Portune Kept out of Banks Loop
Matt Borgerding Hamilton County Commissioners Todd Portune (right) and Pat DeWine discuss The Banks March 21 with city council. The March 21 joint meeting of Cincinnati City Council and Hamilton County Commissioners about the status of the riverfront development project known as The Banks seemed to herald the beginning of true collaboration (see "Arguing…
Baseball Looks for Evidence to Bounce Bonds
Jerry Dowling The Commissioner of Baseball, Bud Selig, called for an official investigation into steroid use last week, dredging up the usual dull choruses of indignation from experts who've covered the game for years and still haven't figured out how he works. Selig tabbed former Maine Sen. George Mitchell to follow the investigation wherever…
Judas
Notes: My wife gave me the idea for this song after she learned that the ?newly? discovered Book of Judas revealed untold secrets about Jesus? final days. Since I enjoy the stretching of the truth, I thought I?d capitalize on such a find by speculating on what I think might be found in the fine…
Cincinnati Fringe Festival
Miami University The cast of N*W*C continues its exploration of racial epithets at Miami University on Thursday. It's coming back — bigger than ever. About to launch its third incarnation the CINCINNATI FRINGE FESTIVAL, which begins on May 31 for a 12-day run, has just announced the 25 productions it will present. During the…
News to Use
Lobby for LGBT Equality Cincinnati's representatives in Columbus need to hear learn more about the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) community and straight allies so they can better understand why equality in Ohio's laws and policies is important. Join Equity Ohio and the AFL/CIO in Ohio's capitol from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. May 17 to build…
News: Nerves of Steel
Darin Overholser A large blue canopy covers a fold-up table strewn with food, snacks and Thermos bottles filled with steaming coffee. Coolers overflowing with ice and sodas are makeshift chairs around a 55-gallon drum spewing out flames near a stack of firewood. Around the barrels are a dozen or more men and women huddled…
Living Out Loud: : Tolerance
Coming downtown on the last Tuesday in March was a mistake. Light rain was falling, and the sidewalks were slick. Still recovering from foot surgery, I was having difficulty walking. I decided to cut the visit short and made my way back to Ninth and Vine to catch the bus back home. The sidewalks were…
Mockbee Back In Play
Groovy, gritty art/performance space The Mockbee (off Central Parkway, near Brighton Corner) is hosting live music and art events again. The venue presents two cool musical performances this weekend, starting Friday with the latest presentation from Art Damage Inc., the non-profit organization that spawned from the long-running "Art Damage" experimental music radio show, now airing…
Cover Story: Left of Eden
GD Mills Left of Eden "Jesus was a socialist," says the Rev. Mike Howard, executive director of Justice Watch, a transitional living program for former prisoners in the West End. "Anyone who is convicted for serving the poor and the equal distribution of treatment and wealth is a socialist." A lot of people aren't…
The Wall of Fear
There is a wall that keeps us from experiencing who we truly are. It lies between our false layers of identity and our true divinity, and its foundation is made up of subtle fears that reside beneath consciousness. Whenever we practice virtue or restrain ourselves from negative behaviors, we press against that wall. On the…
A Majority of Sorts Decides Ohio’s ‘Wrongful Life’ Case
The Ohio Supreme Court, more conservative than it used to be, really must have struggled over its March 3 decision sharply limiting damages that parents can recover for bad prenatal genetic test advice. For one thing, the case was pending for nearly a year before it was released. For another, it reads like a U.S.…
Music: The Neo-Blues Brothers
Alive Records "Don't even think about touching our organ": Soledad Brothers' latest album, The Hardest Walk, has been called their Exile On Main Street. For the past 10 years, Soledad Brothers have been identified as a Detroit band, which is neither unfair nor misleading. Early on in his career, guitarist Johnny Walker migrated from…
For Members Only
Outrage over Timothy Thomas' death at the hands of Officer Stephen Roach ("Long Live the Rebellion," issue of April 5-11) morphed into frustration with what we all know but don't talk about. Take two kids, one white, one black. Both struggle through the Dick-and-Jane-Go-to-a-Farm reading level. Unless he's 7 feet tall and shoots hoops like…
Locals Only: : Disc-O-Mania
The Sloes REVIEWS BY MIKE BREEN · THE SLOES — DESPERATE TRAIN Calling themselves a "progressive acoustic" band, The Sloes are a versatile three-piece specializing in (but not limited to) Americana stylings with the occasional World Beat undercurrent. The band's 10-song debut, Desperate Train, is somewhat sparsely arranged, but the minimalism is filled up…
News: The Beauty of Strife
Eric Chapman Saad Ghosn shows a piece of his own work, "Ryan for President," that will appear in this year's S.O.S. Art. Art as an expression of political and social issues won't likely be found in a gallery on Main Street. But that's exactly what should be hanging on the walls if an artist…
Cover Story: Saints of the Christian Left
Art and Peggy Gish, an elderly couple from Athens, Ohio, are a reminder that even — or perhaps especially — the meek can work against violence and war. The Gishes are part of Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) in Iraq and Palestine. Since 2002 they've spent much of their lives among the peoples of the war-torn…
Upcoming Concert Reviews of the Editors, Metric and More…
Plus One Music The Editors Editors with Stellastarr* Friday · The Mad Hatter The definition of what constitutes "The Next Big Thing" is subjective at best, but there's no question that South by Southwest 2006 was crawling with somebody's idea of this week's buzz band. If it wasn't the Arctic Monkeys generating huge hype…
Film: Courageous Resistance
Zeitgeist Films A German judge scolds Sophie Scholl (Julia Jentsch) for her role in the White Rose resistence in director Marc Rothemund's powerful drama. Sophie Scholl — The Final Days is the latest of a small but significant group of German films about domestic resistance to the Nazis. Michael Verhoeven's The White Rose, a…
Diner: Magic Bean Stalk
The Argentine Bean is a little gem that could become one of my favorite local restaurants. Its owners have purposefully jumped the chain-dining tracks and have made their place everything you don't expect in a shopping center eatery. With its Latin-influenced menu, its funny name, long hours and off-the-main-drag location, it's an ambitious, edgy concept.…
