There's gold in that thar poop...

Seriously, to the tune of 1.19 million...and since the Toledo Blade wrote about this good news as linked above, felt it was important to point this out incase you missed the above linked story:

UT researcher Kevin Czajkowski and experts from Bowling Green State University and the Medical University of Ohio received $1.19 million last year to find out what happens when farmers apply treated biosolids to farm fields for soil enrichment, as they have for decades. The goal is to see if the sludge has any detrimental effect on land, water, or humans.

The project is just one of the studies fueling University of Toledo's steady increase in research and training funding.

Awards to the university from federal and state government and private industry amounted to $33.8 million last year, about 5 percent more than 2004 and 80 percent more than the $18.9 million that was brought in during 2001. Most of the awards were for research, although some were for other programs, such as a $1.2 million grant to UT's education department to support, recruit, and train science and math teachers.

More campaign updates...

Just received this Press Release from Ben Konop:

Vote Konop for Change on May 2!

It's time for change in Lucas County. Throughout my campaign for Commissioner, I have talked about new ideas and a fresh vision for Lucas County. I have talked about my vision for growing our economy, creating jobs in our community, and lowering property taxes for seniors and working families.

I am the only candidate to offer new ideas and a fresh vision for our community. I'm also the only candidate to run a positive campaign and not rely on negative personal attacks. Please join me in making Lucas County a place where all of us can live the American Dream.

I ask for your vote on May 2nd in the Democratic Primary.

Visit Our website

Sincerely, Ben

Konop For Lucas County 100 S. Huron, Suite 7C Toledo OH 43602

I also saw my first Phil Copeland commercial, guess he decided to run some tv spots after all, nothing new offered just the same claim that he created jobs. I like Ben's "heritage" spot, which ran right after Phil's. You can tell Miguel's been paying attention he knew right away who the one male voice was in Ben's ad.
(Bonus points for anyone else who knows) :-)

I stopped by and visited Pam's online chat, it seemed to go very well, just a few tech glitches but was a nice way for her to reach out to people interested in her campaign.

As an update - this just in from Dave Schulz:

Dear Friends and Supporters,

Thanks for your past support of my city council campaign and political endeavors. I am writing to ask you for your vote for my friend Dirk Kubala for 9th district congress. Dirk offers refreshing ideas and perspectives. He was able to raise money to get 15,000 postcards out and we are confident that this will provide the winning edge. But he needs your support to assure victory on Tuesday May 2nd.

Also, if you live in Toledo proper, Oregon and Jerusalem Township, I ask you for your vote for re-election to the Ohio Republican State Central Committee.

Thank you and please vote for Dave Schulz and Dirk Kubala.

Last minute campaigning for Lucas County Commissioner Primary

The Toledo Blade covers part of the story. Ben Konop has the goal of walking 30 miles which in itself is a major accomplishment in his attempt to reach out to voters of Lucas County. He's continuing to demonstrate he is willing to put all of his energy into winning the Democratic Primary.

What struck me is the differences in campaign styles. Which if you read that article you'll probably notice as well.

The Blade didn't list this but Pam Haynam is sponsoring a live chat thru her website today at 4:00 p.m. You can visit her here for more details.

If you haven't read the editorial done by Toledo City Paper, I recommend stopping by. I especially agree with this:

On May 2, it’s time for some serious changes to begin for the Toledo area, including setting the stage for a new Lucas County Commissioner to be elected in November.
What does the county commissioner do? In part, he or she administers more than $40 million worth of federal funds to local job and family services; balances the budgets of the county courts and sheriff’s department; operates the work-force development office The Source (which in just a year-and-a-half, has provided 3,000 locals with stable employment), and ensures that Lucas County’s emergency services are ready in the face of a disaster. ‘County commissioner’ may not be as glamorous as ‘mayor’ or ‘president,’ but it’s as important.

If you’re sick and tired of the ‘same old, same old’ problem of ineffectual Toledo leadership, get thee to the polls this Tuesday. Statistics show more Americans vote in "American Idol" than in their local primaries … even though Kellie, Paris and Taylor aren’t the ones responsible for the future of entire cities.

