. The school would then move downstairs into that 3,200-square-foot space.

"We don't have a lot of people breaking down the door to lease space in downtown Toledo or in the warehouse district, so it makes no sense not to welcome them with open arms," Ms. Steingraber said.

I know, we are all supposed to be so anti-charter schools but I think it's a really cool concept and I thought we wanted more people downtown...not to mention have those who own property be able to earn rent...

Sojourner's Truth features Dave Schulz and Bob Vasquez

This week's edition of Sojourner's Truth has two more Toledo City Council Candidates in their series of interviews being done by Tamir A. Shaw. Dave Schulz is featured this week and the article covers a great deal of information about Dave and his beliefs. I'd have to say one quote I found especially noteworthy was:

“An open, transparent, ethical government is the foundation to a flourishing economy,”

As to why Dave feels he is the best candidate for this Toledo City Council spot?

Schulz believes that he is the best candidate for the at-large seat because he has private sector, business experience that the other council members are lacking.

“Right know we have too many lawyers, career politicians, career bureaucrats, and not enough people who work in the real world,” Schulz quipped.

“My purchasing experience really gives me a lot of experience on how to balance budgets, how to spend money wisely and creatively. Our tough financial times require someone who has that experience,” he said.

Bob Vasquez was also featured in this week's Sojourner's Truth. Bob outlined his ideas and areas he would like to see changed to make Toledo a better city. He also shared why he felt he would be the best candidate for the Toledo City Council spot:

“What we do is we react to crises in the city. Because I have a degree in public administration, I look at government a different way and I want to bring that different way to City Council,” he said.

In fact, Vasquez says that he wants to bring an entirely new approach to the way things are currently done in council with respect to the agenda and proposals that come down from the mayor.

Part of the problem that Vasquez sees with the current system is that there is no defined good business policy or guidelines in place which the council can follow. If elected, he wants to make the development of this plan a priority, with the focal point of the document being what is best for Toledo.

I highly recommend stopping by and reading these articles in full, if you missed last week's interviews with Joe McNamara and Lourdes Santiago, they can be read in the archive pdf.

Tamir A. Shaw has done an excellent job in interviewing these candidates.

:-)

If you believe in polls...Issue 3 is going down...

From today's Cleveland Plain Dealer:

First, a Plain Dealer poll of 625 registered voters across the state showed the proposal is losing by a double-digit margin with about a month left before Election Day. The poll, published in Sunday's paper, found 52 percent of those surveyed plan to vote against the gambling proposal while 36 percent favor it.

Then on Tuesday, prominent religious figures announced their opposition to Issue 3. Catholic leaders and a group of prominent Cleveland black preachers came out with separate statements against the proposal.

Next week, I'm told, the Cleveland NAACP will announce its opposition to the slots proposal. The hits just keep on coming.

This is easy to understand. Anyone who reads the fine print of Issue 3 and isn't blinded by the gambling lobby's flashing lights recognizes the proposal as bad public policy.


Well for some of it seems to be hard to understand, especially people who are focusing on side issues like biases with some of those who have come out against Issue 3...but I agree for anyone who bothers to actually read the information and not listen to the tv and radio hype it should come across as bad public policy.

I don't share Sam Fulwood III's belief that Issue 3 will not pass, call me cynical but we do have too many voters who are not informed, especially in our own local area. I hope it doesn't pass, I hope he is right when he writes:

Fortunately, the truth is gaining traction. This week's news helps drive home the message to any undecided voters. Nobody has an excuse for an uninformed decision when the polls open next month.

I feel so optimistic after this week's news that I'm dancing to the edge of a sturdy limb to shout out:

Slots machines won't rip off the Buckeye State any time soon.

So while he's dancing at the edge of sturdy branches...I'll watch with the safety net just incase...

Esther Munn is an inspiration...

As today's Toledo Blade points out as well as past articles, Esther Munn did not give up her dream.

A report last year on 13ABC reports that Esther was able to walk again:

Munn describes life before her accident as busy, a double major in theatre and in music her major instrument being her voice. "I liked to perform. That was my goal was to be a well rounded performer."

Now her goal is putting one foot in front of the other. She uses a cane to walk. "I have limited feeling especially in my left hand. I can't feel temperatures so I have to be careful not to burn myself or cut myself."

As today's Toledo Blade points out in addition to the financial settlement:

UT will give her more than 40 hours each of free tuition for the completion of bachelor's and master's degrees in theater and vocal music.

A devout Christian, she thanks God that souls don't break as easily as bodies.

"I'm still going to be a performer," Ms. Munn said. "And of course, looking at me now and looking at my medical records and all that, you're saying, 'You really need to change your major. This isn't possible.'"

