Having lost the governorship and other statewide offices in 2018, Ohio Democrats have a chance to reassert themselves in state government in 2020 by capturing two Republican-held seats on the Ohio Supreme Court.

Democrats Michael Donnelly and Melody Stewart were elected justices in 2018, shrinking the GOP majority to five-two. If Democrats knock off GOP justices Sharon Kennedy and Judith French, they would control the state's highest court by four-three.

It would mark the first time Democrats have led any of the three branches of Ohio government since 2010.

Such a stunning reversal of fortune would augur well for 2022 when the statewide administrative offices are on the ballot again and when redistricted and reapportioned state and federal legislative boundaries will improve Democrats' prospects of, among other things, retaking the Ohio House of Representatives.

Meanwhile, 2020 features a Presidential election the likes of which we have never seen before and may never see again, which is likely to affect races lower on the ballot.

Wednesday, August 7, 2019, 6:00 – 8:00 PM. Public Action Meeting.  Hosted by RAID – Resistance Against Immigrant Detention.  This will be our launch meeting for RAID- Resistance Against Immigrant Detention. Our work will center around an action that will be held on August 16th.  We'd love your help to build community and allyship to help support our undocumented friends here in Central Ohio!  Location:  Columbus Metropolitan Library, Northside Branch, 1423 N. High St., Columbus 43201.  Facebook.  

Let’s talk about purchasing medical marijuana from an Ohio dispensary. Get out your calculator, supercomputer, Alexa, Siri and a slide rule. You’ll need them. Why? Because buying cannabis can be complicated.

First, what’s allowed. HB 523, which the Ohio legislature enacted in 2016, created a system wherein qualified patients with a physician’s recommendation can purchase medical marijuana. The law permits nine forms: patches, lotions, creams, ointments, oils, tinctures, capsules, edibles and, of course, plant material, aka flower. Further, the bill established a seemingly generous maximum 90-day supply.

Implementing this quantity, though, became complicated because bureaucrats had to figure out what comprised a 90-day supply. So, they turned to conventional medicine and the “daily dose.” You know, “take two twice a day,” ignoring that most patients consume cannabis “PRN” or as needed. A puff here, a drop there. In addition, the English ounces had to be melded with metric grams.

Because I write a music column, people get the idea I am paying attention to modern music. I periodically get asked what new bands I’m listening to, and I always feel guilty when I have to tell them that I’m not really listening to any new bands. To be honest, if I’m listening to current music these days it’s pretty much pop with a little bit of dance. I’m sort of done with the Pearl Jam imitators on 99.7 The Blitz and the “indie” rock infesting the internet. The Pearl Jam stuff is self-explanatory, but people always seem disappointed that I can’t point them to an up and coming indie band.

Which is sort of bullshit. Why should I have to listen to indie rock? Why should I sift through the detritus of a genre that hasn’t had an original idea in 20 years just to see if somebody got confused and accidentally made a good record? The people over at Pitchfork get paid to do that, not me. Even then, how those people summon up the motivation to write breathless reviews of these lame bands day in and day out is beyond my comprehension.