What it boils down to is this — if you do not vote this Tuesday, you have no just cause for whining about Toledo’s problems or its lack of leadership. Effecting change does not require marching in the streets or staging a sit-in. It’s as simple as participating in a process that millions of people across the world long for — your community is waiting for you to save it. So take up the challenge, lead by example — vote this Tuesday, May 2.

Well done, TCP, I hope Lucas County residents listen...

Central Committee Seats and Independent Voters

The Blade has as linked above an article about the State Central Committee Seats for the Democratic and Republican Party that will take place on May 2nd. It's important to note that these elections are to select who will win that seat.

Back on April 19th I posted about these candidates.

This for me is one of the hardest parts of being a more Independent voter. During a primary you have to decide first off which party you want to declare for. Sometimes there are candidates that are Republicans you'd like to see win, especially in the case of the State Central Committee seats and there are Democrats that you would like to see win. Yet, you can only pick one party. I'm not sure if there is another way to do this, but it's the way it is done here and probably the way it will remain.

If you are going to request a Republican ballot and are in District 11, I hope you do consider David Schulz His commitment to ethics and his desire to make the Lucas County Republican party more effective has been demonstrated and I believe he deserves to be re-elected to this seat. Dave has the endorsement of the Ohio Republican Party.

As for the "showdown between Frank, Jack, and Carty", on the Democratic side of District 11; Jack Ford has held this seat even prior to being Mayor of Toledo. If you do feel it's time for a change, I would suggest Frank Szollosi. I don't feel as Mayor that Carty has the time to participate in the process nor do I believe this race should be some type of a popularity contest. It should be about which one of the candidates will put their energy into progress and Frank has participated and supported the Democratic Party of Ohio.

Lucas County Commission Endorsement

Yes, the Toledo Free Press, Toledo Blade and La Prensa thus far have all made their endorsements public.

But, I had not yet made my endorsement. Yes, I realize the importance behind this endorsement. I'm sure it will have a huge impact on this race, well, okay maybe not but some of you probably at least laughed over that last statement.

Some brief history, I started Glass City Jungle in January. I was inspired to try to become more involved in politics locally for several reasons, while I had mainly focused on national politics on my other blog, I realized there was a lot going on locally that wasn't being talked about. A few weeks after the creation of this blog I was invited to meet with Ben Konop to talk about local blogging and internet related topics.

I was interested in what Ben had to say but I was skeptical at first, the more I learn about politics the less quickly I decide who I will or will not support. I've also tried to create this blog with the idea in mind that it wasn't just about me, it's about all of this area. Which is why I have written about and promoted Democratic events and Republican events, basically if you are doing something political and you invite me? I'll not only try to attend but write about it as factually as possible without interjecting too much of "me".

Back to Ben, I liked his ideas, I liked his energy, yes, I liked Ben, however that didn't mean I was necessarily going to vote for him. As this campaign has progressed, I've also come to respect him. He handled himself well at both debates, has taken some heat that the majority of the time wasn't deserved and yet kept focusing on the issues, kept coming up with ideas. I had some concern regarding there being three Democrats as Lucas County Commissioner, that to me is important because we do need a balance of power. If a Democrat is selected it has to be one that will not be afraid to "rock the boat" if necessary and be able to do it in a way that still can foster future cooperation. I believe Ben can do that. Ben has proven to me that he not only listens to other people's ideas but will embrace them and do his best to actually move forward. That's what Lucas County needs. We have spent decades talking...So on May 2nd, I'm voting for Ben Konop for Lucas County Commissioner.

Ben named as possible for McCloskey seat?

I wouldn't have believed it if I had not have heard it, Carty was just on Channel 11 and stated that if Ben didn't win the May 2nd primary could be one of the names considered for Toledo City Council or Jeanine Perry?

Sigh...it's too early to even be thinking about Ben not winning the primary so to make that kind of a public statement by Carty I think is inappropriate. Granted I am not that close to Ben but he wants to be Lucas County Commissioner. And Perry? Double sigh...

(insert imaginary frowny face)

Better use of Northwest Ohio resources...

The other day I read a post on Maggie Thurber's blog about some good news that had been released from the Regional Growth Partnership. There has been discussion about LCIC and how it could better be used, however, RGP has been around for several years. It also appears to have had some success, so wouldn't it make sense to better utilize what we had that was working?

http://www.rgp.org is their website. Head on over, check out what they offer and also while you are there read the Pdf of their Newsletter for April

Some other interesting news is also listed there, Economic Outlooks, and if you look at who the Board of Directors that make up Regional Growth Partnership?

List

Seems like this is less government more people, which is what many of us want, growth and businesses created and encouraged by those who have the most experience.

Ohio Supreme Court on Schulz v. McCloskey

Fox News was first with the story, their link is above.

MERIT DECISIONS WITHOUT OPINIONS

State ex rel. Schulz v. McCloskey:

In Quo Warranto. On motion to dismiss. Motion to dismiss granted. Cause
dismissed.

Moyer, C.J., Resnick, Pfeifer, Lundberg Stratton, O’Connor and O’Donnell,
JJ., concur.
Lanzinger, J., not participating.

Statement from Dave Schulz:

I am gratified that the court ruled I had standing to bring the case but regret that the court couldn't muster the courage to try the case. The citizens of Toledo suffer for that. I do take comfort knowing that both defendants in the case face more severe legal problems that could ultimately end in the usurpers being thrown out of office.

Statement from Attorney Terry Lodge:

When the voters overwhelmingly voted for term limits in 1992, they voted for term limits, not to allow politicians to make the observation of term limits a matter of the honor system.

Regrettably, the Ohio Supreme Court has dismissed the lawsuit without even giving Toledo and Ohio voters a written opinion. Thus we do not have any guidance as to when terms of elective office can or cannot be restricted.

The effect of the Supreme Court's decision is to alter Toledo's term limits law into a cudgel to drive ethical leaders to follow the law and leave office, while less honorable ones may choose to abide by the law, or not - because term limits apparently are no longer quite the law. That sorry situation doesn't say much for democracy, and it doesn't bode well for the future of Toledo municipal government.

On a semi-related note, Bob McCloskey has announced today that he is stepping down from Toledo City Council as per this breaking news piece.

Blogs, new features and lunch boxes

This week there are many exclusive online features to enjoy besides Blog, it Toledo. Ironically my first website shared with you was one that let me take a walk down memory lane. Then reading Melanie Dusseau's piece for the Writers Workshop, "In search of the Hardy Boys"where we discover she is looking for this. (Five days left to bid Melanie!)

Online and in Print, there is also a new Opus Cartoon and a Toledo themed crossword. Maybe I'll have better luck at completing the crossword than I have mastering Su do ku... Michael Miller reviews a CD that I would love to own. Yes, I am a fan of Johnny Cash.

This week's edition also has the first Toledo Business Link insert, which also has some very informative articles in addition to the many other features this week.

:-)

Lucas County Commissioner Debate - Republicans

Pam Haynam and George Sarantou had their turn in front of the cameras tonight with the Toledo Blade's Jim Tankersley and Lee Conklin asking the questions.

It didn't start out well for Pam, the first question asked by Jim Tankersley asked her what her definition of a "real" republican was; then further pressed on her definition asking who else she would name as not being a "real" republican other than George Sarantou. I don't think she expected the question it's probably one of those situations where now she would have a name or two to suggest but it was a rocky start for her.

George stated he believes in jobs, low taxes and opportunity for all, he did however feel that the 4.4% increase in assessments was a justfied position taken by Toledo City Council. When asked about the veto vote on Costco, he stated he felt that $10.00 a hour was a good starting wage especially if you take Costco's benefit package into consideration.

