he Democratic Party is showing some ugly faces these days, as entrenched party leaders find both their president and much of their constituency headed in directions that the “party” disapproves. From Sen. Chuck Schumer choosing to risk war to Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz stifling supporters of her party’s president and the peace deal with Iran, to the insurgent candidacies of Bernie Sanders and Martin O’Malley, party leaders find themselves leading toward goals widely rejected by others.  

Columbus Metropolitan Club public forum luncheons are usually interesting and informative, if a little sedate. But the atmosphere was lively on Wednesday. As they arrived, attendees were greeted by demonstrators from the Ohio Community Rights Network (OHCRN).

Ohio Secretary of State John Husted was there to speak about Ohio Ballot Issues 1, 2, and 3. The protesters came from across Ohio to denounce Husted's decision to remove three county charter initiatives from the November ballot.

The initiatives include home rule provisions to restrict or ban fracking wastewater injection wells and pipelines in Fulton, Medina, and Athens Counties. "The Secretary of State claimed he was 'unmoved' by the people’s argument defending their right to petition," said Kathie Jones of Medina County. "He claimed that the content of the initiatives are illegal, and therefore cannot be on the ballot. Yet he does not hesitate to place Issues 2 and 3 on the ballot — initiatives to legalize marijuana, which violate federal law.

This happened some 63 years ago, but as the U.S. government has never stopped lying about it, and it's generally known only outside the United States, I'm going to treat it as news.

Here in our little U.S. bubble we've heard of a couple versions of a film called The Manchurian Candidate. We've heard of the general concept of "brainwashing" and may even associate it with something evil that the Chinese supposedly did to U.S. prisoners during the Korean War. And I'd be willing to bet that the majority of people who've heard of these things have at least a vague sense that they're bullshit.

If you didn't know, I'll break it to you right now: people cannot actually be programed like the Manchurian candidate, which was a work of fiction. There was never the slightest evidence that China or North Korea had done any such thing. And the CIA spent decades trying to do such a thing, and finally gave up.

The crisis of leadership throughout Palestinian history did not start with Mahmoud Abbas and will, regrettably, be unlikely to end with his departure.  Although Abbas has, perhaps, done more damage to the credibility of the Palestinian leadership than any other leader in the past, he is also a by-product of a process of political fraud that started much earlier than his expired Presidency.  

Abbas’ unforeseen announcement on August 27 that he, along with a few others, will resign from the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee and his call for an emergency session of the Palestine National Council (PNC) is a testament to his poor management. More, it shows his utter disregard for the minimally-required threshold of responsible leadership.  

Junior offensive guard Pat Elflein has a word of warning for the 19 freshmen out-of-staters who are experiencing an Ohio State football game for the first time. Bring your ear plugs.
  “We tell them to get ready for Saturdays in Columbus, because our fans are crazy,” said Elflein, a 300 pound junior from Pickerington High School North. “It’s a wild ride here on Saturdays.”
  Even in a city that is home to an NHL team, a MLS team, a minor league baseball team and a handful of college teams, the Buckeyes generate a passion that is all their own. How big is Ohio State football? Consider this:

• Ohio State drew a nation-leading average attendance of 106,296 fans per game during its run to the national championship last year. It’s an impressive figure, considering capacity for Ohio Stadium is for only 104,944 fans.