How Esther Munn was injured was the tradition of taking down goal posts as part of a celebration, even as a Toledo Blade article from September 23, 2003 pointed out was something that Coach Tom Amstutz believed in at that time:

Immediately after the game, UT head football coach Tom Amstutz had commented about the excitement of the postgame celebration, saying: "After a win like this, they [the goal posts] had to come down."

Yesterday, he was visibly shaken in addressing the matter.

"Everyone was wrapped up in the emotion and all after the game, and I had no way of knowing at the time that someone had been hurt, and I just feel terrible about it," he said.

Coach Amstutz said students need to be safe and sensible in how they celebrate.

"In no way would I ever encourage them to do anything that would jeopardize another student," he said.

Removing goal posts as part of a celebration on a win is no longer possible today, since the University of Toledo has installed goal posts that are "indestructible". Personally I've never understood the desire to destroy things when a team wins but that type of behavior from a crowd isn't something that is just limited to UT or even College sports.

I'm very glad that this lawsuit was settled rather than make Esther Munn and her family go thru years of litigation. However, I do have to admit I did find the amount that the attorneys received troubling:

Under terms of the settlement dated Sept. 14, 2006, Ms. Munn will receive a payment of $924,999. During the course of her life, the Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. will pay Ms. Munn $5,000 each month and a lump sum of $200,000 in 2011.

Her mother, Grace Munn, will get $150,000. Her father, Daniel Munn, will get $1. Their attorneys will collect at least $941,386 through 2012.

Given the lawsuit was filed in May of 2005 and the injury took place in 2003. That's over $300,000 a year in legal fees and realistically lessens the amount of money that could have gone to Esther Munn and her family. While I do believe that an attorney deserves to be fairly compensated for their time when working on a settlement case, in some cases like this one it seems excessive. I know that this type of payment to legal representation is not uncommon, where close to a third of any settlement is awarded to the attorneys and in some situations especially if there has been years and years of ligitation I'm sure some attorneys have experienced a net loss when it comes to settlement payments. This settlement decision was agreed to by our Attorney General, Jim Petro.

That issue aside, I do believe that Esther Munn will graduate and she will continue to reach for her dreams:

"Already I've been able to share with so many people and encourage so many people, my therapist, other people in the hospital, " Ms. Munn said. "When I do dance again and am totally healed, everyone will know about it."

Want to rally for Sherrod Brown? Be able to drool over Luke Perry?

Want to hear Ten Mile Creek too? Then this is the press release you want to pay attention to.

From the Sherrod Brown for Senate Campaign:


Friday, October 6th
6:00 PM

Come Rally With Us and Enjoy Free Food!
University of Toledo
CENTENNIAL MALL
STEPS OF THE STUDENT UNION

Sherrod will be joined by Special Guests,
Luke Perry and Ten Mile Creek

This is a part of Sherrod's College Tour in Ohio



:-)

Konop Press Release on Sarantou and the Toledo City Council Ethics Proposal

From the Ben Konop for Lucas County Commissioner campaign:

Konop Reacts to Sarantou’s Refusal to Support Tough Ethics Policy for City Council

Democratic candidate believes the public deserves a higher standard of leadership

Toledo, OH- Yesterday at city council, Republican candidate for Lucas County Commissioner George Sarantou voted against a tough ethics policy for city council which would have banned all free gifts to council members. Instead, Sarantou supported a watered down ethics policy which will continue to allow him, for example, to accept free tickets to University of Toledo football games and watch the games from luxury boxes. In addition, these free tickets will not have to be reported as gifts.


Konop will address the issue today, at 3pm, at a press conference. The press conference will take place at the University of Toledo football ticket office at the North End of the Glass Bowl on the campus of the University of Toledo.

“I think city councilmen, like you and I, should have to pay for their tickets to a football game and not be handed out freebies because of their status as an elected official,” stated Konop. “In the wake of Tom Noe’s Coingate and the backroom dealings of Bob McCloskey, the citizens of Lucas County deserve a higher standard of leadership.”

Claudia Cooper found not guilty and the differences in how this was reported...

If you watched this information on the news last night both 13 and 11 or if you visited Toledo Talk you heard or read the quote from Judge Tim Kuhlman:

"I'd like to throw the both of you in jail, but since I can't throw both of you in jail, I'm not throwing anybody in jail -- not guilty."

If you watched 24:

The judge compared them both to school kids after hearing the descriptions of what happened. Board member Larry Sykes testified he was trying to get Cooper to calm down, when she hit him.

and...

