Fourth of July 2009

Happy Fourth of July! Remember what our second President, John Adams, wrote his wife Abigail,

"It ought to be celebrated by pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations from one end of this continent to the other..."

(More) Free Campaign Advice to Andy Brenner

DelCo Recorder and candidate for Recorder State Senate Ohio House Andy Brenner is holding a "CEO Roundtable" to raise money. No objection there (although some think having to pay to ask a question of an elected official is in bad taste.

What made us chuckle is that in the latest campaign email (which STILL lacks the legally required ‘PAID FOR’ tag line) it explains that Mr. Brenner has, "11 years of private sector experience." To demonstrate his understanding of the private sector, there are different donation levels.

Management Level: $100 per person
Board of Directors Level: $250 per person
*CEO Level: $500 per person
*Team Level: $1,000 for up to 5 people from your family or company

Uh, wouldn't an experienced private sector business person know that the board of directors outranks the CEO? I have worked for organizations that have boards of Directors and the CEO always reported to THEM. Maybe someone who pays $500 could attend and explain that to him.
Just saying.

PS The above linked flyer has the legal disclaimer but the emails don’t...ever...

Happy Father’s Day. Fathers, Sons and Sports

Today I am going to re-post something that I put up after last year's World Series from one of my favorite radio shows. I think it is a great Father's Day piece. Maybe one day I can have a similar story with the Bengals... Ok, a boy can wish.

From November, 2008
Ron Bennington of the Ron and Fez Show on Sirius-XM XM202 (and Sirius 197) is a big Phillies fan. During the World Series on their daily show there was a running joke that no one was allowed to actually talk about it. No callers, no one on the show, no one. Ron did not want to "jinx" it. It was a funny bit and a running joke, but apparently there was something really special about this win.

Now I am not an enormous fan of Baseball. The Cubs are my team and at best I watch the occasional game, the play offs and the Series, but the meaning of baseball is not lost on me. For so many, Baseball represents more than just the game. It represents a connection, a bond with someone special.

The day after the Series ended, Ron began what would become an off-the-cuff monologue about what the game means to him. Rarely are there serious moments on Ron and Fez, but when there are, it is worth it. Take 10 minutes and listen to what the game of baseball, the Phillies in particular, mean to this man. I think a lot of sons can relate in one way or another.

I am lucky. I have a great relationship with my father. We talk about a lot of things and are at that point in our lives where we are adult friends. As with any father-son relationship, it was not always like that. For us, even if there were rough patches, we had football. My family had season tickets to the Bengals so for many, many years we had a family event every other week during the fall and winter. You would be amazed how much a family can bond in a stadium of tens of thousands of people.

Listen to Ron talk about his dad.
(Be warned, it is an uncensored channel, so there are curse words)

UPDATED: A Little Blogosphere Hypocrisy

The blog Delaware County Political Reporter is known for attacking County Recorder Andy Brenner and his wife Sara Marie.

What is hypocritical is that in a recent post they said,

We’d post a reply to her blog, but since it is argumentative, by her own rules she would deny us posting any factual information.

Now we would post a reply on Delaware County Political Reporter’s blog as well, but they do not allow comments and have no contact information. So you mock the rules for leaving comments on your blog where comments are not even permitted? A bit hypocritical to be sure.

In the spirit of full disclosure, we have been a little critical of Mr. Brenner (actually critical of his campaign not him personally) but we allow comments (and we don’t even have the requested restrictions Mrs. Brenner demands on her blog)

UPDATE: The ever so subtle and adult blog has a new post asking a number of questions for the Brenners. I would ask, how the hell are they supposed to answer them when there is no contact info on your blog nor do you allow anyone to comment? I know you read this, so why not answer MY questions, sweetheart.

State Route 315 Road Project Begins: A map to help guide you with closures and exits

As any Central Ohioan knows, State Route 315 can be a blessing or a curse depending on what time you are traveling and what accident has occurred. Starting Monday June 15, 2009, it is a curse for all of use.

It would appear that there are a lot of exits closed. Most are entrance exits on to SR315 while others are off ramps. Not sure what is what? You are not alone.

Click here for a printable, downloadable map of the exits that are impacted by this road work on SR315.

For updates throughout this project, check out www.BuckeyeTraffic.org/315

UPDATED: Interesting GOP Ticket Rumors Across the Bloggy InterGoogleBingWebs

UPDATE: 3BP has more info about this rumor, now confirmed... They were right! Good call, guys.

Turns out the rumors we heard were true. Former Senator Mike DeWine has in fact filed his designation for Treasurer. That means he can now start raising money in a run for Ohio Attorney General

Third base Politics is reporting a rumor that Former Sen. Mike Dewine is jumping in the ring.

From 3BP, "Rumor is that former Senator Mike DeWine very recently filed with the Secretary of State to run for Ohio Attorney General."

Now I am a bit torn about this. The word on the street I heard was that it was crucial to avoid any major primaries in Ohio in order to help unify the Ohio GOP (in reality or symbolically at any rate). This will not be so if this rumor pans out to be true. (and yes, I know there is someone other than Kasich running for the GOP ticket, but come on, I am talking viable candidates here).