Pam stated she would have voted for the veto but she would not have supported the abatement. She feels abatements are not generally suited for retail employers and should be more for manufacturing or technical employers.

Next George said that he felt there was no effective marketing campaign here in Toledo and that LCIC could be better utitlized. Jim Tankersley pointed out that Bass Pro did not come here despite the marketing of both the County and the City. George then stated that the area had to reach out to cities with high crime or that were not happy where they currently were located to sell them on this area.

If you missed this, I'm sure the Blade will offer video tomorrow rather than me going thru each question/response and I'll go right to my impressions. What kind of a Republican Lucas County Commissioner do you want? If you want one that will disagree if necessary with the two Democrats who are currently Lucas County Commissioner and who did pledge to not run for any other office then Pam Haynam is the candidate for you. If you want one that will work with the two Democrats and states he will not vote no but find solutions and is planning on serving a full term if elected Lucas County Commmissioner yet artfully did not pledge that, then George Sarantou is for you.

It would have been interesting if George would have been asked given his statement that he can work with the Democrats currently on the Lucas County Commissioner's why someone should vote for him rather than one of the Democrats.

I have a high degree of respect for both Pam and George and if the choice was between one of them and Phil Copeland it would be a no-brainer for me as far as the general election. So it would come down to those who are going to vote in the Republican Primary what role do they want a Republican Lucas County Commissioner to play. The household vote as to who did better in the debate goes to George, but those present stated they were voting for Pam because they felt she would better represent the suburbs and would prefer the lone Republican to be more of a watchdog who would dissent loudly and publicly if necessary. One comment made by one of the "debate watchers" was that they felt that if it would have been possible for solutions that Maggie Thurber would have been able to do that as well.

update....Kurt's impressions on the Republican debate at Progressive Toledo.

update...Blade article and video of debate.

Lucas County Commissioner Debate - Democrats

Progressive Toledo has a post from yesterday on this. Yesterday was technical difficulties day for me. First blogger would not publish then our dsl went down. Yes, I am so technologically spoiled I decided to wait and see if it was fixed last night as promised, which of course it wasn't. (SBC tsk tsk) So this morning I am on dial up.

I did watch the debate last night and took prolific notes, the Blade did provide video to the debate for those of you who missed it here I plan on watching it again to see if I missed anything. (update...yes my dsl is back)

Intial feeling was that it would have been nice if it would have been a bit longer of a format. With commercials it was well under a half an hour and there were some time management issues that were obvious. Jim Tankersley did a nice job in the questions he asked as well as trying to press for more complete answers if necessary. Diane Larson also had some good questions for all three candidates.

Phil Copeland once again did not answer questions, even when pressed by Jim Tankersley he gave non-answers. The initial question concerning Phil's claim of creating jobs when Local 500 has in reality lost jobs ended up with a non-answer that basically affirmed that Jim was correct in stating that Phil has not created any new jobs. Even when asked by Diane Larson what concrete plans he had, he did not have one except he wanted to be friendly and bring unions in.

There was no economic plan revealed by Phil, other than his statement of if he is elected he will work with the Two Commissioners going to them stating "I got an idear about bringing some business in". Ben mentioned Phil's earlier promise of unveiling his economic plan which was not really responded to.

Tim Wagener promoted what is his campaign message of "Experience Matters", pointing to the Dana Tech Center as a success story that he felt should be a blueprint for future job creation. He when asked if he had any bolder plans other than his one involving senior citizens and high schoolers interacting more stated that until he gets into office he won't know. He wants voters to consider his years of public service which he stated was more combined than all of the others running for Lucas County Commissioner as why he should be elected. I don't think it was intentional, but Tim gave off an attitude of superiority that might not be received well by some voters. I wasn't the only one who noticed it, those viewing with me also commented on that without me saying anything.

