As I drove from the site of the murder of Detective Schroeder, on West 98th Street, I passed the park dedicated in the honor of the murder of John Jackson and Masumi Hayashi on West 65th, and it occurred to me that there must be a similar park dedicated to Detective Schroeder. This is a fitting way to memorialize the victims of murder, and all violent crime, in our city, as it replaces death with life, and sorrow with joy... it gives people young and old a place to move on in the most healthy possible ways. I do not believe the people of Cleveland want to brush away such tragedy, but rather they want to have a remembrance of those who we lose, and a bright spot to remember that... and they want their neighborhoods to grow stronger so there will be less tragedy there in the future.

NEW PHONE NUMBER FOR NORM ROULET AT REALNEO IS 1-216-212-1540

Please be advised that, because of the ongoing psychotic behavior of my former partner Peter Holmes, enabled by the unprofessional behavior of his law firm Jones Day, it has not been possible to maintain the previous REALinks, LLC, cell phone service for Sudhir Raghupathy and myself, which it appears Peter Holmes has had in his personal name. Only Peter Holmes may transfer Sudhir's and my numbers, after he pays $332.11 owed to Cingular on his account. For the time being, my number at 216-534-1732 and Sudhor's number at 1-216-534-8628 are not in service. Peter Holmes also has not paid the staff what he agreed to provide them as of June 9, 2006, almost two months ago, and Peter Holmes has not proceeded in good faith to make arrangements for the transition of financial and legal documents necessary for continuity of operations without him.

This disruption of phone service for Sudhir Raghupathy is especially unfortunate for NEO, as Sudhir has been supporting the Voices and Choices initiative for the betterment of Northeast Ohio, funded by the Fund For Our Economic Future, and so Peter's latest act of aggession does harm to the entire region and all the foundations of Northeast Ohio.

What could possibly make NEO a Green City by a Blue Lake? Rewriting our propagandist "history" to be true through today, and teaching and learning from that, ruthlessly defending our "environment", celebrating progressive "politics",  restructuring "education" to truly focus on social responsibility, inspiring "innovation" through creative people and management practices,  promoting "finance" for progressive businesses and practices, embracing "spirituality" found in liberal religions and non-Western thought, and recruiting and building "critical mass" of like minded people who embrace all of that. What, why, how... several years ago I referenced this article on CAUSE and it still reads true and offers insight for NEO forever... and feel free to post suggestions as comments here.

I came across this cool service to Flex Your Power, in California, designed by an old friend from Tribe - definitely something we need here in NEO - note, this was funded by the power industry in California, because regulation there is very focused on demand side management, rather than consumption... we need to Flex Our Power as we head to the voting booths this November and choose politicians who will enable these type of outcomes...

Now that I must waste much of my time and energy preparing to sue Robert "Okihawk"/:NEOhawk" Hawkins I must conduct discovery determining the many ways to diverted business from his employer, REALinks, LLC, and acted against all stakeholders. One place where his record is told is on REALNEO, and so I am preserving his strings of inputs here.

The origins of REALNEO.US live at http://clevelandcause.tribe.net/ where I first organized this revolution, while I was based in Northern California and fighting to help the real NEO economy from afar. Read the manifesto that was the CAUSE for REALNEO.US  below... the very first copy sent to my friend and co-conspirator with REALNEO.US, Louis Carl Edwards, via Tribe.net on December 21, 2003 at 4:19 AM, West Coast time:

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Center for Public Service History

Public Service at Tulane has a long and rich history. Faculty, staff, and student members have been actively engaged in civic and research activities that link Tulane with communities outside of the university. These partnerships have run the gamut of experiences from as near as the university's immediate neighbors in New Orleans to partners in other countries. In the past these initiatives have included faculty-driven programs such as Academic Service Learning and research, student-initiated community service, and staff-supervised community activities.

Over the next many years and decades, NEO will need quality "independent" journalism to cover lead poisoning, air and water polluters, and other toxic conditions here, which are caused by globally-dominant corporate interests like Jones Day and Sherwin Williams, which have significant influence on the economy on their "home field" of NEO. While I don't see transformational impact coming from any current independent NEO media forces, I came across a 2000 article in the Columbia Journalism Review that offered a best case perspective on Newhouse, the Plain Dealer owners, which should be revisited as we welcome a new publisher... the premise: "When good editors come together with the Newhouse management philosophy, better newspapers result." What about the impact of new publishers?

The purported independent Newhouse management philosophy and Plain Dealer transition to new, non-NEO publishing-leadership suggest the PD is well positioned and may be ready and able to address the issue of lead poisoning and other environmental crises here, even as the PD and Newhouse depend on polluters for significant advertising revenues, and have big business connections with polluters' attorneys, and have political agendas themselves. In fact, I believe for the future it will prove to be an advantage for NEO that we have one monopoly print newspaper, which is part of an independently-owned publishing conglomerate managed from afar, staffed with editors and a publisher from afar, as it is unlikely any of that may be corrupted by local political or business interests. The White House is an entirely different matter, for different analysis.

