Ohio Bloggers

Taxmanblog: If You're A Liar And You Know It Clap Your Hands

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 09:21:57 EDT

taxmanblog

"Quite simply, this blog is the ranting of a Cincinnati CPA"

Long before Enron and WorldCom, the ABO and The Ohio Society of CPAs were discussing the importance of making professional ethics education a part of license renewal. Professional ethics has been a requirement for initial CPA certification in Ohio but there was no ongoing focus once an individual was certified. The new requirement is intended to heighten the awareness and importance of ethics in the accounting profession—a profession whose foundation was built upon objectivity, integrity and trust.
- The Ohio Society Of CPA's

So he got caught in a direct lie.

Here's how our "ranting CPA" takes responsibility for his lie:

Better retake that Ethics Course this year.

Ethical behavior is required by law in Ohio for CPA's.

McCain Fumbles Pizza Purchase

Kelley Wenzlaff, The "Mom" for the House! — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 13:14:40 EDT

The lead story in today Columbus Dispatch newspaper slices the hard breaking news story that Republican presidential candidate John McCain does not know how to purchase pizza.

The article states: "McCain stopped yesterday for a 20-minute photo op and tour of the main fire station, carrying two large pizzas. As he glad-handed his way down a line of 24 firefighters, he told an aide, "I don't think I brought enough pizza for everybody. We'll have to send out for some more."

Clearly this is an issue of great concern for all den mothers and little league dads who routinely purchase pizzas. These parents know full well that two large pies will not even begin to satisfy the feeding frenzy of even a small group of half a dozen pint sized pipsqueaks, let alone 24 full grown macho men.

*The ratio of pies to people is a half a pie per person for thin crust and a quarter pie for thick if the eaters are male and over the age of 12. The ratio can be cut by a third for women, picky eaters, and parties involving ice cream and cake. Every parent knows this.

As a result of this story, voters across the nation are rethinking their position on a McCain presidency. Can a man who has never ordered pizza for his family or football team really lead the free world? What will happen when he invites heads of state to the White House and they run out of food in the middle of tense negotiations? The results could be catastrophic, even if he does remember to hold the anchovies.

In conclusion, I must commend the main stream media for it's in depth coverage on this event, as clearly this is the type of hard hitting analysis the American People look for when casting their votes...

Obama Addresses Netroots Nation

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 15:03:23 EDT

Blogging in tongues against HB 477

Jill Miller Zimon — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 11:52:11 EDT

Multiple Ohio blogs have posted entries in a foreign language today:

And it's been noted that maybe, to some people, surfing from blog to blog and being unable to understand most of the posts (until you go here for the translation of each one) proves the point that Ohio and maybe even the United States should standardize, through legislation, the language most of us use and which is already being used by the state and federal goverment: English.

Why would we want our governments to do that?

Because everything we try to read otherwise is pretty incomprehensible and that's exactly what we want to avoid. It's torture to stare at something and not have any idea whatsoever as to what it says, what it argues, what it tells you to do, what it tells you not to do.

Sounds logical, right?

Wrong.

Why? Why is that logic wrong?

Because those of us reading this blog and those blog posts are primarily native English speakers. Of course blog posts in Polish, German, Croatian, Korean and so on look like gobbledyguck to us.

So what's the point of this little demonstration?

To non-native English speakers, blogs - and so many other forms of communication that native English speakers take for granted - look like nonsense. How does it feel, going to the most familiar places you know on the Internet to gather information about the day, about issues and policy that matter, about breaking news and urgent messages, and find that the shoe is on the other foot: you can't understand a word, you can't glean even the essense of what's being communicated?

What kind of humans would legislate torturing literally hundreds of thousands of fellow Ohioans that way?

Here's a list of the Ohio state senators on the State and Local Government and Veteran Affairs Committee, which appears to be the one that has HB 477 right now. Please contact them and let them know how you feel about HB 477.

