Porkopolis

Dog Death Defeated

The ACLU has successfully argued that the lethal injection protocol used by the state of Ohio to kill inmates is a method veterinarians reject for euthanizing the family dog, cat or bunny rabbit (see "No Way to Kill a Dog," issue of May 10, 2006). On June 10, Common Pleas Judge James Burge said the state's three-drug cocktail violates state law, which requires executions be quick and painless.

Jeffrey Gamso, legal director for the ACLU of Ohio, says the decision will not necessarily affect the executions already scheduled but is an important decision (see "Law Group: Stop the Killing," issue of Sept. 26, 2007).

“This decision sends a strong message that the state must treat every person with basic human dignity,” Gamso says. “The evidence shows that lethal injection is fraught with problems and can oftentimes be very painful.”

Ohio International

No, I'm not talking about airports. I'm talking about business and why public schools are making an effort to diversify their curricula to reflect cultural diversity and linguistic competence, among other things non-Midwestern. (See my recent CityBeat news story "Globalizing Education" for more details.)

The combined total is “over a half million Ohioans whose jobs directly relate to international trade,” according to Donna Nesbitt, international education coordinator for the Ohio Department of Education. She offers the following data from the Department of Development:

Value of Ohio exports: $42.4 billion in 2007
12% increase over the $37.8 billion in '06

Court: Cintas Must Give Back Pay

A California appellate court this week upheld a "living wage" judgment against a Greater Cincinnati company, a penalty that's believed to be the largest of its kind in U.S. history.

The California Court of Appeal ordered the Cintas Corp. Wednesday to pay almost $1.2 million in back wages and interest to hundreds of Northern California workers for violating a living wage ordinance there. The decision affirms a September 2005 ruling by the Alameda Superior Court.

Damage Control Hits High Gear

Oh, what a difference CityBeat's weekly Porkopolis column makes. (OK, maybe it was that pesky Maureen Dowd. Whatever.)

This week's issue of CityBeat contains an updated and revised version of a blog item first posted here June 6 about a persistent rumor circulating among right-wing bloggers involving Michelle Obama, and how the Obama campaign should confront it directly instead of merely acting nonplussed and outraged. On the same day as our newspaper hit the stands, New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd wrote about the same topic, and it got the attention of Obama's campaign.

Patients Toking in Ohio (Maybe)

A failed attempt at getting medical marijuana legislation in front of Ohio lawmakers (see "Toking the Cure," issue of March 2, 2005) isn't stopping State Sen. Tom Roberts (D-Trotwood) from introducing what is commonly called "compassionate use" legislation. Senate Bill 343 would make Ohio the 13th state to legalize the medical use of marijuana by seriously ill patients.

The growing support for medical marijuana nationwide makes it clear that most people don’t want to see the DEA storming the homes of sick people under the auspices of the impossible task of creating a “drug-free America.”

The 12 states with similar laws on their books are Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington, according to the Medical Marijuana Policy Project.

Do As I Say, Not As I Do

Hamilton County Commissioner Todd Portune is either oblivious or shameless.

Commenting for a Cincinnati Enquirer article today about Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland's endorsement of Richard Cordray to be the Democratic choice for a replacement attorney general, Portune said he had "mixed feelings" about Strickland making an endorsement so early in the process.

"It sounds like the governor is trying to prevent competition among the Democrats for that seat," Portune told the newspaper.

As Amy Poehler might say while anchoring "Weekend Update" on Saturday Night Live, "Did Mr. Portune really just say that? Really? Reeeallllly?"

CCV's Letter to CityBeat

We have the letter in hand now from the coalition led by Citizens for Community Values. If you'd like to read it, click here for a PDF.

The letter is signed by 39 people who are appealing to CityBeat's "integrity as a corporate citizen and ask(ing) that you eliminate the adult services category, and refuse to accept ads elsewhere for sexual sevices, in both your print and online editions."

The letter ends: "Thanks for your consideration of our request and your reply."

Interestingly, there's no return address or telephone number on the letter, so we're not quite sure to whom we're supposed to reply. Maybe all 39 people.

According to a report yesterday on WVXU-FM, the coalition is giving us two weeks to consider its request and to "do the right thing" by eliminating the adult ads. Stay tuned.

— John Fox

CityBeat Responds to CCV News Conference

A coalition led by Citizens for Community Values held a news conference this morning at City Hall to announce that it would be sending a letter to CityBeat asking us to stop publishing adult-oriented classified advertisements in the paper and online. A story in this morning's Enquirer previewed the event.

CityBeat has issued the following statement in response:

STATEMENT ABOUT TODAY’S NEWS CONFERENCE
JUNE 9, 2008

According to an article in today’s Cincinnati Enquirer, a “coalition led by Citizens for Community Values” would like for CityBeat to change our advertising policies for both our print publication and our web site. Apparently this coalition is planning to send us a letter detailing its request.

When we receive this letter, we will consider its contents and respond in a timely manner.

We weren’t invited to attend this morning’s news conference, so we don’t know what was said and can’t comment on what was said.

Blackmailing Iraq into Letting Us Stay

After 7½ years highlighted by abuse of power, incompetence and fraud, many Americans think there’s little more damage that George W. Bush can do before he leaves office on Jan. 20.

Think again.

Smearing Michelle May Be On Horizon

Smear tactics and dirty tricks are nothing new in politics, but they're already being taken to a new level in the Internet age and with the United States’ first major African-American presidential candidate.

And the worst may be yet to come.