Abandoned by my elected and unelected officials (unless I pay to play): The Columbus Way

Harvey J Graff

Part One

On Wednesday, September 28, after an early morning medical appointment, I planned a day of writing, punctuated by coffee with a friend and my daily walk. I have books and essays in progress. Instead, I spent most of the day emailing and responding to city staff—that minority with the courtesy even to acknowledge my communications—and talking on the phone with one department head who attempts to explain to a confused resident what specifically his neighborhoods department actually does.

I began with my regular requests/reminders to a long list of City Council legislative aides; members of the City Attorney’s office; and various department heads to respond, or at least confirm receipt, to a growing roster of basic City issues, City failures, and criminal offenses especially in my residentially-zoned University District. The University District is not unique.

Hands off Haiti demonstration

Logo

Sunday, October 30, 3pm
Ohio Statehouse

Facebook Event

On October 30th at 3PM, protest with us at the Statehouse to stand in solidarity with the Haitian people and demand that the US does not intervene! No to US intervention, Yes to the Haitian people’s sovereignty! 

The Haitian people are intensifying their struggle against looming imperialist intervention with sustained militant demonstrations in defense of their country’s independence. Many thousands protested October 21 in the country’s capital Port-au-Prince, attempting to march on the U.S. embassy. They faced fierce repression from police loyal to the illegitimate government of de-facto Prime Minister Ariel Henry.

The demonstration took place on the anniversary of the death of Jean-Jacques Dessalines, a hero of the Haitian Revolution who remains an icon of the country’s ongoing fight to defend its sovereignty. The Haitian Revolution shook the world at the onset of the 19th century – the first successful slave rebellion to establish a republic terrified the rich and powerful. Haiti has been under constant attack ever since.

The Vicious Nasty Fascist Racists Are Right About Ukraine

I applaud the

FreedomHumanChain A Link to Iran’s Revolution Rally

People protesting

Saturday, October 29, 11am
Goodale Park
Join the Human Chain to support the Iranian people.

Another Innocent Ohio Death Row Survivor About To Be Freed?

Kevin

Are you listening to Kim Kardashian's true crime podcast, "The System," available for free on Spotify? New episodes come out each Monday. Today's was episode #5, and there's three more coming.

Busting Myths -The OSU Way: Slogans over Truth and Honesty in Graduation Rates and Student Well-Being

Harvey J Graff

You won’t read this in the Columbus Dispatch or hear it on WOSU. NBC Channel 4 misreported this story on Oct. 17, either purposefully or ignorantly by their “investigative reporter, who doesn’t’ actually investigate. But as usual, truth speaks far more loudly and clearly than either than silence or distortion.

The issue in question is important to all Ohio taxpayer, students and supporters of public higher education, and to at least some Buckeyes. This compelling matter is the tricky question of six-year university graduation rates, what drives them, and what they mean. A more complicated problem than the seemingly simple percentages appear to signify, understanding them is like peeling a piece of fruit’s layers of skin.

Movie Review: Decision To Leave

Woman walking and looking behind her

From a mountain peak in South Korea, Soo-wan (Go Kyung-Pyo), a businessman, plummets to his death. Did he jump, or was he pushed? When detective Hae-joon (Park Hae-il) arrives on the scene, he begins to suspect the dead man’s wife Seo-rae (Tang Wei) may know more than she initially lets on. But as he digs deeper into the investigation, Hae-joon finds himself trapped in a web of deception and desire, proving that the darkest mysteries lurk inside the human heart.

Set against a contrasting backdrop of mountains and seas, "Decision To Leave" captures the tension of a police investigation while simultaneously being focused on the changing psychology of a man and a woman. The film begins with the detective Hae-joon investigating the death of a man who fell from a mountaintop. The character is similar to the police character Martin Beck from the Swedish detective novel series.

Unadjusted Exit Polls for 2020 Presidential and Senate Races Show Inexplicably Political Red-Shift Pattern Similar to Prior US Elections

Exit poll tablet

October 24, 2022

Presidential Election in 2020

Unadjusted Exit Poll (UEP) analysis of the 2020 US Presidential and Senate elections shows the same “red-shift” pattern of Republican favoring discrepancies from Unadjusted Exit Polls (UEPs) particularly in battleground states that has prevailed in every general US Presidential election since 2004.[1]

UEPs are samples of voter responses taken after they vote in-person or by absentee ballot. These are obtained from screen shots of exit polls reported by US media right before, or soon after, polls close, and include UEP candidate vote shares and sample sizes. These differ from the exit polls that are adjusted to match official election results, or Adjusted Exit Poll (AEP) candidate vote shares and sample sizes, that are widely reported in US media.

Ohio Vigil for Democracy

Protest about voting rights

Thursday, October 27, from 2 p.m to 3 p.m. ET
Trinity Episcopal Church, 125 E. Broad St. in Columbus  
Faith leaders from across Ohio will gather at and march to Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s office at 22 N. 4th St. to hold a prayer vigil for democracy. 

The midterm election is just around the corner. As you read this, more than 900,000 Ohioans have requested absentee ballots or voted early with millions more preparing to in the days ahead. When they do, faith leaders must do everything in our power to ensure votes are cast safely and that the results determined by the people get certified. That means showing up.

In Ohio we’ve been witness to a growing tide of white Christian nationalism undermining our democracy by spreading disinformation and threatening violence against historically marginalized groups. We’ve seen corrupt leaders draw unfair and unconstitutional legislative maps that deprive voters of their power to vote for communities where everyone can thrive. All the while threats against poll workers and election workers erode public trust and a sense of safety in voting and election outcomes.

End of the Deal: By Revoking Stance on Jerusalem, Australia Isolates Israel, Not Palestinians

US President Donald Trump's so-called 'Deal of the Century' was meant to represent a finality of sorts, an event reminiscent of Francis Fukuyama’s premature declaration of the 'End of History' and the uncontested supremacy of western capitalism. In effect, it was a declaration that 'we' - the US, Israel and a few allies - have won, and 'you', isolated and marginalized Palestinians, lost.

 The same way Fukuyama failed to consider the unceasing evolution of history, the US and Israeli governments also failed to understand that the Middle East, in fact, the world, is not governed by Israeli expectations and American diktats. 

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