But, it occurs to me, the Newhouse family made a bold move in selecting Doug Clifton as editor of the PD, some six years ago, and NEO has been rewarded with better journalism. Now, we have a new publisher and that opens up more opportunities for progress in our community. Say what you may, but print is not dead, and the daily Plain Dealer has a very strong influence on all aspects of daily life in NEO. And, like a law firm, the PD should include with every article whether they have a conflict of interest covering that subject... if they make money from advertising from this drug company, or that big box retail chain, or a journalist lives in a township they cover, or a newspaper publisher is on the board of this hospital or that university... all that should be disclosed, with intelligence. In fact, I'd like to know the religious orientation of journalists - denomination and degree of practice - especially if they are covering politics and influencing votors. All this should be registered in thorough, standardized profiles, available on-line, and mapped and linked to the journalists' published print and electronic material for coninuous disclosure.

If NEO is to become at all desirable and attractive as a new economy community, throughout the years and decades ahead, we need radical change regarding pollution and toxins in our environment, promoting recovery from past industrial policies that have contaminated our community and society. For that to occur, the Plain Dealer must help educate the people on the realities of today's dangerous state here, and point leaders and followers toward a cleaner future, without concern for any other conflicts of interest. The Newhouse family seems to allow such independence of their papers and staff, so it seems entirely up to the Plain Dealer leadership and journalists themselves to control the health of their readers and the public at large. That is an immense responsibility, as our lives are literally in their hands. Read more about who own their hands, below:

While the old Tulane University nick-name, "Green Wave", does not bring to mind a good impression for the hurricane-ravaged region of New Orleans, Louisiana (NOLA), the term they now brandish moving forward is perfect - "New Wave" - and new wave the institution has become, and all forces their leaders can muster are now directed at rebuilding every aspect of their community, spanning several states of the Gulf South and addressing every imaginable physical and social challenge.

I receive daily updates from Tulane on their progress and am usually so impressed I feel the need to share insight from there, up here in North East Ohio (NEO), as we attempt a less demanding but as important restructuring of NEO from post-industrial toxic failure to a healthy "New Economy". The first positive outcomes of this sharing has been Case University trustees tapping of the leader of Tulane, President Cowen,  and other global university leaders to assist with the rebuilding of Case, which recently lost its leadership in a faculty-led revolution proving no-confidence. There are many other opportunities for success in NEO by implementing processes and models from NOLA, and I'll share one below we may implement immediately for significant change in a very short term.

Voices and Choices is a groundbreaking initiative of the Fund for Our Economic Future to develop a far-reaching, comprehensive regional dialog for setting a course for our region's future that will produce more jobs and create better economic opportunities for our families and businesses. Voices & Choices is also educating hundreds of thousands of people about the realities facing the regional economy.

If you have the opportunity to rebuild your city from scratch, what will be your priorities - what are the priorities of your neighborhood and neighbors? Well, in New Orleans they don't have any choice about rebuilding their city, so a diverse collaboration of planners and community leaders are using sophisticated tools and methods to make certain their neighborhoods of the future are as desirable and successful as possible... read the report summary and link in below. Note, while this is part of multi-Gulf-State regional planning, which must focus on the big picture, the study here looks are resident preferences by neighborhood and even ethnicity, so it is very granular at the microeconomic level in NOLA, and so entirely applicable to NEO. I strongly believe doing the same exercise here would offer immense value, not just in Cleveland but in every neighborhood of the region... just take the exact same method and tools as used in NOLA, work with the same team at Tulane on analyses, and we'll quickly have some real micro-community development benchmarks and targets for rebuilding our region, with concensus, from the ground up

Residents rank low crime, good street lighting as rebuilding priorities.

Low crime, good street lighting, absence of litter, walkable sidewalks/crosswalks, neighborhood grocery stores, playgrounds, affordable housing and good schools are the top priorities of New Orleans residents as they rebuild or decide whether to rebuild in the post-Katrina world, according to a survey released this week by The Prevention Research Center at Tulane University. "Low crime is a priority across the city," says Tom Farley, director of the center and chair of the department of community health sciences at the Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. "Crime can be prevented with smart environmental planning, such as well-lit streets. We hope this data will result in rebuilding plans that address concerns about crime and safety."

I've certainly paid much more attention to my alma mater, Tulane University, and home for many years, New Orleans, Louisiana (NOLA), since hurricane Katrina hit last year, and what I have seen is inspired regional planning combined with collaborative community building, from which we in NEO stand to learn many great lessons.