I will say this, I once hear a very influential GOP donor say in regards to Mike Dewine, "Has anyone told [Mike Dewine] that he [and his time] is done, yet?"

Painfully, I am not sure I disagree with that rhetorical question.

Local Blog May Have A Point About Delaware County GOP

I tend to go off the handle on issues and people sometimes but the local blog, Delaware County Political Reporter is just pissed. Pissed at County Recorder Andy Brenner personally it would seem. (S)he has made some possibly valid points in the past regarding the style of the Brenners but this latest post shows an anger and frustration that we have not seen yet:

The joke around town has always been how the Republican Party is so internally vicious that they eat their young. It had to be that way to support the characters that the DCRP installed in office in Delaware County. Now we see the ultimate in political fratricide, DCRP-style. Delaware County Recorder Andrew Oran Brenner wants to be something else. Sort of like a pre-op transgender surgery candidate having an attitude that although I might know what God made, I really want to be something else; a boy – or a girl, whatever the case may be.

Although this person obviously has a personal hatred of Andy Brenner, the larger issue of the musical chair style of office holding in this county is spot on.


My issue with the Delaware County Republican Party (DCRP) is that there sure are not a lot of actually elected officials in elected offices. I am pretty tired of voting for candidates only to have them turn around and run for a higher office, sometimes before they are even sworn in to the office they were elected to. It is hack, it is shallow and it assumes tghat it is ok to treat Delaware County voters like crap.

I will say that in that spirit, I will agree with DCPR’s frustration. The Delaware County Republican Party should stop taking this Red County for granted and only support people who will actually serve the post they run for (at least will plan on serving a few weeks of it for Christ’s sake). That is not asking too much, is it?

Deep Thoughts and Shallow Views #1: The Political Arena and High School Cast of Characters

I was not a particularly popular person in high school. That’s not to say that I was ‘unpopular’ or on the lower end of the social spectrum. I seemed to fit that nice place between popular and harassed. Sure, people knew me in school. I was involved in music, theater, and had many friends. I was even known to have a few buddies who played Varsity sports. But, in the end, I was able to see high school and its different personalities from a relatively neutral position in that hierarchy - and I enjoyed that view.


It strikes me that there is little difference between the personalities of those in high school and the political arena. I do not mean the policies, politics, and beliefs, but the personalities themselves. Take, for example, Mitt Romney. He seemed like that rich kid who, on paper, could be an arrogant jerk, but never was. He had the nicest car, the nicest clothes and he never had to have a summer job. He might be that rich kid you knew who volunteered a lot but volunteered teaching kids how to fence or play some hoity-toity sport… But in the end, he still volunteered and was pretty cool to everyone.

On the other hand let’s look at someone like Rahm Emanuel.


Emanuel reminds me of that sadistic bastard we all knew in high school. Maybe he played on one of the teams, and although he hung out with the popular kids, he was no superstar. This did not stop him from always following around the popular kids a few paces back and as they passed by the geeks, he was the one who shoved them into the wall. Cackling out loud about it, you might hear him saying to one of the popular kids, “Did you see that? Did you see what I just did to that loser? Yeah, that was cool. Hey guys, did you hear me? Yeah... cool”

Emanuel was that kid that the popular kids had to do their dirty work. The saddest part is that kid never realizes that the only reason he gets to go to the parties, the only reason he has any worth to the popular kids, is because he is the one who is doing their bidding. His is their pet pit bull but more replaceable than a dog.

Joe Biden would be that kid you knew who was nice to everyone. He did not have lot of money and worked every day after school. Eventually he would save up enough money to buy an older, possibly beat-up, car, but that was o.k. with him. No one would ever make fun of his car because, although not flashy, it was well taken care of. Also, everyone knew he bought it with his own hard-earned money. Even though no one would admit it, especially the rich kids, everyone admired his ability to earn his own way in life. His self-worth was not given to him by others.

The "Joe Biden" high school personality was one of those kids who seemed to be friends with everyone. He was always the life of the party, albeit inappropriate at times, but everyone knew it was harmless and in the end he was a pretty fun guy to be around.

One of the worst kinds of personalities in today’s politics are those who are now in some sort of office, but you know were picked on in high school…a lot. And, sadly, the reality is that their sole motivation to run for office is not about service or even pure power. It is motivated by that line they mumbled to themselves as the “Rahm Emanuel” type shoved them into the wall, “One day, I’ll show them. I’ll be someone and I won’t let anyone pick on me again.”

This sort of personality might be the worst. They seem to attack anyone that they perceive to stand in their way, even on their own team. The will run for any office they can, simply for acceptance. They are the ones that start rumors and act the most childish but somehow have, in fact, won an elected office or two. These types of people are not suited for office at higher levels but try anyway. Ultimately they end up diluting the pool of candidates and their scorched-earth approach only serves to hurt the party which they claim to love.