Gary Cates (R)
Chair

Teresa Fedor (D)
Ranking Minority Member

Democrats:

John Boccier

Tom Roberts

Republicans:

Timothy J. Grendell
Vice Chair

Congratulations Buckeye State Blog!

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Fri, 30 May 2008 09:15:27 EDT

As part of its continuing commitment to engage a broad spectrum of audiences in new and creative ways, the Democratic National Convention Committee (DNCC) today announced that a record number of blogs have been credentialed as members of the media for the 2008 Democratic National Convention at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colo. These blogs will help ensure that communities across the country are connected to the Convention through the eyes and ears of a growing, diverse group of online voices.

Yesterday's announcement added Buckeye State Blog to the previously selected Ohio Daily Blog as the two credentialed Ohio blogs at the 2008 Democratic National Convention.

ProgressOhio is co-hosting The "Big Tent" in association with with our national ProgressNow Network, The Alliance for a Sustainable Colorado, DailyKos and The Wright Group during the convention in Denver.

The Big Tent will be a headquarters away from home for hundreds of progressive bloggers, netroots organizers and non-profit representatives from across the country. The Big Tent will provide additional workspace for journalists and bloggers as well as a main stage with events and entertainment that will be open to the public during Convention week.

We'll see you there!

The New And Improved Dickipedia

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Sat, 17 May 2008 16:10:15 EDT

Dickipedia is a monolingual (English), Web-based, free content encyclopedia project with information about people who are dicks. The word "dickipedia" is a portmanteau of the word "encyclopedia" and the word "dick." Dickipedia does not contain information about people who are detectives.

Latest dicks:

Ann Coulter

Antonin Scalia

Liive Blog At WLST: From Front Porch to Webcast: The History and Impact of Spouses in Presidential Campaigns

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Sat, 17 May 2008 09:38:15 EDT

Jill Miller Zimon over at Writes Like She Talks is live blogging from Canton today:

“From Front Porch to Webcast: The History and Impact of Spouses in Presidential Campaigns.”

This session features:

Eleanor Clift, contributing editor for Newsweek magazine

Dianne Bystrom, Director for the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics, Iowa State University

Evan Cornog, Associate Dean, Academic Affairs, Columbia Journalism School

Connie Schultz, Cleveland Plain Dealer Pulitzer Prise winning Journalist

You can participate in the live blog by clicking here

Columbus Campaign Training Event

Kelley Wenzlaff, The "Mom" for the House! — Thu, 15 May 2008 10:53:41 EDT

White House Project
GO RUN LEAD Training Program
Columbus Ohio
June 6 - 8, 2008

"If it takes a village to raise a child, the likelihood is slim that a woman would be governing that village in Central Ohio."

That statement is the conclusion of recent research conducted by Laralyn & Associates on Women's Political Presence. For decades Ohio has received failing marks on women's rights and representation and currently we are losing ground on the precious little territory we do occupy.

• Ohio ranks a dismal 43rd among the 50 states for the number of women in state legislature
• Only 12 of 59 judges on the bench in the 7 county Central Ohio area are women
• Women represent 51% of the population and only 28% of key elected and appointed positions

The Whitehouse Project is working to change that.

Congratulations Jeff Coryell of Ohio Daily Blog: Ohio's Democratic Convention State Blogger

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Wed, 14 May 2008 14:28:08 EDT

Congratulations Jeff!

DENVER - Democrats have chosen 55 bloggers who will be granted access to the national convention in Denver this summer.

The "State Blogger Corps" includes one blogger from each state plus the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, and one blogger representing Democrats abroad.

Party officials say the list, announced Wednesday, includes some full-time professional bloggers and some part-timers and volunteers.

They were chosen from among more than 400 applications.

Democrats say other bloggers will get credentials as part of a general pool, but party officials haven't said how big the pool will be nor what access it will have.