Toledo Municipal Court Judge Timothy C. Kuhlman commented that he'd like to throw both sides in jail for what happened. In the end, he found Cooper not guilty of disorderly conduct.

If you read this morning's Toledo Blade you won't find that quote, you will find instead:

Judge Kuhlman, before making his not-guilty ruling, compared Ms. Cooper and school board member Larry Sykes to children.

"I'm curious what a Toledo school principal would say to two students like this," Judge Kuhlman said.

No mention of the part most of us found unusual with the Judge stating he'd like to throw them both in jail...

Joe McNamara outlines his plan for more police...

This just in from the Joe McNamara for Toledo City Council campaign:

McNamara Outlines Plan To Put More Police On The Street

Council candidate pledges support for new police class, calls for using civilian labor for some non-field work and establishing a volunteer auxiliary force

Toledo, OH – Toledo City Council candidate Joe McNamara wants to put more police on the street, in a car or walking a beat.

McNamara will hold a press conference today, Wednesday, October 4th, at 2 PM in front of the Public Safety Building downtown to outline his plan to put more police on the street.

McNamara’s plan has four components.


First, McNamara pledges to support a new police class of thirty in the 2007 budget.

Second, he is calling for a “top-to-bottom review” of the police department to determine what non-field work could be civilianized so that police could be reassigned to the field.

Third, McNamara is calling for the establishment of a volunteer police auxiliary force. Such units exist in many communities throughout the country. In New York City, where McNamara attended law school, the NYPD Auxiliary Police perform uniform patrols to deter crime and serve as additional “eyes and ears” for the department. They also serve as a citizen ready reserve in the event of an emergency or natural disaster.

Finally, McNamara asserts that the full-time police officer assigned to City Council is unnecessary as the building is secure and that only a Sergeant-of-Arms is needed to be present at council meetings.

“Bold leadership is needed to challenge the establishment and fight to put more police on the street,” says McNamara.

Justice William O’Neill to refuse The Toledo Blade Endorsement

This just in from the W. O’Neill for Supreme Court campaign:

Justice William O’Neill to announce publicly to refuse The Toledo Blade Endorsement

In light of the Toledo Blade having a lock-out with there employees Justice William O’Neill will publicly refuse any endorsement from The Toledo Blade.

Justice William O’Neill has also been a television and newspaper reporter and was an organizer for the Communications Workers of America, AFL-CIO.

Justice William O’Neill will be joined with members with the Toledo Newspaper Guild, CWA local 34043. This will take place tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. at the Lucas County Democratic Headquarters.

UPDATE: Location has been changed. The new location is at the Toledo Newspaper Guild at 415 N. Huron.

Bob Vasquez Media Release on TPPA Endorsement

From the Bob Vasquez for Toledo City Council campaign:

Toledo Police Patrolmen’s Association to Endorse Candidate Bob Vasquez for Toledo City Council

Bob Vasquez, At-Large Toledo City Council candidate, will receive the endorsement of the Toledo Police Patrolmen’s Association at a press conference at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow morning at the union’s hall.

Dan Wagner, president of the TPPA which represents about 550 Toledo police officers, will discuss why the union has endorsed Bob Vasquez and what Mr. Vasquez’ election will mean for the citizens of Toledo.


Mr. Vasquez, who has also received the endorsement of the Toledo Police Command Officers Association, will outline his priorities for keeping Toledo safe.

Joining Candidate Vasquez and President Wagner will be Councilman Michael Ashford and members of the TPPA union.

The following statement was also included:


Media Alert

Toledo Police Patrolman’s Association Endorses Bob Vasquez for Toledo City Council

“I am the only candidate that has consistently made the safety of the citizens of Toledo my number one priority. I have demonstrated my commitment to Toledo’s safety forces while serving on many volunteer committees including the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council and the Citizen’s Tax Levy Review Committee.

I believe that a safe city is the foundation on which economic vitality is based. Businesses will only remain in cities that are safe and new businesses are attracted to cities where employees can live in safe neighborhoods.

Our neighborhoods can only be maintained and revitalized if the people feel they are safe places to live.

The feeling of safety is the most basic need of every person. Our citizens can only be productive after this need is met.

When I am elected to city council I will be relentless in my support for our police department. Our safety forces must be a priority during the budget process. I am committed to more than minimum manpower standards. We need to raise the manpower levels to those that allow for us to continue the implementation of community policing.

Unlike others, I have never put decorative lighting and bike paths before the need for more police. I call for the Mayor to abandon his efforts regarding additional lighting for the Hi Level Bridge and to reallocate those funds to paying for more police officers, vehicles and equipment. I am against paying for Toledo Pride signs and believe that those funds should have been allocated toward police officers, vehicles and equipment.