Trying to view Ben Konop's performance critically is hard, he did an excellent job, he answered questions even hard ones relating to his not having political experience or what management experience he had, he kept to his talking points and took a comment from Phil Copeland where Phil said Ben was "fooling" people about tax increases and used that to bring up a comment that bothered many of us that Phil stated about not being concerned if people thought they were voting for Bill Copeland. Ben even demonstrated he had practiced his closing and was the only candidate that had it timed properly. While it's not talked about often, being able to work with the limited amount of time the media is going to give you to create soundbites is an important one. Ben demonstrated that he can handle the media aspect of a Lucas County Commissioner's job on top of promoting his message that he believes it is time for a change and that his not being a career politician is a plus rather than a minus. Only complaint I would have with Ben's performance is I think he was a bit too technical on the economies of scale discussion. That's something he could explain further but difficult to express in a short time frame to people that might not have heard him speak about that in more detail.

Those watching with me gave the "win" to Ben, second place to Tim and a very distant third to Phil. How much of an effect will this have depends on how many people viewed it. I would be very interested in hearing from anyone that has now seen both debates that still feels Phil Copeland should be the Democratic candidate.

So there is my take on the debate, I will watch tonights as well and hopefully now that I have been techonolgically restored, be able to post tonight.

On Progressive Toledo the discussion brought up the college degree topic since Ben is the only one with a college degree. Here's my take on that. I think a college degree is helpful however it is possible to have life experience that would also make a person qualified for public office. Tim Wagener as an example, is qualified from an experience point of view. Ben's lack of political experience should be no more of an issue than Tim's lack of a college degree as far as a direct comparison scale to me. That is the unfortunate thing about this election, there is a valid concern that Phil Copeland could win the primary because voters that are informed are going to be selecting between Ben and Tim. Several people have voiced concern that Tim should drop out of the race because he is creating a potential for the vote to be split. Personally I'd like to believe that wouldn't happen but presented with the information from the last Blade poll where it is clear people think that they are voting for Bill Copeland? I guess it boils down to hoping for the best and that the informed voters take everything into consideration and outnumber those that are not. I'm not going to take the position that Tim should step down, even though I understand where those who have stated it are coming from.

Politics in Mudville also has impressions of last night's debate.

Jon Stainbrook's mystery endorsement revealed!

Well, sort of revealed. I still can't find any information on the group but thanks to an article written by Jim Tankersley of the Toledo Blade as linked above, we do know that Paula Pennypacker is the founder of the Grass Root Republican Party Coalition. According to Jon as quoted in the article that was what he meant by claiming to be an "Endorsed Republican Candidate" on the post cards he sent out.

Flashing back to the past, as I did as soon as I read the name Paula Pennypacker...Is she trying to once again shake things up in the Lucas County Republican Party? Supporting Jon Stainbrook over Dennis Lange who is the current interim chair. Isn't he the same Dennis Lange who was the volunteer coordinator for her mayoral run in 1989?

Keeping with that "flashback moment" Toledo Blade 1998:

Paula Pennypacker. The two-time mayoral candidate successfully led a rebellion within the Lucas County Republicans, leading a grass-roots drive for precinct leaders in the May election. The result: a wider activist base for the party and the resignation of party chairman James Brennan. Ms. Pennypacker then moved herself and her makeup business to Arizona.

"Who's being deceiving?" was the question asked by Mr. Stainbrook. Let's think about that for a moment. Getting 47 volunteers and appearing to promise them more than what the standard rate is for being an election inspector, who according to a source only 4 of the volunteers showed up for a special training session scheduled just for them. Then listing yourself as an endorsed candidate when you know one of your opponents is the person who was endorsed by the Ohio Republican Party...Compared to using a picture clearly identified with a woman you considered to be your mentor and as a a spokesman for the Log Cabin Republicans of Northwest Ohio, not being in support of a ban against gay marriages.

I've met and talked with many Republicans thru out the years that haven't agreed with every single platform of the Republican party. That doesn't make them unqualified for a position within the Party. It makes them...human...

David Schulz is running on an ethics-themed platform for the District 11 central committee position. You can read more about that here.

Jon Stainbrook may have very good intentions of wanting to help the Lucas County Republican Party, however after all of the problems in recent years whoever is selected as Chair should be beyond reproach when it comes to ethics.

