“Let’s hear you cheer! We’re gonna be in Tulsa next week but we wanna still be thinking about Columbus!” Kicking off the Saturday night costume contest, those words made something very clear: The 2014 Wizard Entertainment Brand Wizard World Ohio Comic Con was the arena rock show of comic conventions. It was overpriced, impersonal and utterly out of touch with its roots.

Held Oct. 31st through Nov. 2nd at the Greater Columbus Convention Center, Wizard World Ohio Comic Con (and let’s just call it Wizard World from here on out, because that’s much more accurate than anything with the words “Ohio” or “Comic”) was just another stop on the Wizard Entertainment Road Show. Despite calling itself a comic convention, Wizard World really existed to trot out people still trying to make a living off that one role they had in Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers 20 years ago so they could shill for paid autographs and expensive meet-and-greets. For a con that’s technically the descendant of Mid-Ohio Con it was shamefully devoid of featured guests who had anything to do with comics, much less the sort of exciting up-and-comers and foundational creators the old show used to host.

I'm a 59 year old artist that's been painting since 1974. I'm self taught and have been labeled "Outsider/Visionary Artist" and I have no qualms over this description being that my desire, drive to create art is driven from personal issues and not from an "art for art's sake" or some preconceived notion of ever making a living from my artistic endeavors. I've often said that I paint because I'm unable to do much else...unfortunately that's closer to the truth than just a self effacing quip. I never acquired enough credits to graduate the low standards, rural high school that I attended. Predictably my only high marks were from Art and Creative writing classes. So it seems I'm the poster boy for ADHD!
  Yes, I know that the definitions over this term can be a bit loose and may be over diagnosed but with me, it fits me to a "T." This past summer I underwent six hours of "comprehensive cognitive" testing.

It all started as a house burglary in Reynoldsburg. It lead to missing dogs, a missing police service weapon, several arrests and a Columbus Police Detective implicated in a pattern of sex with minors. It then lead to nothing beyond a handful of juvenile prosecutions. The Free Press, as a matter of policy, does not identify minors or survivors of sex crimes. The Free Press has no problem identifying Detective Sergeant Terry McConnell, who is still the second watch supervisor of the Columbus Police Department's Special Victims Unit.

  Through the acquisition of police reports from the Reynoldsburg Police Department, the story leads to the Columbus Police Internal Affairs division and the Franklin County Prosecutor's office. It then ends abruptly.

Supporters of public access TV have wondered for years why the Columbus city government closed the station. The reasons given by the city never made much sense – until a previously hidden reason was recently revealed.

Bogus reason number 1: lack of money

When funding for public access TV was drastically cut in 2001, Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman told The Other Paper that the action was not taken as a reaction to the station’s program content but because of “a lack of money.”

In response to questions about public access TV in 2006, Mike Brown in the mayor’s office likewise explained that the city “faced significant budget challenges during the recession of the early 2000s, and that led to significant reductions to . . . public financing for Public Access Television.” But he said the mayor supported “the concept” of public access TV.

The approval by Columbus voters of a 25 percent income­tax increase in 2009 and the resulting budget surpluses took away the “lack of money” explanation. The restoration of public access TV could therefore have been expected. But city officials didn’t do it.

Gift-giving - Help the local economy

Free Press picks

In some family and friendship relationships, or even at your workplace, you just can't get out of the typical gift exchange. If you don't like participating in mainstream consumerism during the holiday season, The Free Press has some suggestions for alternatives to gift-giving and how to buy gifts that make you feel good.
  Instead of camping out at the mall or Walmart, or using your credit card online, you can patronize small independent businesses for your gift buying. In order to save the planet, we need to re-localize, to stimulate the local economy and circulate our surplus labor value.