Porkopolis

Smitherman Turns Green, Runs Again

After winning a tumultuous election earlier this year to become president of the Cincinnati Chapter of the NAACP, Christopher Smitherman is now turning his attention to a possible return to Cincinnati City Council.

During a press conference today at his North Avondale home, Smitherman announced he was jumping into the city council race with the backing of the Southwest Ohio Green Party. He previously served one term on council as a Charterite before being defeated in his re-election bid in 2005.

"I hope people will give me another look for council and give me a fair shake to let me make my case about why I should be elected," Smitherman said.

Society vs. Board of Education

In 1954, when the Supreme Court ruled on the case of Brown vs. Board of Education, the verdict was a watershed in the desegregation of our nation's schools and in the civil rights movement. Over a half-century later our schools are technically desegregated, but remain a tad closer to the model of George Wallace than that of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

Little white children and little black children and children of all different colors are allowed to join hands as sisters and brothers — but they usually have to be bused about 15 miles to do so. It's primarily because our neighborhoods remain segregated, while our schools desire to be integrated, that the Supreme Court decided yesterday, over 50 years after Brown vs. Board of Education, that race could not be considered a factor in school enrollment.

iCrazy for iPhone

They're in line at the Apple Store in the Kenwood Towne Centre, waiting for the 6 p.m. release of the iPhone. At least they're not attacking a Fox News reporter like some guy did earlier today in New York City.

(Photo courtesy of Michael LaCalameto, who's in line as we speak in Kenwood)

— John Fox

Workers' Rights Bill Dead for Now

A bill that would make it easier to unionize a workplace didn't get to a vote in the U.S. Senate. A vote for cloture, ending debate and moving the bill forward, received only 51 of the needed 60 votes.

The Employee Free Choice Act would enable workers to unionize by simply collecting authorization signatures from a majority of employees.

But although the bill died on a procedural matter, the AFL-CIO saw a moral victory in the 51 votes for cloture.

Cops: Nothing More on Dale Mallory

Although the Cincinnati Police Department spent about 233 days investigating allegations against State Rep. Dale Mallory lodged by the West End Community Council, no additional records exist besides the 14 pages previously given to CityBeat, an assistant police chief said today.

During a telephone interview, Lt. Col. Richard Janke, the department's second-in-command, elaborated on the process used in the investigation. Janke responded to CityBeat's concerns that the newspaper might not have been given the complete file on the investigation when it submitted a public-records request in early June. At the time, police supervisors gave the newspaper a two-page incident closure report and 12 pages containing mostly copies of cancelled checks.

Because several West End residents who lodged the complaint against Mallory said police interviewed them in sessions that lasted an hour or longer and that the interviews were recorded, the paper asked whether any transcripts existed.

The Hispanics Among Us

As happens with most groups that are unfamiliar and apparently different, our society has developed myths and stereotypes about Hispanics (the term used by the U.S. government in census data) that are inaccurate, derogatory and detrimental to acceptance. Participants in the Press and Media Forum on Tristate Hispanics last week set the record straight on a number of these shortsighted perspectives.

Oops! Mallory's Metro Strategy Revealed

In the Internet age, virtually every computer user has made an e-mail gaffe at one time or another. Hitting "reply all" instead of "reply" and revealing confidential information to everyone on a mailing list or writing an angry late-night missive to an ex while inebriated are among the most common mistakes.

The trend is so prevalent, in fact, that several books have been written on the topic. The latest is Send: The Essential Guide for Office and Home, which has been featured on NPR and The Colbert Report, among other media.

It should come as no surprise, then, that Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory’s office isn't immune from the problem. In a series of four e-mails sent Tuesday evening, Mallory spokesman Jason Barron announced a press conference this morning about the demolition of a telephone booth at Bobolink and Galbraith roads. The e-mails included a recall of the press release to correct an error, followed by one that included an apparently private e-mail addressed to someone named "Colin," discussing talking points to support a proposed fare increase for the Metro bus system.

Curious Communications from the Mayor's Office

Jason Barron, spokesman for Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory, sent a bizarre series of e-mails to reporters last night.

Barron announced a press conference, scheduled for this morning, in which Mallory would discuss the demolition of a phone booth at Bobolink and Galbraith roads in College Hill.

The first problem is the question left unanswered by the press release, which described "an abandoned telephone booth that had become an eyesore and a haven for criminal activity. The mayor worked with Cincinnati Bell to have the booth demolished." If Mallory had to get involved, why didn’t he instead work with Cincinnati Bell to have the phone booth repaired?

Chesley Deal Precluded Settlement

Despite little hope for victory, Hamilton County officials pressed ahead with an appeal of their lawsuit against the Cincinnati Bengals and the National Football League due to an unusual and controversial legal arrangement with famed lawyer Stan Chesley.

The same arrangement prevented a settlement about two years ago that potentially could've saved county taxpayers millions of dollars in coming decades, according to sources close to the case.

My Mad Dash

Had to go to the Outer Banks to see a man about a horse. Right now. Family emergency. Left Cincinnati noonish Friday. Back at 1 a.m. Monday — this morning. Lots of misadventures on the way. A five-hour detour in Lexington after Interstate 75 was shut down. A four-hour detour because one of the ferries to Okracoke Island was out of service. That sort of thing.

Saw the pristine beach on Okracoke — for 15 minutes — then had to get back on the ferry and start the return trip. Closest thing to seafood was carryout from Long John Silver's — in Kentucky.

Saw lots of cool traffic signs, though: "20 m.p.h. — Low flying birds" on a bridge from the mainland to Nags Head, N.C. … "Watch for bears" on U.S. 64 through eastern North Carolina. … "Runaway truck ramp" in Virginia … "Incident management assistance patrol" in North Carolina … "Utopia" along U.S. 52 in southern Ohio.

— Gregory Flannery
(Photo: Auckland.ac.nz)