Watch it:

Video: Ohio SoS Brunner's Acceptance Speech at Profile In Courage Awards Ceremony

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Mon, 12 May 2008 12:42:11 EDT

Jennifer Brunner, Secretary of State of Ohio, was presented a Profile in Courage Award at the John F. Kennedy Library today for her effort in challenging the reliability of electronic voting systems in Ohio.

Here's her acceptance speech

Watch it:

It's Time To Outlaw Discrimination In Ohio!

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Fri, 09 May 2008 09:08:14 EDT

Today's Columbus Dispatch reports findings of a Central Ohio survey that documents discrimination aimed at the LGBT community.

The survey is the just latest evidence of Ohio's need to pass pending legislation that would outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

On Tuesday, May 15th, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hear testimony on Senate Bill 305, which seeks to ban such discrimination in housing, employment or public accommodation.

Survey's respondents report threats, intolerance

They are mostly healthy, in committed relationships and happy with central Ohio's social scene.
But people responding to a first-ever survey of area gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender residents also report high levels of depression, face threats because of their sexual orientation and often suffer discrimination in the workplace.
The findings show that Columbus, although known as a gay-friendly city, still has some work to do, survey organizers said.
"We have to create a community in which everyone feels welcome and everyone feels at home, now," said Bill LaFayette, vice president of economic analysis for the Columbus Chamber.
"I think it's important for the business community to take a look at this, and take a look at themselves."
LaFayette was a volunteer member of the steering committee for the "GLBT Census of Central Ohio," a project led by the Columbus AIDS Task Force, Stonewall Columbus and the United Way of Central Ohio.
Organizers said they opted for the anonymous, online survey to attract the most participants. It isn't possible to extract demographic snapshots of the entire gay and lesbian community from U.S. Census data because it does not ask about sexual orientation.
An estimated 35,000 gay, lesbian and bisexual residents live in Columbus, with about 68,000 in the metro area.
Read The Full Story Here

ProgressOhio has created a website "Do What's Right Ohio" in association with our friends and allies at Equality Ohio.

The website will officially launch next week.

Together, we can make Ohio a place where everyone feels at home!

Factory Farms Protest : Trader Joe's Stops Buying Eggs From Gemperle

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Fri, 09 May 2008 08:51:36 EDT

Trader Joe's announced on Thursday it will stop selling eggs from Gemperle Enterprises.

A video was shot by a member of the 'Mercy for Animals' organization infiltrated the farm.

MFA says chickens there live in squalor, and are routinely brutalized.

Mercy For Animals has just released a shocking video from their latest undercover investigation documenting the routine cruelty, abuse and neglect found at battery cage egg farms.

This video made a major splash in today's LA Times and is now being featured on television stations across the state and country.

Help stop the growth of these social, environmental, and humanitarian nightmares known as factory farms, in Ohio.

Watch the video here.
Sign The Petition to Governor Ted Strickland urging him to ban new factory farms in Ohio. We will hand-deliver your comments to the Governor and everyone who participates will be emailed a special video.
Make a difference by incorporating some of these delicious egg-free, vegetarian recipes into your menu

Congressman Space's Coin Modernization and Taxpayer Savings Act of 2008 Passes House

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Thu, 08 May 2008 12:44:43 EDT

WASHINGTON DC – Scoring a big victory for American taxpayers, Congressman Zack Space (OH-18) announced today that his Coin Modernization and Taxpayer Savings Act of 2008 has passed the House of Representatives.

This measure will save an estimated $1 billion over the next ten years by mandating that the Mint change the metallic composition of coins to a cheaper substance.

Most immediately, this bill will require the Mint to switch over to a copper-plated steel penny. This change will now ensure that the penny costs only .7 cents to produce each penny – a substantial savings over the current 1.7 cent price tag.

“This legislation represents a fiscally responsible solution to a situation that grows worse with every penny minted,” Space said. “It is an insult to American taxpayers that we are manufacturing coins at a rate more than their face value represents. This bill will ensure that we reverse that situation.”