I am really appreciative, this morning. After posting what was certainly the saddest news I can imagine, about the hardship my staff has suffered as a result of a lack of appreciation from my former business associate, Peter Holmes, I opened up this week's CoolCleveland and found that their crew had featured TWO postings from REALNEO. I am very touched and thankful to Thomas and his team for noticing REALNEO and taking an interest in the thoughts posted here - thank you. Please show appreciation back to CoolCleveland... if you are not a member, see what you've been missing... subscribe at CoolCleveland - all free - this is a real NEO must,  and send feedback to CoolCleveland letters at the links below, and supporting the upcoming CoolCleveland/Tech/Ingenuity party at Fat Fish Blue, July 13, and the Ingenuity Festival, as described below... but first, here's the nice write-up about REALNEO from CoolCleveland today, July 5, 2006:

 The following story with its links ran in CASE Daily (Case's online newpaper) today. Do feel like you have entrepreneurial genes? I think I do! Please post your thoughts
"Do genes influence who will be entrepreneurs?"

ABC News (Reuters), June 5, 2006
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2041245

The Coit Road Farmers Market
15000 Woodworth (between E. 152nd and Coit)
East Cleveland, Ohio 44112
(216) 249-5455
Map at www.coitmarket.org

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Used books are the best, so don't miss the best used book sale in Cleveland!

60th Anniversary Case Book Sale 2006, sponsored by The Association for Continuiing Education

Saturday, June 3rd 10 am -12 noon Preview ($20 Fee), 12 noon - 6 pm Free admission Begins

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With the demand by Case Professor Krauss for a no-confidence vote against the Case president and provost, the levee broke flooding Case with the community sewage brimming its highest offices since hurricane Lewis smacked NEO several years ago, demanding the complete reorganization of Case. The rains since from Lewis' further public contempt for Case overflowed all the protection the president and board could retain, and now the Case community is in ruins.

I have a proposal for several actions Case may take to become the "World's Most Powerful Learning Environment", as Hundert proposes.

The first action is for the Case board and senior administration to form a panel of Blue Ribbon Advisors who are qualified and able to develop for the University a renewal plan. The panel must be expert in the subject, globally-respected and ready to begin immediately. Therefore, for the panel I recommend:

William G. Bowen, president, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, president emeritus, Princeton University

William R. Brody, president, The Johns Hopkins University

James J. Duderstadt, president emeritus, University of Michigan

Harvey Fineberg, president, The Institute of Medicine, The National Academies

Malcolm Gillis, president emeritus, Rice University

Eamon Kelly, president emeritus, Tulane University

Scott Cowen, president, Tulane University

Farris W. Womack, chief financial officer emeritus, University of Michigan

Join arts and cultural professionals from around the region to discuss Northeast Ohio’s economic future. The Cuyahoga County Cultural Roundtable is hosting a Voices and Choices Community Conversation.

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Carolyn
Lukensmeyer and David Abbott at The City Club of
Cleveland

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Both Mayor Campbell and Council President Jackson met with the arts community last week.  Attendance was low, both at the Play House on the east with Campbell and Cleveland Public Theatre on the westside with Jackson. The Campbell strategy was to identify a top 20 list of reasons Campbell has advanced the arts, with art summits, expansion of live/work zones and public funding through the "1% for arts" set aside that is a part of public construction contracts.  She says her track record merits her return to office for another four years.  Jackson said, through his leadership, he deserves credit for these initiatives as well, and his record in council deserves the public’s faith and confidence that he will work to represent them well.  But what would be an election without an added dose of cynicism? 

In place of our usual Tuesday Excellence Roundtable lunch, we encourage all our friends to join us for lunch at the City Club Thursday, September 22, to experience the insight of Generation-X expert and good friend of NEO Excellence Rebecca Ryan. We have reserved space for other Roundtable friends who would like to sit together - please let me know ASAP if you will attend with us - norm [at] realinks [dot] us.

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On Monday one of fifteen Voices and Choices Leadership Workshop Forums took place (there is one planned for each of fifteen counties comprising Northeast Ohio) in Geneva, Ohio. The event was attended by over a hundred participants, many of whom hold various positions of leadership and public office in Ashtabula County. Participants congregated at roundtables, eight to ten participants to a table. The purpose of this forum was to generate dialog and insight around the concept of a regional strategy for economic transformation for Northeast Ohio – and what factors or conditions might make this vision a reality. Data was collected and transferred in real-time via electronic polling keypads and iMac laptop computers to a designated ‘theme team’, which processed the data during the conference and translated all submissions into general themes and focal points. I had the honor of serving as a facilitator at one of the tables – giving me the unique opportunity to rub elbows with city managers, media representatives and township trustees alike and hear their ‘Voices and Choices’. The Voices and Choices initiative has been supported by the Fund for our Economic Future – a funding base representing the pooled philanthropic contributions of over 70 Northeast Ohio organizations. 

Bradley Whitehead - Program Director, The Cleveland Foundation

Sponsor: National City - Dialogues on Leadership New Leaders Only

Brad Whitehead is a Program Director at The Cleveland Foundation. In this role, he works with business, political, academic, and community leaders on Northeast Ohio’s economic transformation agenda. Brad joined the Foundation in March of 2002.

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