Then there are the cheerleader/prom queen types. The image-obsessed, shallow types who may or may not be intelligent - no one knows for sure. They are the embodiment of trophies and are treated with about as much dignity… but in others’ defense, these types of people do not ask for much respect,they see it as the price they have to pay for admission into the cool-kids club.

Understand that all of the previously listed personalities can really apply to men or women, but the cheerleaders/prom queen-monsters tend to be the wives of politicians. They are the ones who smile to the point of permanence whether they are thanking a donor, cursing someone else’s spouse, or mocking another’s’ child. They are the ones who only value is the person they married and their sadness and deep-seeded anger that rages inside comes from the fact that they know this and yet act as if it is not true. In a sense, they live a lie.

The cheerleader/prom queen types could perhaps be someone independently successful themselves but, instead, have decided to play the role of accessory to their spouse’s political career – kind of like a fancy necklace does on an Oscar night outfit. They wear their spouse’s position on their sleeve and even think they are the politician themselves. The exceptions to these types would be folks like Dr. Jill Biden, Former Senator Elizabeth Dole, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Mrs. Cindy McCain and, of course, First Lady Michelle Obama. No one can argue that these women need anyone’s coat tails to ride in order to be successful.

I am sure there are so many others we could think of but, in the end, the reality is that the world of politics is not much better than the cafeteria of an average high school during lunch.

Take some time and think about those personalities you knew in school and see if you can’t see some of them in members of Congress, or in state or local government. It is a fun game to be sure… That is unless you were that bully, spoiled snob, geek shoved into the wall or even worse, the shallow cheerleader/prom queen. In that case, never mind.

Deep Thoughts and Shallow Views is a (mostly) weekly satirical column about politics, current events, sports or pop culture.

Mocking the Teleprompter? Wow, edgy criticism of the Messiah Obama by the MSM

Of course those like NBC think they are edgy, even provocative by daring to mock the Messiah Obama, but the sad truth is, people were talking about Obama’s crutch, aka the teleprompter, during the campaign. No one in the brothel MSM dared say anything bad about it then.

But whatever, at least they are now, right? They are no longer in lust with him, right? BWAHAHAHAHA

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

At Least He Is Not as Obsessed With Twilight as he is with Obama

When I saw this video, I actually said out loud, “Wow, could he put it farther down his throat?”

And yes, I meant it like that.

PM Brown obviously shares in the American Media obsession with the Messiah Obama like a tween and the Twilight series. Maybe PM Brown has other things on his mind... Plus we assume he is a Harry Potter kind of guy anyway.

Is Andy Brenner Registered with Ohio to run for whatever office he is running for this week??

Delaware County Recorder and now self-declared candidate for Ohio’s 2nd House District Andy Brenner has been asking for donations for his campaign. Originally, Brenner for Ohio was for his run for State Senate. Once he learned that Representative Kris Jordon was running, he decided to change his mind and run for the House.

From a campaign email sent June 5, 2009
Over the last few months, I have been sharing with you my interest in becoming a member of the legislature. Our current State Representative in the 2nd House District, Kris Jordan, is expected to run for another office in the 2010 elections (the 19th district State Senate), leaving his House seat vacant. I have represented Delaware County since I was elected as Recorder in 2004 and want to continue to do so as your next State Representative from 2nd District! I would appreciate your financial support for my campaign.

The problem is, if you call the Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner’s office, there is no record of Andrew Brenner, Andy Brenner or Brenner for Ohio as a registered Candidate’s committee for any campaign. Try it yourself. Call (614)-466-2655 (hit ## to get past the menu) and ask them.

Now I could be wrong, I am no expert, but if you are declaring publicly that you are running for a State seat (even if it changes, it seems, weekly), and are collecting money, and supposedly paying for this campaign with campaign funds raised, shouldn’t the campaign or at least Mr. Brenner be registered with the State of Ohio as a candidate? Aren’t there campaign finance laws about this? Tell me where I am wrong?

PS More free advice: Your emails should say "PAID FOR" by someone. That pesky law and all.

UPDATE: We are not the only ones who noticed that Mr. Brenner is declaring and fundraising without filing with Ohio. The Delaware Gazette has as well.

Also, I wonder how Mr. Jordon feels about Mr. Brenner's eager ambitions forcing him to declare his run for Senate. Looks like Brenner is pushing Kris Jordon around and calling the shots on Jordon’s announcement as well.

The good news is, it is not like there are other Brenners who prematurely announce candidacies for attention, right?

We get it guys... you want to be elected to... well anything.

A great Video About the Next Ohio Gubernatorial Race

Thanks to Third Base Politics for producing this (Check these guys out. Their blog rocks)

Two Different Presidents, Two Different Meetings

Marines are an amazing bunch. They can be the most disciplined unit of people on the planet and they can be the most outwardly passionate group of people. It all depends on how they are instructed to be. Some presidents visit troops to boost their morale, while others visit, well everyone, to boost their own ego. You be the judge.

Highlights from John Kasich's Announcement for Governor

In case you missed it, here it is.

A small note about the speech: John Kasich had no teleprompter, nor a written speech. He had a few pieces of paper with some hand-written bullet points. This man speaks from his heart.