Give the Tea Party what it wants (and more)

I kind of doubt if President Obama reads ORL, but if he does, let me offer a way out of the debt crisis--one that would ensure that Democrats would win the next election cycle by landslide margins: GIVE THE TEA PARTY EVERYTHING IT WANTS.

In other words, cut ALL entitlement programs. To name several:

No more welfare of any kind.
No more social security and disability checks.
No more military pensions or lifelong access to health care for military personnel.
No more more grants and federally backed student loans.
No more federal funding for the arts.
No more federal funding for scientific studies.
No more corporate welfare of any kind (no government contracts).
No more tax exemption for churches.
No more tax exemptions for the wealthy, the middle class, working class, the poor, or corporations.

The hip hijab for today's woman

Blondie: Not living in the real world (1979)

More from PNC Park

Information rehab

by M. Stewart

Recently I’ve been thinking about entering a news and information rehab program. The Information Age is wearing me down.

Today is like most other days. I start by drinking coffee and reading the news. In simpler times, I would grab the local newspaper from the front porch and spend a few minutes looking it over. Nowadays, I start by downloading and reading my .pdf edition of the Post-Gazette; next I look at the online editions of The Review and Morning Journal; next I check Google News and Newser, followed by a look at the NPR and Washington Post web sites.

There is something wrong with me.

What I find is mostly bad news: Politicians continue to think up new ways to destroy the country; religious nuts continue to persecute and kill innocent people; our water, air, land, and food continue to be poisoned by wealthy men who can't get enough; the rich get richer, the poor get poorer, and everybody else is distracted by electronic gadgets from China.

My values are not represented in the news. What I think is important most people don't care about. Instead of connecting me to the human community, the news makes me feel like an isolated freak. There’s just too much information out there, and my brain simply cannot process all this stuff without anxiety and discomfort. I need to take Henry Thoreau's advice and "simplify."

But every once in a while the acquisition of new information gives birth to a moment of clarity—an epiphany—something that changes you forever. Some little piece of trivia jumps up, throws itself down your throat and won’t come out. I am on a constant search for these moments, which is why I am an information addict. 

As I was reading through today’s bad news, I came across a short piece titled “Bidding War for Casey Anthony Interview Hits $1.5M.”  In my country, a Florida woman can get away with killing her own child and then become a wealthy celebrity because of it. Then I thought of the Georgia woman who was tried and convicted of vehicular homicide after her child was killed by a hit-and-run driver. 

I need a break—some time to get clean. 

Sunday afternoon at PNC Park

A hot Saturday at Broadway Wharf

Recent pics

1. Geoff Schneider & Kim Schneider on the Fourth of July. 2. St. Clair & Broadway from the J.C. Thompson Bldg. 3.Interior shaft in the Thompson Bldg. 4. The Diamond from the Thompson Bldg.

J.C. Thompson building East Liverpool

by M. Stewart
We enjoyed going through the J.C Thompson building (1892) on East Liverpool's Diamond last Saturday, but I was stunned at the poor condition of the upper floors. The neglect is so extensive that saving the building would require significant investment, and we all know that isn't going to happen in East Liverpool, especially beginning with $60,000 asking price.

To be honest, I didn't shoot many pictures inside the building. Virtually every room in the place was completely trashed--so much so that it was hard to imagine what it must have been like before it was left to rot. Unfortunately, downtown East Liverpool has an overabundance of property owners who care nothing about the city or its historical assets. We are the complete opposite of places like Marietta, Lisbon, Salem, and Beaver. In those towns, historic buildings are considered treasures that people of means and character are eager to own and maintain.

How news organizations promote scammers

by M. Stewart
One of the primary concerns of a legitimate news organization is maintaining credibility, but for-profit news vendors also must make money. What makes the news business somewhat unique is that these two requirements often are at odds.

When the agendas of advertising departments and newsrooms collide, legitimate news organizations always come down on the side of news values rather than risk their hard-to-earn but easy-to-lose credibility. These days, it's easy to spot the frauds--that is, those news organizations that will sell their credibility to any bidder, not just the highest. But is there anyone left who cares?