Standing with me is Toledo’s Pride. I support these police officers who put their lives on the line everyday to protect the citizens of Toledo.

I ask that you support these officers by helping me implement the Spots for Cops program. I would like for businesses in all parts of Toledo to partner with police by providing an empty office or room that they can make accessible to officers who are on patrol in their district, where the officers can fill out reports and complete other paperwork. This program’s goal is to keep officers from having to sit in their cars completing paperwork and instead puts the police officers in a location visible in the community. A symbol; similar to those used for Block Watch can be used to designate a business as a “Cop Spot.”

“I am honored by the support of the Toledo Police Patrolman’s Association and the Toledo Police Command Officers Association”

Thought provoking study released by Ohio Citizen's Action

I received this via email this moring, it is a study released by a few Ohio groups: League of Women Voters, Moritz College of Law, Ohio Citizen Action, and the OSU Department of Political Science. It's very thought provoking study and one I highly recommend is well worth the time to read.

One part that especially hit home to me was this in the section about Political Culture and Context:

The State of Ohio faces major challenges as it elects its new leadership team in 2006. Whoever is elected will have to face the long-term reality of how business has traditionally been conducted in state politics. Governance has focused largely on the spoils of victory, how to reward one’s friends, and how to stay in office, rather than on overarching policy debates. States with such individualistic politics are more likely to experience graft and corruption, partly because the dominant party sometimes overreaches — especially if it controls all branches of governments and has enjoyed control for a long period of time. Victorious parties and their supporters are rewarded with tangible benefits, such as jobs, contracts, and favorable public policies, while the interests of ordinary citizens may be disregarded.

In the electoral arena, this political culture leads the major parties to undermine minor parties and independent candidates. For example, Ohio made it more difficult than most states for independent candidates to get on the ballot.

There is of course much more, I hope this study gets the attention of the public as well as being a source of discussion.

:-)

Sherrod Brown v Mike Dewine on Meet the Press...

Well, it was definitely a free for all. I missed it yesterday so this morning I watched it online.

There is also a written transcript if you'd prefer to read what happened.

With the exception of those of us who are really hard core political junkies, the whole photo epsiode in the DeWine campaign ad isn't something that is really important to the majority of Ohioans. Most of them probably don't even know about it and to be perfectly frank, it doesn't have anything to do with the real issues of jobs, health care and the security of our country yet:


SEN. DeWINE: I keep citing, I keep citing—no. You know the funny thing is? My ad cam is based on votes that you cast. You just want to run from your record, that’s your problem.

REP. BROWN: You know, you know, interestingly, Mike’s first ad in this campaign, he ran an ad of the World Trade Center on fire. The problem is, he doctored the ad. He took the most sacred symbol of a U.S. tragedy, and...

SEN. DeWINE: Have you ever denied the facts? Have you ever denied the facts in the ad, that you voted 10 different times against intelligence, and voted against the Patriot...

REP. BROWN: You—he, he said—he says on his ads, we all say—sit there very efficiently and say “I approve, I’m Sherrod Brown, I’m Mike DeWine, I approve this ad.”

SEN. DeWINE: Well, deny the facts, Sherrod.

REP. BROWN: He approved an ad that showed—that, that doctored the picture of the World Trade Center. He also called--15 years ago, he said John Glenn was soft on Communism.

SEN. DeWINE: Tim, Tim, I, I said there was a mistake made in the picture, but there was no mistake in the facts.

REP. BROWN: This is how he runs ads. They aren’t—“It was a mistake. It was a mistake.”

SEN. DeWINE: You’re still not denying the facts. Are the facts incorrect?

REP. BROWN: But no—just, just like Mike DeWine, it doesn’t hold the drug companies accountable, doesn’t hold the Defense Department accountable...

SEN. DeWINE: He won’t, he won’t answer the question, Tim. Ten votes against intelligence, 10 votes against...

REP. BROWN: He didn’t even fire—he didn’t fire the ad agency.

MR. RUSSERT: Was there anything other than the smokestack—smoke...

REP. BROWN: What was wrong with the ad?

MR. RUSSERT: Was there any factual other mistakes in terms of...(unintelligible).

REP. BROWN: Well, other, other than the smoke—the doctoring a photo?

MR. RUSSERT: Well, you made that point. You made that point.

REP. BROWN: That’s a, that’s a pretty important point. It just shows that Mike DeWine...

SEN. DeWINE: There he goes.

REP. BROWN: I could, I could document throughout how he’s, he’s on—let me talk about taxes, from what he says on his ads on taxes.

SEN. DeWINE: He won’t answer the question, will he, Tim? He won’t answer the question. The facts are correct.

