gottaplan

^what's your basis for commenting "sh!thole states"...? Are there some numbers you're using for the basis of that statement? If the Southern states are "sh!tholes" like you indicate, why are college graduates from the midwest heading there in droves? Seems to me like the midwest states are the ones becoming the "sh!tholes".... http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/12/21/us/census-districts.html Like my old calculus professor used to say, "If you keep doing what you've always done, you'll keep getting what you've always gotten"

Are you new to America? This is how politics works. Don't you remember Pelosi's classic line "we have to pass it to see what's in it!" How about Rahm Emmanuel's "Never let a crisis go to waste" quote when the stimulus bill was rolling out. Better yet, how about Cleveland's own Dennis Kucinich being a vocal opponent of the early HCR bill, but quickly changing his mind after a ride on Air Force One? I'm actually surprised there as much committee debate and discussion on amendments. I would have assumed they moved for a vote as soon as they had enough votes.

I'm going to go ahead and weigh in on early voting that the referendum won't pass in 2011 or 2012. The union/democrat crowd was pretty highly motivated in this past governor's race and they still lost. Assuming they get the referendum on the ballot, all the "repeal the bill" ads will be the same messages we've already heard: The law is bad for middle class, bad for Ohio, Kasich is an ex Fox news host, Wall Street fatcat, bankrupted Lehman Bros, etc. That dirty laundry's already been aired & the guy still won. Think about the commercials that would be coming out in support of the bill and against the unions and how they will play out. Now those will get ugly... If the economy continues to gain traction and Kasich can take credit for any of the progress, it'll play to his favor even more.

Here we go again with the constitutional amendments... If it passes, SB 5 should really get it's own thread

I find the idea of a ballot referendum on the issue fascinating. Once it makes it to the ballot, it only takes a simply majority to pass, correct?

Anybody remember this gem? Anyone want to wager if this fireman kept his job? http://detnews.com/article/20100301/METRO/3010380/Detroit-firefighter-ripped-for-parking-on-tracks-after-train-hits-fire-truck

That might be a part of the issue, or to those who's union rights are being attacked, it's the WHOLE issue. But if you try and see it from another standpoint, you'll see that Ohio is getting it's butt handed to it by other states. States which are more competitive for starting & owning a business, raising a family, retiring.... so many other states are more competitive than Ohio in terms of services offered, incentives available, or lower overall tax rate. Kasich & other Republicans attacking unions might be singlehandedly trying to take out their opposing political base, but it might also have the effect of making Ohio more competitive.

Teacher burnout... wow. Summers off ought to make up for that. Ditto for spring break, fall break, Christmas break, fog days, snow days, sick days, President's Day, MLK Day, Day after Thanksgiving.... Every profession is prone to some level of "burnout". I suppose it's possible with teaching but I can think of about a dozen other professions with higher rates of burnout and stress levels. Before anyone asks, I have taught in the class room also and I would rate those days as much less stressful than my current field. As to teaching to test standards, we all have to be measured by some "bottom line" whether it's a test score, a performance rating, a deadline, or a monetary value. How we get there is usually up to the individual.

^agreed on all accounts. I'm as big an NFL fan as there is, but I don't want to see an 18 game season.

Must've just missed you, we were there then too

Where's KJP when you need him with that picture of a train off the tracks...

Feral employees? Are those like some type of wild scavenging employees?

Hootenany, the option you suggest of giving people the choice of being in the union or not would break them. Requiring them to be in the union and collecting dues is essential to their existence. bbrown, your comment about taking from the working class while giving tax breaks to corporations and the rich is not a good political strategy... an argument can be made that the unions existence is essentially ANOTHER form of tax on the corporations and rich. It prevents true market value of labor being established and sets a false floor which labor rate cannot drop below. This is on top of the real cost of goods or services and essentially becomes a tax, no?