I see Dead People Lucas County style...

I realize those of us who can be called "political junkies" are in small numbers...yet reading the above linked Toledo Blade article about the Zogby Poll they commissioned for the Lucas County Commissioner race was very disheartening.

When respondents who said they planned to vote for Mr. Copeland were asked why, 11 percent offered that they liked his uncle. Another 20 percent gave answers that suggested they could be confusing the two men, such as "he used to be a good county commissioner."

This doesn't bother Phil Copeland, as quoted in the Blade:

"If my uncle's name is helping me, I'm thanking him right now," Mr. Copeland said. "I'll take it any day. He had a good name, and I'm trying to keep it up. … If they think I'm Bill Copeland, that's fine with me."

That means that out of the 25% translated to approximately 100 people out of 402, that selected Phil Copeland as their candidate of choice, almost 40 of them liked Bill Copeland who retired in 2002 and died in 2004. Then the third that stated they liked Phil Copeland's stance on issues...What issues?

Then the choice of phrasing for this article...."Phil Copeland leads a wide-open Democratic primary" According to the article: Each set of results has an error margin of plus or minus five percentage points. Ben Konop at 20% is only 5% under Phil Copeland, Tim Wagener received 12.5%. Forty percent are still undecided.

Sixty-five percent had never heard of Pam Haynam, sixty percent had never heard of Ben Konop and fifty percent had never heard of Tim Wagener...So with that and the numbers who think that Phil Copeland is Bill Copeland...Where did they get these people? (Yes, I know look at the top vote getters for Toledo City Council.)

The idea that these people who claim to be "likely to cast ballots" scares the hell out of me. If they don't read the newspapers, don't watch tv news, don't listen to the radio and they obviously never use the internet to read news; how can they even pretend to be informed voters? How can they even proclaim to know if the county is on the right track or the wrong track if they aren't even aware of who's running or realize that Phil Copeland is not Bill Copeland?

I realize I'm preaching to the choir, but if you cannot be bothered to even learn the most basic information then you are making a total joke out of the whole process of voting and this ignorance hurts us all.

I also can't help wondering if this poll is related to yesterday's story about the negative phone polling. No one else has yet come forward and stated they were doing polling.

Association of Minor-League Umpires is on strike...

Jeremy, over at Nookular Option points out a story that should be getting more attention. Head on over to visit him to read his thoughts on this and join his call to blog about this. Make sure to visit the AMLU website where you can find out more information and be sure to read some of the personal stories these umpires are sharing.

This would also be a good time to remind people that our local Air Traffic Controllers need our support too. You can visit Fair FAA for more info on how you can help them too.

Prosecutor calls for a criminal investigation but

She says someone else should do it...

Lucas County Prosecutor Julia Bates said a criminal investigation of Mayor Carty Finkbeiner would be appropriate to determine if he violated a state law by trying to raise funds to supplement the salary of Toledo Public Schools Superintendent Eugene Sanders.

But she said it would be a misdemeanor offense, and a job for the city law director.

"It is something that needs to be looked at, but it should be looked at by the city," she said.

"We are not going to be getting involved in what could be a problematic misdemeanor investigation," the prosecutor added.

Worth pointing out is that if the Mayor were to be convicted, he would have to step down as Mayor and the current Council President who is currently Rob Ludeman would take his place.

Rob Ludeman as quoted by the Blade:

"It appears to me that it's clearly wrong, if in fact there was an attempt to increase the compensation of another public official above and beyond what their contractual wages and benefits package is," Mr. Ludeman said.

He said he was "not specifi-cally aware" of whatever efforts the mayor may have undertaken to raise money for the superintendent's compensation.

"I think the prosecutor has an obligation to the public to look into any alleged improprieties, and it sounds like that course has been initiated," Mr. Ludeman said.

Evidently Mr. Ludeman was not aware that the Prosecutor was not going to look into this.