REP. BROWN: No, I, I will answer the—no, I will be—I would be glad to answer the questions.

He didn't answer the question, and Russert moved on to a different topic. If you had already decided to vote for DeWine? I'm sure you didn't change your vote. If you had already decided to vote for Brown? I'm sure you didn't change your vote. If you were undecided? You are probably still are undecided. I don't think either man "won" this debate, though if you read the press releases from the campaigns, I wonder if I was watching the same debate.

From Sherrod Brown's campaign:

On Meet the Press today, Congressman Sherrod Brown (D-OH) offered hard-hitting contrasts between his record and his opponent's, Ohio Republican incumbent Senator Mike DeWine.

"Viewers saw today why Senator DeWine relies on gutter-style politics, he's desperate to hide his record," said Brown Communications Director Joanna Kuebler. "Senator DeWine favored special interests and made Ohio families foot the bill. Fortunately for Ohio, he can't distort his way to a third term."

From Mike DeWine's campaign:

Washington, DC) On today's nationally televised Meet the Press debate, Senator Mike DeWine (R-OH) exposed Congressman Brown's 14 year record of ineffectiveness. As Mike DeWine outlined his numerous legislative successes with Republicans and Democrats, Congressman Brown continued to misrepresent his voting record, a record that led the bi-partisan National Journal to label Brown in the "fringe" of his own party.

Seitchik added, "The debate demonstrated Congressman Brown's 14 year record in Washington puts him on the fringe of his own party rendering him ineffective. While Mike DeWine works with Republicans and Democrats to pass legislation that benefits Ohio families and small businesses, Congressman Brown cares more about chasing headlines than solving problems and getting things done for Ohio families."

At least they shook hands when it was over...

Ohio Supreme Court and campaign finance questions...

The New York Times (free though registration required) has an article out today that is about Ohio Supreme Court Judges and campaign finance questions. It's a highly recommended read, and here are a few paragraphs of interest:


An examination of the Ohio Supreme Court by The New York Times found that its justices routinely sat on cases after receiving campaign contributions from the parties involved or from groups that filed supporting briefs. On average, they voted in favor of contributors 70 percent of the time. Justice O’Donnell voted for his contributors 91 percent of the time, the highest rate of any justice on the court.

In the 12 years that were studied, the justices almost never disqualified themselves from hearing their contributors’ cases. In the 215 cases with the most direct potential conflicts of interest, justices recused themselves just 9 times.

“Various interests see voting patterns,” Chief Justice Moyer said. The alignment between contributions and votes, he said, is a matter of shared judicial philosophy.

If that is right, contributors are not trying to buy votes in particular cases. But they are trying to buy seats on the court.

And they are succeeding. Not long ago, the Ohio Supreme Court was controlled by liberal justices whose campaigns had been financed in large part by plaintiffs’ lawyers and unions. Now that business groups are outspending their adversaries, the court has become dominated by more conservative justices. And the court’s decisions are no longer markedly sympathetic to people claiming injuries.

“We have to stop selling seats on the Ohio Supreme Court like we sell seats on the New York Stock Exchange,” said Judge O’Neill, a Democrat on the 11th District Court of Appeals in Warren, in northeast Ohio. He says he will not accept contributions.

Justice O’Donnell, who has raised more than $3 million since 2000, refused to be interviewed for this article despite more than a half-dozen requests to his campaign, his chambers and the court. In a statement, he said, “Any effort to link judicial campaign contributions received by a judicial campaign committee for major media advertising to case outcomes is misleading and erodes public confidence in the judiciary.”

“The role of the judge and the role of the legislator are completely different,” said William K. Weisenberg, an Ohio State Bar Association official. “You want a legislator to vote the way you would vote. When you go into court, you want someone to listen to the facts and decide the case on the facts and the law. We don’t want the umpire calling balls and strikes before the game has begun.”

The court’s decisions, the study found, were rife with potential conflicts. In more than 200 of the 1,500 cases, at least one justice cast a vote after receiving a significant campaign contribution. On scores of occasions, the justices’ campaigns took contributions after a case involving the contributor was argued and before it was decided — just when conflicts are most visible and pointed.

Contributors did well with those whose campaigns they had financed. Of the 10 justices in the Times study, 6 sided with contributors more than 70 percent of the time. Justice O’Donnell, who has been on the court for only three years and has participated in fewer decisions than most of the justices studied, had the highest rate — 91 percent.

Six of the seven sitting justices — all except Justice O’Donnell — agreed to interviews for this article, and all said contributions had not affected their decisions.

There is much more - it is a very lengthy article but as I wrote, I really recommend reading it.

:-)