Interesting commentary, but what's your point? The article was about the cost of votes to which you pointed out the Ronayne/Brady race. You then went on to mention some struggling real estate developments, a corporate headquarters which left the city limits, the location of Browns stadium? I'm missing the connection, especially when you mentioned Councilman Johnson and his desire to defend some valuable property from being squandered.

Great comments & statistics. One other wrinkle I'd add to the discussion is making Ohio "more competitive". I'm seeing this phrase come up more & more. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704071304576160721023104538.html?mod=WSJ_hp_MIDDLETopStories Some Republicans and conservative groups also argue that pro-union laws and policies are putting states in the industrial Midwest at a disadvantage in competition for jobs with right-to-work states, where unions are weak and they cannot compel workers to join or pay dues. "Being a right to work state would bring jobs to Indiana," said Republican State Rep. Jerry Torr, a sponsor of the right-to-work measure in Indiana. "Government figures show that inflation-adjusted per capita income in six right-to-work states increased at a 6.9% annual rate over the past 10 years. In contrast, incomes contracted at a 0.5% rate in six unionized upper-Midwest states over the same period, as many high-paying automotive and other manufacturing jobs disappeared and foreign auto makers concentrated nearly all of their new investment in right-to-work states." Raising the tax rates on the wealthier residents will definitely help the budget shortfall without making significant cuts, but will it also have the unwanted effect of driving these wealthier citizens away to other states with lower tax rates? Then what?

What I'd like to see is a sweet place like Velvet Tango Room. I only make it over there about once a year because it's close to nothing. It could be fantastic if it were easy to walk to from happy hour downtown.

KJP, nobody is threatening to shoot anybody, but nice dramatic analogy. If there were a referendum vote today in Ohio on reducing the power of public unions, it would pass. Kasich's election is complete evidence of that. Besides, this is a democracy and the majority of people have indicated this is the direction they wish to take the state. Some people are going to lose out but I think in the long run, it will draw business and investment back to the state and help Ohio be more competitive with other right to work states. We already have all the other assets and intangibles.

Regardless, nice to see work progressing. I look forward to having lots of drinks at Shooters and watching the building come together

Nice to hear. I knew it would be packed. Also nice to hear they are doing something to open up the sidewalk. Since the Detroit Ave streetscape project was completed, none of the bar/restaurants have taken advantage of this yet. Might be a trend we'll see repeated.

If a fight is taking shape, then I hope the Ohio legislators at least have the courage & credibility to stand in & vote. It's shameful the way the Wisconsin Senators skipped out on the vote.

Anybody think this current mess of overblown state budgets and massive budget slashing is just a temporary thing or more of a lasting trend? Article about Kasich has some interesting stats: Ohio's projected fiscal 2012 deficit of 11 percent of the state's 2011 budget is serious, but far from the calamities facing California (29.3 percent), Texas (31.5), New Jersey (37.4), Illinois (44.9) and Nevada (45.2). http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/04/AR2011020404211.html Those are some staggering numbers when you consider the size of some of those state budgets...

While I admire his motivation on one hand, I think he could use a lot more guidance on dealing with the public and having some tact at the same time. Regardless of whatever progress he makes in trimming budgets and reforming legislature, he's ticked off so many people already, there will be such a firestorm at the end of his term, a Democrat is a shoe-in to replace him

Baby steps. I think we'll start to see some progress in the next year. Fitzgerald is on board with this and most of the local mayors know they have to be too. Sharing some basic services with your neighbor may become a requirement for getting some projects approved. Those who do more sharing will get more development projects. Those who don't, don't.

No. It's not exactly what Kasich is doing. Nobody is getting fired. Asking public union employees to pay a larger share of their retirement and benefits is exactly what is being done.

Not defending Kasich but that letter from the AFSCME union rep does little to draw my support to him. What's the relevance of Kasich's staff salaries when the discussion is about balancing the state budget? Seems like Mr. Blythe would point at anyone who got a raise and say "what about them? Why should we take a pay cut if they didn't?"