Bob Reinbolt, Carty's Chief of Staff maintains that no money was collected that it was only a brainstorming session and they would have verified it was allowed under Ohio Law before they did anything. Yet, you would think before you would decide to try to get funding and offer it to Mr. Sanders it would have been appropriate to make sure it was legal. Let's say he would have accepted the concept of being offered more money or a car to stay here. Then what? Sorry Sanders, we'd love to give it to you but it's not legal...

Bob McCloskey video taped?

According to sources at the Toledo Blade:

Toledo City Councilman Bob McCloskey was videotaped in a federal sting last week accepting cash in exchange for helping a businessman develop an amusement park in East Toledo, The Blade has learned.

Considering he is already facing civil and criminal charges for another incident this if true was not a smart move.

According to sources, Mr. McCloskey took $3,000 to assist a person seeking help with obtaining land and permits from the city for an amusement park project.

Asked to comment, Mr. McCloskey said, "I can't talk about it." Asked if he intends to resign from City Council, he said, "I don't know what I'm going to do."
My advice? Bob resign now....

UPDATE: Blade has City Council reaction.

Jon Stainbrook's creative campaigning?

After my earlier post on the State Central District Committee Seat elections, I received an email that included this image that I've uploaded to my photobucket account.

Jon Stainbrook card

What immediatly caught my attention was "Endorsed Republican Candidate". That surprise me as it gives the impression that Jon Stainbrook was endorsed by the Republican Party. So I called to verify this information, I thought perhaps I missed the local Lucas County Republican Party making an endorsement and I wondered why they would endorse Jon Stainbrook over David Schulz.

I have verified that there was no endorsement for the District 11 State Central Committee Chair candidates from the Lucas County Republican Party. It's possible Jon is using the lower listed "Grass Roots Republican Party Coalition" Endorsement as his claim but the card is very misleading.

It also states which campaigns he has worked on. According to this Toledo Blade article:

Mr. Stainbrook, who has written free-lance entertainment stories for The Blade, worked on campaigns for Bob Dole, Bob Taft, Mike DeWine, George Voinovich, and Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry. He ran three times for Toledo City Council, all unsuccessfully. In 1998, while working as a deputy auditor, he challenged Mr. Kaczala in a Republican primary and lost.

The Kerry campaign statement was later retracted but neither Bush campaign was mentioned in the article, they are however listed on the postcard Jon is sending out to potential voters.

I was unable to find any contact information or a website on the Grass Roots Republican Party Coalition, to be able to verify who they were and if they did endorse Jon Stainbrook. So I can not confirm if that is true or not true or even how that selection process was done.

As disclaimer, if I were voting as a Republican in the primary I would vote for David Shulz. Yet the way this information is being presented is misleading and given the lack of information out there on the State Central Committee Candidates felt it important to express my concern over the way the information on this card is being presented.

State Central Committee Seats

In each Ohio Senate district, a man and a woman will be elected to seats on the state central committee of each major political party.

What are the responsibilities? From the Ohio Democratic Party:

The controlling committee of the Ohio Democratic Party shall be the Central Committee consisting of such membership as shall be elected according to the laws of the State of Ohio. The Central Committee shall elect an Executive Committee, which shall have such powers as are granted it by the Central Committee, as are provided by law, by this Constitution, and by the Ohio Democratic Party By-Laws.

The Ohio Republican Party does not list their by-laws on their website, they do however have a list of current State Central Committee members and this introductory paragraph:

Members of the Republican State Central & Executive Committee are elected every two years from each state senate district. By law, each district must be represented by one male and one female member.

Our area contains two districts, District 2 and District 11. Complete list begins on page 5 of the pdf from the Lucas County Board of Elections.

On the Republican side, Dee Talmage and Paul Hoag are both currently the District two State Central Committee members. They are both running again this May 2nd and neither one is facing opposition. On the Democratic Side for District two, the Ohio Democratic Party does not list on their website who is the current State Central Committee Members, nor does the Lucas County Democratic website. Ralph A. Brumby, David E. Giese and James R. Patrick are running for the male category. Margaret Mary Murray is running unopposed for the female category. Which one of those running for the contested District two seat should you consider? I have no clue since it doesn't appear there is any interest in providing us with any information.

