Brewed Fresh Daily has churned out everyone's collective disgust with the money and time spent by the Funders.  

I would love to see our region and these same funders champion a campaign to attract employers and employees to Northeast Ohio by having the best early childhood development/daycare programs in the country. 

No one wants to touch the request for collaboration that Norm reintroduced and one of the critical engines that drives our region.  Why are we collectively neglecting our most critical resource?

I've been toying with the new "Cleveland+" concept for the past few days and have decided I really like the "+" part but find the "Cleveland" part pedestrian, limiting, exclusionary, and arrogant, all at the same time.

Partition it. Excise the "Cleveland", put it back where it belongs. Keep the "+". It's an easy thing for everyone to do with graffiti, to save on advertising costs, since they've spent a lot already, it seems.

We can then experiment with the concept of "plus" and give a new slant to the term "nonplus." A "+" is something good for all of us, a "non+" is something that detracts from all of us, or is not good for most of us.

The Fulton Road Bridge, it is turning out, is a solid non+, as is lead paint flaking off old houses and leaded gasoline in the soil, as is the brine they put on the streets that rusts the cars and ruins the bridges, making work for those other nonplusses, the new "made men" who do the contract work for the government and make wretchedly excessive political campaigns possible. This makes me think of the non+ idea of demolishing the Breuer Tower and handing the work to RP Carbone.

NOTACON at the Holiday Inn Lakeside this weekend was a + for the city; the CLAW.org show at the Wyndham was a + for a select few. The CVB promoted only the latter.

It's good to have the + tag, because either it is, or it isn't. You can quibble and niggle with gradients of the +-ness of something, but the scoring system has only two absolutes. If it can't be a + or a non+, then it doesn't exist, for all practical intents.

The big question is, will we have the temerity to begin telling people we hail from "The Big Plus"?

Admittedly I also, waited to react to this campaign.  Instinctively I wanted to like it but found myself in shear disbelief.  My immediate reaction was-what? Is this it?  Judging by the other reactions I see that I am not alone.  I guess I find myself continuously wondering why it is so hard to package this great city.  Are we really ready to begin to package and attach ourselves to other cities when we are not in a position to even market our own neighborhoods?  Shouldn’t/Maybe the Youngstown, Akron thing come much later.  Or better yet maybe that should be a STATE campaign.  Hello-Cleveland is the “+”. It seems that the really benefit may be to Youngstown and Canton.  Let's face it Akron has figured out the marketing thing....Art.  I'm not sure they really need us at this point. 

The real problem is that you have to really believe something in order to say it and put it out there.    Why?  Why…. don’t our community leaders get it?  You tell me who the plums are.  Maybe it's time that they Believe in Cleveland!!!!!!  We do -it is our City of Choice. 

We could have saved ourselves a lot of money by hiring our own for promotion .  See Case Observer article by Jeff Verespej.  Cleveland is on fire!  I love it!!!

The Observer, April 27, 2007

Volume XXXIX, Issue 26

Cleveland on Fire: Don't miss out on chance to become a Clevelander

observer [at] case [dot] edu

Why do I like Cleveland? Don't ask me that question and expect a one-liner nugget to be used repeatedly. A more appropriate question would be to ask me why I like Cleveland today, for this is not a city that can be classified in one simple way – it's as straight-forward as the river that defines it.

Northeast Ohio will not slap you in the face and demand your attention as you go through the stage in life that keeps you here. When arriving, there will not be the bright lights of Broadway, a magnificently modern lakefront park, or a famous bridge to fixate your attention toward. At the same time, there will be no Clevelanders who will be rude to you as a part of their daily life, three jobs won't be necessary for a downtown flat, and when driving across town, the commute will not feel overly crowded. Then, once you have settled into the daily routine, it will be easy to sit back and let the status quo sink in. Northeast Ohio won't give you a reason to leave nor will it throw confetti at your feet on the way to the quad. You have to look harder – and when that deeper look is taken, the true Cleveland is found.

It is Cleveland where finding a taxi outside of the Warehouse District at 2 a.m. requires calling the company, but a commute across the county and through downtown in the morning will take you less than an hour. Where when walking down the street you may run into a panhandler, but you will also walk past three smiling Clevelanders who do not need to trample everyone in their way on the sidewalk. Where the most unassuming individual at Dave's Supermarket could easily be the most accomplished musician in the world, a performer with what is known internationally as the Cleveland (Orchestra is omitted). Where cultures, generations, and classes do not matter at the West Side Market, which will always provide a whirlwind experience to both residents and visitors.

Clevelanders are tough; we've had to undergo an inordinate amount of bad luck and national attention that ranges from a defaulting city, to the lifeline sports franchise being ripped away, to being named the "poorest city in America," to the iconic shot of the Cuyahoga River burning. Yet like an aged and experienced boxing champ, we know where to take our punches and how to rebound. We know what we have and it's ours – whether or not you want to take part in it is up to you.

For in Northeast Ohio, you can live. Not just make a paycheck. Not just raise a family. It is not a niche city that attracts urban hipsters, blue-collar families, or recreation snobs, but rather an all-encompassing region that gives you an honest opportunity to make a good wage, afford the house you've always wanted, and at the same time still enjoy the world-class resources developed long ago. Like the phrases that have been used to describe it, there are many ways to see Cleveland – The New American City. The Comeback City. A Plum. Mistake on the Lake. The Forest City. America's Northcoast.

You can choose to live in a multitude of locations – from standard suburbs along the lake on the West side to integrated and urban cities on the East side. From a township with acreage laws for residential properties to a town whose claim to fame is that it's at the highest altitude in Northeast Ohio. Mansions along the water. Converted warehouse lofts. Propaganda-inspired ranch homes in Parma. A live/work studio on Superior-St.Clair.

It's a land of opportunity – but not for everyone. If you're going to sullenly complain about the weather without understanding the beauty of four distinct seasons, we don't need that attitude. If you want to bash the construction down Euclid Avenue without understanding the economic importance of orange barrels and the final product, we don't need to hear it. Lastly, and most importantly, if you choose to take the status quo of comfort in Cleveland and twist that situation into a complaint, take a look in the mirror on your way out of the city. Behind you there will be a city of parks, restaurants, career growth, culture, and most importantly, people. In front of you will be a person who missed out on a chance to become a Clevelander – I sincerely feel sorry for you. Come back when you're ready to understand your surroundings and actually open your eyes to what is happening behind the door. We'll be waiting in the same corner bars and neighborhood ballparks that we have been for over a century, with a smile to welcome you home.

Verespej is a senior Political Science/Pre-Law student involved in the performing arts and is also the Executive Director for the Student Turning Point Society.