“The American taxpayer will see savings of a billion dollars over the next decade, a move that just makes sense,” Space continued.

By dramatically reducing the cost to produce pennies, this bill will also remove the impetus for the Mint’s ban preventing Jackson Metals in Jackson, Ohio from operating. That could lead to Jackson Metals again providing jobs for an area of the state that is severely depressed.

Ohio Questioner Challenges Rove In Online Chat . . . and Wins!

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Wed, 07 May 2008 15:53:33 EDT

During today’s Washington Post online chat, Karl Rove chastised a questioner who brought up his infamous prediction that Bush’s poll numbers would rebound:

Columbus, Ohio: You boldy predicted that Bush’s approval ratings would rebound — instead he is, according to Gallup, the most unpopular presdient [sic] in history. Will you finally admit that your vision for this nation has been overwhelmingly rejected by the majority of the people?

Karl Rove: Get your facts right — there are at least three president who had worse approval ratings, Truman, Johnson and Nixon. I’m absolutely positive history will be kind to this president, who made the right decisions in a difficult time for this nation.

Rove needs to get his facts straight. The questioner is right. While Bush’s approval rating is not the lowest in history (but still near the bottom), his disapproval rating is actually the worst. According to the recent Gallup poll referenced by the questioner, Bush is indeed the most unpopular president in history — beating Truman, Johnson, and Nixon:

A recent poll of professional historians also found that “98.2 percent assessed the presidency of Mr. Bush to be a failure while 1.8 percent classified it as a success.” More than 61 percent of the historians “concluded that the current presidency is the worst in the nation’s history.”

Rove says he is still “absolutely positive history will be kind to this president.” How positive is he? As positive as he was that Republicans would win the 2006 elections?

Original Content From Center For American Progress

Take The Bush McCain Challenge

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Wed, 07 May 2008 10:43:26 EDT

Remember the Pepsi-Coke Challenge?

Here's a new twist: Try the Bush-McCain Challenge—our new online quiz—and see if you can tell the difference between Bush and McCain!

Take the Challenge »

Congratulations Madam Secretary!

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Mon, 05 May 2008 16:45:36 EDT

Actually we don't expect the cheers to start pouring in from the Ohio GOP, but Secretary of State Brunner and Ohio voting documented another big win that you may have missed in the furor over AG Dann.

Cuyahoga vote audit matches primary results

CLEVELAND (AP) - The elections board in Cuyahoga County says a hand-count audit of votes from the presidential primary matches the results from scanned paper ballots.

A sample of 30,000 paper ballots from 99 precincts were hand-counted by teams composed of Republicans and Democrats last week.

Board of Elections Deputy Director Pat McDonald said Monday that the voluntary audit was part of a pilot program of Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner to help determine consistency and performance of high-speed optical scanning.

I guess the Ohio GOP just forgot about what happened in the Cuyohoga Primary in 2006 under Republican Secretary of State Ken Blackwell:

In the 2006 primary, Cuyahoga County used the controversial Diebold touchscreen voting machines. These machines suffered a well-publicized meltdown, in which many malfunctioned. A report from the Election Science Institute (ESI) documented significant differences between votes actually cast on the machines as opposed to those officially counte
Immediately following the election, 562,498 votes were reported cast in Cuyahoga County, with 30,791 listed as absentee or provisional ballots. But the official results show just 468,056 counted. This means that 94,442 ballots cast in the unofficial total disappeared in the official tallies, representing a shocking 16.8% of all the votes cast in Cuyahoga.

We expect to hear "three cheers for Secretary Brunner" from the OHIO GOP any day now, but we're just not going to be foolish and hold our breath.

Closing Ads Before Tomorrow's Presidential Primary: "What's Happened?" v. "Hometown"

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Mon, 05 May 2008 16:28:11 EDT

Barack Obama issued a response ad this afternoon answering Hillary Clinton's final spots in IN and NC.