Case in point:

Below is a screen capture of an unidentified Ohio newspaper web site. The story is a standard one designed to warn the public about a scam that involves people posing as local health inspectors. Newspapers love it when a story like this drops into their laps because it gives them a chance to look like they are guarding the public interest.

Now take a look at the "advertisements" that surround the news story. All these ads are generated by scam artists operating from points unknown. They are localized by software that immediately discerns your location based upon your IP address. The local newspaper has no idea who these "advertisers" are, nor does it care. What it does know is that if its readers click those ads, a little bit of money comes its way. If the reader is stupid enough to fall for one of the advertised scams, too bad. It's not the news organization's fault. At least that's what the newspaper people would say.

What is the difference between the health inspector scam described in the news story and "19yr old stock market wizard makes his first million using this #1 penny stock site," or "Ohio: Mom discovers $9 insurance trick," or "East Liverpool: Mom makes Botox Doctors Furious"?

Answer: no difference whatsoever. And this is hardly an isolated example.

Did you also notice that the news story is written by "submitted story"? Most likely it is an unverified news release submitted by the Sandusky County Health Department or the unidentified "law enforcement officials" mentioned in the story. The news organization doesn't think it's important to tell us who submitted the story. Chances are it was printed just as it was received. And do you suppose anyone at the newspaper even noticed the irony of printing a story warning the public about a scam while promoting several others on the same page?

I'm wondering if anyone involved in this "news organization" has ever heard of journalism. One thing is certain: No journalist was involved in producing this story. And by the way, feel free to accept the invitations of the scam artists that advertise on the site. The shareholders need the money.

Welcome to the world of robot news.

The old East Liverpool Elks building

by M. Stewart

My photography friends and I spent some time in the old East Liverpool Elks building on Fifth Street Saturday. The building is in great shape, even though an attempt to remodel the rooms on the second floor seems to have been abruptly halted and left unfinished. Along with the second-floor mess, there is a good deal of Christian graffiti on the walls, and all of the French doors on the first floor offices have been removed. However, most of the building is clean and in excellent condition. 

I assume that the Leetonia preacher who had plans to start a Christian drug and alcohol rehab facility there is responsible for the unfinished work. If you'll recall, out-of-town politicians were falling over each other to support that boondoggle until it died on the vine. Like all of state Rep. Craig Newbold's local business ventures, the result was yet another abandoned downtown building. 

Anyhow, here are some of the pics I took inside the Elks, from the front porch, and from across the street.  This building speaks of a time when social organizations like the Elks were vital components of a thriving community, and while the grandiose structure remains in very good condition, it won't be for long. The Elks Club itself now is located on Broadway in an unattractive building that used to be a tavern.

Truth, justice, and the American Way

So . . .

If you want to kill your child and get away with it, do it in Florida. But that doesn't take anything away from our own Columbiana County, Ohio. This remains the best place to kill an adult and get away with it.

Some suggestions:

--Blow an old man's head off with a shotgun. Steal vehicle and checkbook. Go to Calcutta and start writing checks.


--Put two bullets in boyfriend's brain. Distribute boyfriend's money.

--Shoot wife. Call daddy.

--Kill friend. Put body in back seat and drive. Toss body in creek. Drive back home.

--Shoot man. Leave car running. Walk away.

On the political scene, I see where Mitt Romney is saying that President Obama has made the recession worse. Romney and other Republican candidates are counting on voters having amnesia and seeing Republican economic policies as the answer to our problems. The facts, of course, tell an entirely different story.

Meanwhile, Wall Street Journal analysts are forecasting excellent second-quarter corporate profits. The publication says earnings for companies in the S&P 500 will be up 13.6 percent over the same quarter last year. I guess the stubbornly high unemployment figures for us regular folks is the fault of unions and President Obama. Remember: UP is DOWN. And never trust those commie Dems!

As for those actually responsible for the recession, their salaries are way up too. Executive salary data firm Equilar reports that corporate chief executives are making 23 percent more than they did in 2009. The average CEO in the United States now pulls down $10.8 million per year.

Let us all eat cake.

Rebekah del Rio from Mulholland Drive