District 11 is similiar in that for both the Republican, Katherine L. Kuhlman and the Democrat, Teresa Fedor are running unopposed in the female category. Kuhlman is the current Republican which I know from their website, and Fedor is the current Democrat I have been told.

The Male category is one that is contested for both Republican and Democrats for District 11. Very contested. On the Republican side we have David Schulz who is the current member who by all reports has done an excellent job for the Republican Party. He is being challenged by Jon Stainbrook, John D. Birmingham and William Jennings. I don't have any background information on Birmingham or Jennings, Stainbrook of course is trying to become the chair of the Lucas County Republican Party as well as trying to increase his popularity by offering to arrange for friends to have in what is said to be his words:

Election Inspector Jobs
If you want to make $$$ working the primary election ???
Give me a call or email me now!!!
All my friends are doing it for easy money.
Make between $150- $250 dollars?for one day!

Personally that's higher than what I thought the rate of pay was for those positions. Perhaps someone who has taken Jon up on this offer can provide more details.

On the Democratic side of District 11, it's just as contested, with some interesting names. Currently Jack Ford (yes former Toledo Mayor Jack Ford) is the male committee member, from my understanding he has done this for quite some time even before he was Mayor. For some reason that no one has stated, Carty Finkbeiner has thrown his name into the hat and is joined by Frank Szollosi and Kollin Rice.

I'll admit prior to my becoming such a political junkie I didn't pay much attention to District State Central Committee Seats. In conversations with family members and others, most people really don't understand what the purpose is of these seats.

Nor does either party make it very easy for you to find out complete information as can be seen. So hopefully as I learn more? You can share in my journey on this one.

:-)

Blog it, Toledo and a new feature...

This week's Blog, it Toledo column focuses on creativity in our area. I hope you visit all of the blogs included, especially Two Toledos. Joining me as an exclusive online feature is the "Writers Workshop" a chance for those of you who have had dreams of seeing your work published to submit an article.

Melanie Dusseau has an article written about Earth Day and Isaiah St. John has an article about demolishing buildings with a historical background.

In addition to the many fantastic articles in this week's print version of the Toledo Free Press, this one by Barbara Goodman Shovers entitled "Poop and the Golden Rule", had me saying a very loud AMEN! Nothing irritates me more when I take my daily walks to have to navigate the mine fields left behind by irresponsible dog owners here in our apartment complex and neighborhood.

:-)

Did Carty violate the Ohio Revised Code?

The Toledo Free Press's Justin R. Kalmes has a breaking news story as linked above which in part states:

Finkbeiner's effort to retain Sanders through a compensation package may have been in violation of section 2921.43 of the Ohio Revised code. The law prohibits public servants from knowingly soliciting, accepting, promising or giving any compensation to another public servant "to perform the public servant's official duties, to perform any other act or service in the public servant's public capacity, for the general performance of the duties of the public servant's public office or public employment, or as a supplement to the public servant's public compensation."

The article also states that the Ohio Revised Code identifies someone in Sanders position as being a public official. Ohio's Ethic Publication confirms this.

This offense is a misdemeanor of the first degree and does carry the stipulation:

A public servant who is convicted of a violation of this section is disqualified from holding any public office, employment, or position of trust in this state for a period of seven years from the date of conviction.

Perhaps it was not a smart move for Carty to have the Toledo Law Director's office moved to a different floor. Sounds like he could have used their advice on this one before any action was taken if this allegation is proven to be true.

UPDATE: The Mayor responds to the question of a possible violation of the Ohio Revised Code:

"That is absolutely laughable," the mayor said. "I have no idea where someone came up with that."

However, this toledo blade article continues:

Julia Bates, Lucas County prosecutor, said she would look into whether the effort to organize a fund to supplement Mr. Sanders' salary was within the law.