In her ad, Clinton asks: "What's happened to Barack Obama? He's attacking Hillary's plan to give you a break on gas prices."

Obama counters: "A war that should never have been waged. An economy in turmoil. Record prices at the pump. America held hostage to foreign oil. And what does Hillary Clinton offer us? More of the same old negative politics."

First, HRC's spot, "What's Happened?" ...

And Obama's "Hometown" ...

Join Us Thursday To Launch Paid Sick Days Fall Campaign

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Mon, 05 May 2008 16:09:34 EDT

Dear Supporter,

Please join us this Thursday, May 8th to take back the Ohio Healthy Families Act from the legislature. For 4 months the Ohio General Assembly has silenced millions of Ohioans and their families by failing to address this important proposed law.

On Thursday, May 8th the legislature's time will run out and the Ohioans for Healthy Families coalition will kick-off our drive to the ballot with a press conference and rally hosted by coalition partner, Progress Ohio.

Click here to RSVP for Thursday or to let us know you stand with the campaign!

Thursday's event will be the first step towards taking the Ohio Healthy Families Act back into the hands of the people and passing paid sick days on the November 4, 2008 General Election ballot.

With your continued help Ohioans will not be denied the basic right to care for their families!

What: The Ohioans for Healthy Families Drive to November Press Conference and Rally
Where: Progress Ohio, 251 S. 3rd Street, Columbus, Ohio 43215
When: Thursday, May 8th 2:00 pm

Click here to RSVP for Thursday or to let us know you stand with the campaign!

Despite over a quarter-million signatures of Ohio voters already collected, the Ohio General Assembly refuses to act on Paid Sick Days.

At the end of this week thousands across Ohio will begin signing petitions to place Paid Sick Days on the November ballot. Legislators continue to take paid sick days themselves, and they continue to block our efforts on behalf of millions of hard working friends, family and neighbors who simply need the ability to EARN paid sick days to care for themselves and their families.

Go to http://www.sickdaysohio.org to download petitions now, email people in your circle, talk up our campaign and join us over the next 90 days as we succeed in giving Ohio voters an opportunity which the politicians want to deny. Signature gathering begins at 12:00 am May 9th!

Click here to RSVP for Thursday or to let us know you stand with us!

Thank you for you continued support!

Brian Dunn
Campaign Manager
Ohioans for Healthy Families

Video: Governor Strickland's Press Gaggle Discussing Call For Dann To Resign From Office

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Mon, 05 May 2008 14:50:16 EDT

Governor Strickland met with the press today on the Statehouse steps to discuss the letter he and all Statewide Democrats sent yesterday calling on embattled Attorney General Marc Dann to resign from office.

Dann has rebuffed the request saying in an email delivered today, "I am in the office, have rolled up my sleeves and am working on behalf of the people of the state of Ohio. I hope you will do the same."

Watch It:

McCain's "Bold Solutions" For Health Care

Dave Harding, ProgressOhio — Sat, 03 May 2008 07:12:31 EDT

Countering the SEIU ad "Feeling The Pain," currently running in Ohio, John McCain has made a new health care ad buy in the Buckeye State.

A spokesman wouldn't share details of the buy except for saying it is "significant" and in "select markets."

Watch it:

Here’s a little reminder of what those “bold solutions” entail:

Boldly leave 56 million people with pre-existing conditions vulnerable in the private market
Boldly threaten coverage for 158 million workers
Boldly let insurance companies refuse coverage to folks with diabetes, heart disease, cancer, or dangerous jobs
Boldly dole out a $2 billion tax cut for big insurance companies
Boldly raise taxes on some families who buy health insurance
Boldly propose a plan that costs $3.6 trillion over 10 years, over double what Clinton’s or Obama’s cost
Boldly rely on expensive, debunked methods to only partially cover the poor and uninsured
Boldly slash funding for hospitals that serve the uninsured without a plan for universal coverage
Boldly deny coverage to a 9-year-old child with a cleft palate

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