Feature
Google is spending $70 billion this year on artificial intelligence (AI) data centers although experts are terrified the AI bubble will burst. What also can't be ignored is Google's sci-fi-looking data center in the fields off South High Street, not far past 270 and next to the casino – a data center that just recently came online.
The AI gamble could tank the economy and marginalize an entire generation, as all of these types of bubbles have done before. A lot of money is going in and no one has much of a clue what could come out.
Ironic is how Google's 500-acre Far South Side data center was built on a former "snake-oil farm" owned by Dr. Samuel B. Hartman, who grew grapes for a "medicine" known as Peruna during the early 1900s. He claimed it was a miracle cure for congestion, but the only miracle was the "buzz" it offered. Nearly a third of each bottle was ethanol.
At one time it was also the largest cattle farm in Ohio, but Columbus is long past being a "cowtown." It's now a massive "data center farm." The region ranks second in the nation for hyperscale facilities (data centers) run by Google, Amazon, and Meta.
Braving the cold weather on Saturday, December 13, dozens gathered to protest US war crimes and bombing ships from Venezuela at the gazebo in Goodale Park and marched for a rally at the Holiday Hop in the Short North.
As one of the few surviving non-corporate owned sources of information in Columbus we pride ourselves in reading your opinions. One person had some illuminating observations about two recent stories. You deserve to read them.
Response to Political Theater Nov 27, 2025
https://columbusfreepress.com/article/political-theater
It’s no secret that the mayor is trying his best to expand and promote women’s sports in Columbus as he stated in his recent State of the City Address while claiming to position Columbus as the nation’s capital for women’s sports.
Flying robots built for war (Anduril) aren’t the only robots coming to Rickenbacker International Airport – one of the world’s busiest logistic hubs.
These robots, however, won’t obliterate you on the spot. But they and their corporate masters could vaporize thousands of decent-paying warehouse jobs from Central Ohio – and do so without a second thought for the human beings who’ve toiled in these warehouses for years.
“Robots are taking over, and that’s a good thing for warehouse professionals!” claims this robotics manufacturer.
Jewish Voice for Peace organized a Zoom call with Tom Hayes, local filmmaker and participant Gaza humanitarian aid mission in late September.
Following his kidnapping and imprisonment in Israel, Tom returned to his home in Columbus on October 12.
Tom is a long-time advocate of Palestinian rights and a documentary filmmaker. In the 1980s, he filmed in Palestinian refugee camps and has produced three long-form documentaries on the denial of Palestinians’ rights. His 1985 documentary “Native Sons: Palestinians In Exile,” narrated by Martin Sheen, follows the lives of three refugee families living in Lebanon’s camps. His 2015 film “Two Blue Lines,” explores the impact of Jewish settlement on the Palestinians, from before the creation of the state of Israel to the present day. Hayes most recently co-directed “Voyage of the Handala,” an independent documentary about the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, is premiering Oct. 27 at Evolution Mallorca International Film Festival in Spain.
Tom is a member of Jewish Voice for Peace Central Ohio.
The Columbus Free Press lost a member of our community Saturday, November 15, 2025. Michael Eckhardt passed on to the spirit world after a courageous journey battling lung disease.
Michael wrote for the Free Press since the 1990s, covering Native American topics, particularly his work with the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee (LPDC). He served as Regional Director, member of the National and International Speakers Bureau, member of the LPDC Advisory Board, and his last position was being appointed a member of the LPDC Executive Council. Michael also represented the national LPDC at the 1995 United Nations Working Group for Indigenous People in Geneva. After that he was given the responsibility for maintenance and oversight of over 100 support groups worldwide.
The Columbus Dispatch article by Cole Behrens from November 13 shows us that the Columbus City Schools (CCS) continues to play politics with the future of our children. The Superintendent knows she must cut about 50 million dollars from the budget.
She was in the district when her predecessor hired hundreds of additional administrators to the Central Office. She knows that the Central Office is overstaffed. The Board of Education (elected by Franklin County Democrats) knows this too; they aren’t stupid. So, what’s the first thing they choose to do to solve this budget challenge?
Play politics.
Instead of cutting the overstaffed Central Office, the Superintendent and the politically-motivated Board of Education will take the easiest route to solve the problem: lay off a wide range of employees at every level.
Some Central Office administrative roles will be eliminated, but also plenty of janitors, secretaries, and teachers. Everyone will be angry, but it will be spread across all levels fairly. Fair to the employees perhaps, but unfair to the students.
The Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA) is a community of sustainable and organic farmers, handlers, producers, and consumers across the U.S. The challenges faced by those in our network are unique to diversified and usually small- or mid-scale farms that provide healthy food to their communities.
The government shutdown, tariff negotiations, staffing changes at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and other recent events have specific implications for these farms and the local communities that benefit from their products. We have been actively connecting with individuals who want to share their stories to uplift some of the experiences of those in our community.