Bill Clinton said he (we) killed “Welfare as we know it,” or at least as some did think they knew it.

Welfare, as we don’t recognize it – meaning not for poor people – continues and thrives. Skimming the news in the Plain Dealer yesterday so reveals. The PD doesn’t call it welfare, however. Rather, the new welfare represents commitments to, I guess, what some would call progress.

Here's a note just received from Marlon Solano..which we offered to post for the REALNEO community to build connectivity and new opportunities for art in NEO. I've suggested they link to NEO online communities and other communities such as SmallerIndiana.com to leverage resources and capabilities focused around mutual interests...

Cigarette smokers should be burned up.

The following figures tell why smokers should be fuming. Cuyahoga County smokers have been taxed for the following reasons and amounts since 1990:

As we begin a new Spring - a new beginning - what are you doing to green your republic?

The article in the Plain Dealer this a.m. on plans to "fix" the "messy" intersection at Van Aken and Chagrin roads gives my tummy some growls.

No one doubts that the intersection could have been devised better at some point.

Some praise the public effort to keep Eaton Corp., a Fortune 500 company, in Cleveland’s downtown. They are even willing to pay a price to see it happen.

The Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority will help to keep the company in Cleveland, we are told, by selling land to the Wolstein/Flats project and by helping to “finance $150 million of the Eaton project,” according to a Plain Dealer editorial praising the deal.

Hope you can join us online for this week's workshop on new practices and tools for Open Source Economic Development. The retreat is lead by Ed Morrison, I-Open, Director, and Policy Analyst and Director of the WIRED initiative in North Central Indiana, Purdue Center for Regional Development, Purdue University. 

Corsair, a private pot of money and investors that seems poised to bail out National City, is an interesting development, but if you're concerned about housing and local investment, where is the encouragement for the future in a bank that got into this mess, at least in part, through poor lending practices and weak management oversight on home lending?

At this year's Drupalcon we're turning Szeged, Hungary into Drupaltown!

The Drupal Association is pleased to announce that the next Drupalcon will be held in Szeged, Hungary from August 27 to 30, 2008 in the Library and Conference Center of the Szeged University. With a thousand Drupal enthusiasts expected we'll be turning this picturesque student city into a true Drupaltown!

Location

Location

AuthentiCITY--Mrs. Seifert at City Hall puts the REAL in RealNEO.   I have to love this woman who answers the phone for the City of Cleveland.  She knows her job and she does it well.  I called to comment about the recycling program was patched through to the Mayor's Action Line and patched through to Nicole in Public Service.  I felt like I was heard today.  Thanks to Nicole, too.  The whole transaction took 5 minutes.  No music, no endless button-pushing.  Results.

Join us for the biggest gathering of cycling interests and activities ever in Northeast Ohio as we celebrate, educate and collaborate for a stronger cycling community. Whether you bicycle for transportation, recreation, health or sport, did in the past, or want to again in the future, we have something for you. Come join us for week-long activities during the month of May, national Bike Safety Month, including:

Possibilities for Medical Mart Mischief

What do you think MMPI will do with nearly $1 billion to spend on the Medical Mart and Convention Center?

If the past has anything to do with the future, you might be very surprised at how enterprising the Chicago developer Merchandise Mart Properties Inc. can be.

The Plain Dealer is reporting tonight on its Cleveland.com site http://blog.cleveland.com/business/2008/04/enlarge_image_pdfmost_of_a.html tonight  that a deal is in the making to further subsidize the Wolstein project in the Flats, already in line for tons of public money.

You can blame past, present (and future) state representatives for the cutbacks in city budgets. They refuse to go where the money is to find needed tax revenue.
If state law were fair at all, it would allow local communities to tax all sources of income fairly, not primarily the worker’s weekly paycheck.
Ohio doesn’t allow local governments to go after tax revenue where it is. That is to tax people who have the money. Neither do I see local politicians getting exercised by the inequality.
Often low income wage earners who don’t have to pay a penny in federal taxes still have to shell out money they need for their families to pay local income, or payroll, taxes.

Such taxes are unfair, since there are no deductions, as there are with federal taxes, and doubly unfair when you work in a different community than you live. You get taxed, usually with some rebate, in both communities.

There are big bucks in the Charity Industry. It doesn't receive the attention it deserves.

To prove how profitable the Charity Industry can be you need to look at Bill Clinton's income tax return, recently revealed.

When: 6-7:30 p.m.
Where: Neighborhood High Schools--Collinwood HS, East HS, East Tech HS, Glenville HS, JFK HS, Lincoln-West HS, John Marshall HS, Rhodes HS, South HS  and specialty high schools Max Hayes HS, John Hay HS, Martin Luther King HS.

Location

A couple of years ago when Forest City was selling its site for a new convention center to Cuyahoga County's Facilities Commission (since disbanded), Al Ratner casually mentioned that I would have lots of fun if I were tracking all the money Forest City got in subsidies around the nation.

WHY WE DO NEED NEWSPAPERS

Carolyn Strauss of slowLab speaks at the Talalay lecture series.

Don't think "silver bullet" or "big" in the ways you have been. Ah... the shrapnel of social and natural capitalism... it's more like a mushroom colony... Here's one of my favorite projects - Min Tanaka Body Weather Farm (reminds me of Ted Shawn at Jacob's Pillow).

Here's a preview:

slowLab is an emerging organization based in New York City and with activities worldwide.

Location

Winner of the 2006 TED [Technology, Entertainment Design] Prize, the motto of Sinclair’s group, Architecture for Humanity, "design like you give a damn" sums up his design vision. With projects ranging from designing mobile health clinics combating HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa to establishing mine clearance programs and building playgrounds in the Balkans his mission is to create sustainable and innovative living standards for the masses.

Location

A collaborative effort involving the best of the Gordon Square Arts District, Including Art Galleries, Artist & Design Studios, Art Auctions, Performance Theatres, Music & Entertainment Businesses, Retail Stores, Restaurants, Bars, and Coffee Houses…

Location

1968 – Start of Cleveland Decline

The year 1968 – 40 years ago – provides rich, if disturbing, historical background to the reason Cleveland is in the shape it is today. For me, 1968 was the year that changed my life and direction. I invite you to read a long piece on that year’s events to see what you think. You may do so by going to www.readroldo.com. I hope readers will take the time to read this piece published today

For a look at Cleveland’s racial division, or as Barack Obama says “racial wounds,” I’ll cite a couple of passages from the 1968 piece, involving among other events, the Glenville shootout: