The drums are beating loudly and often about East 4th Street. Even the New York Times had an extensive piece about the lively street that’s become an open air bazaar of restaurants.

No wonder President Barack Obama’s and Gov. Ted Strickland’s popularity in Ohio is sinking like a lead weigh in water. New job figures for the start of July stink. Again.

Republican Sen.  George Voinovich sent out his e-mail newsletter this week and highlighted in red and green at the top were the figures for the U. S. Debt.

I’ve always had a queasy feeling when local politicians sit down for what are private meetings with editors of the Plain Dealer.

Anyone take offense of this morning’s Plain Dealer editorial cartoon. I did.

Governor Disappointment should get off his ass and start working for the people who put him in the State House.

The tax burden in Cuyahoga County keeps mounting, recession or depression notwithstanding.

I have a hard time understanding how the Greater Cleveland Partnership (GCP) can give $100,000 to get something on the ballot but can’t it support what it wants on the ballot.

The latest figures show that the Cuyahoga County Commissioners quarter percent increase of the sales tax has produced $61,853,863 for the Medical Mart and Convention Center. Oh boy.

Does Jimmy Dimora deserve the privilege of being considered innocent until proven guilty? I don’t think the Plain Dealer believes so.

The City of Cleveland annually now pays $202,700 more in property taxes on Browns stadium as the Browns pay the city to rent the stadium all year.

The Plain Dealer, hot and heavy on corruption, today buries the fact that a man the paper says could replace Jimmy Dimora story has been indicted on bribery charges and theft-in-office, has relatives in political jobs, and has business relations he won’t talk about.

Hypocrisy - thy name is Sam Miller.

Bad economic news keeps hitting Ohio and Cuyahoga County. The newest data  from researcher George Zeller concludes “the rate of layoffs in Ohio continues to increase very sharply and at an alarming rate.”

The Plain Dealer got the headline and photo it wanted today with County Commissioner Jimmy Dimora’s “temporary” abdication of his chairmanship of the County Democrats. It will be a long “temporary.”

I’m against any public money going into an aquarium for Jeff Jacobs who now must be a big-time multi-millionaire. Let him buy his own.

I’ve been rummaging around in old stuff trying to put some old writings in some order. I came across a column from June 1988 that I’ll repeat below.

Can you sense the panic?

Have we hit bottom yet? Worse job news suggests not. George Zeller today reported new unemployment claims as “alarmingly high and still accelerating in Ohio.”

Somebody is going to have to reform the reform movement on County government. Otherwise reform appears dead on arrival once again.

Cleveland’s Forest City developers get walloped by N. Y. Times architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff for the design of a new basketball arena in Brooklyn N. Y. “A colossal, spiritless box,” he writes.

Tell Sen. George Voinovich that we all want the same kind of health care he’s had for more than half his lifetime. Paid by us.

Forest City Enterprises is taking a beating in Brooklyn. Brooklyn, N. Y. that is.

Mark Puente is certainly having a wonderful time tilling the rich corrupt soil at Cuyahoga County and Cleveland public offices. May his garden grow and grow.

Death is the great equalizer. Even multi-millionaires have to participate.