Security Cameras in Bexley (Originally broadcast September 17, 2009).

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Does Bexley need more video cameras as a deterrent to petty property theft?

In a recent broadcast interview with Bexley police chief Larry Rinehart, Bexley Public Radio senior correspondent John Matuszak asked about property theft in Bexley. The chief reported that during calendar year 2008, there were more than six hundred property thefts in Bexley. In the Monday morning Dispatch newspaper, the chief is quoted as describing Bexley as "a city in peril" because of this property crime.

A two hundred dollar bicycle stolen from a Bexley garage isn't a peril for the city but the editorial collective understands the chief's point.

Six hundred thefts, mostly petty thefts, is a large number for sure but not significantly different from the property crime frequencies in Dublin, Gahanna, Upper Arlington, Westerville and Worthington.

For sure, the dollar value of stolen Bexley property is greater than these other suburbs because, well, it's a matter of quality and taste.

Sperling’s Best Places publishes crime rates in American cities on a scale of one (low) to ten. Dublin, Gahanna, Upper Arlington, Westerville and Worthington are rated at eight and Bexley alone is rated at nine. Still all of these communities including Bexley are in the same fourth statistical quartile.

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If the average theft involves stolen property valued at $500, there is an economic impact of $300,000 each year on Bexley residents. If the average is $2,000, then the impact is $1.2 million. If damage to door frames and windows averages $1,100, there is an additional $660,000 in economic loss to residents in the community.

Those dollar amounts help to set a range for how much money might be spent prudently to respond to the problem of property theft.

Equipment needs might be eighteen network digital recorders (at $900 each), one thousand infra-red digital night video cameras ($700 each), connecting cables for each camera and installation ($350 each) for a total of $1,066,800. Operations, staffing and repairs will add another $180,000 each year. AEP, Verizon and AT&T will want some compensation when the best camera location is on a utility pole.

Bexley police chief Larry Rinehart is promoting the formation of neighborhood block-watch teams in response to the number of property crimes suffered by Bexley residents.

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The Bexley Public Radio editorial collective wonders whether neighborhood block-watch volunteers can be assisted by video cameras.

Currently, video cameras are used in some Bexley retail stores, banks and residences. Should video cameras be installed in all commercial locations in Bexley? Should video cameras be required at all residences?

Should the city install cameras in all of the alleys and along all of the streets?

How should installation be prioritized? Does the Bexley police department analyze property theft by location? Does the police department know which neighborhoods have the highest frequency of property theft? Should frequency of theft be used to prioritize installation?

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Does the police department know how many businesses and residences use video cameras? Does the police department have a map of Bexley that shows what views are currently recorded. Banks, CVS and carry-out convenience sores obviously use video cameras currently.

Should Bexley adopt saturation coverage by digital video cameras as part of its response to unacceptable levels of property theft?

Do Bexley residents really want video cameras recording vehicular and pedestrian movement in the neighborhoods? What happens to privacy in our neighborhoods? Is this too much a Big Brother proposal?

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Who should own the cameras, computers and discs recording digital data? Should the city own them?. Should the property insurers that carry the property risks in Bexley own the equipment? Should a Bexley property owner cooperative be formed to own the equipment? Should ownership be on a block by block basis?

Installing video cameras everywhere in Bexley sounds like a good stimulus public infra-structure program.

Listener thoughts are welcome. Email to wcrxlp@yahoo.com.

Contribute to Bexley Public Radio now!!!

This WCRX-LP editorial collective comment was first published February 15, 2009.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Camera #6
Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation or WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Editorial collective.

John Matuszak, senior correspondent Bexley Public Radio says "farewell" to Bexley.

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This is a difficult goodbye to write. It ends 14 years of reporting on Bexley and the eastside communities through print and radio, 14 years of friendships and memorable moments with countless numbers of people.

I came to Columbus from Athens, Ohio, to work for Associated Press, and after that nine-month assignment ended, I was hired as the managing editor and eastside editor for the Columbus Messenger. Because of the reputation of the schools, the attractive location, the library, the Drexel, Capital University, Johnson's ice cream, and everything else Bexley has to offer, my wife and I decided to buy a house and raise our daughter here.

At the paper I immediately started meeting the remarkable people who call this area home. One of my first encounters was with David Bott, a local musician who regaled me with the tale of the vacation he and his wife, Cathy, had taken to California. Through a friend, they romped, unescorted, through a Hollywood backlot and were hired as extras for "Mr. Wrong," a movie starring Ellen D.G.neres. It mad a great feature story (although on the front page I mistakenly placed a photo of the Botts dressed as Mexican bandits next to a story about renovations to the Whitehall jail).

Later, on a trip to New Orleans, the Botts drove through the tiny burg of Bexley, Miss., the only town in the U.S. to share a name with the suburb. Our paper ended up bringing the unofficial mayor of Bexley, Miss., Carolyn Nicholson, to meet the official Mayor David Madison during the Fourth of July festivities. She even rode in the parade and won a trophy.

This is to give you an idea of how much fun this job has been, meeting the artists, activists, elected officials, educators and others who contribute to their communities and the world. There have been so many of those "Wow, I get paid for doing this" moments, from meeting Ralph Charles, at 99 the world's oldest licensed pilot (two months before David Letterman interviewed him, to riding in a 1927 biplane with Amelia Earhart's cousin.

I was able to sound off in columns as "The Gas Man's Son," sometimes indulging my alleged sense of humor.

I got to know author and Bexley native Bob Greene, his talented sister and mother, D.G. Fulford and Phyllis Greene. There were my friends at the JCC and Gallery Players, Cassandra Tellier at Capital's Schumacher Gallery, the people at the Far East Pride Center - the list is endless.

Of course there were the "I get paid for doing this?" times during long meetings as part of the Blue Butt Brigade. But it has always been a privilege to bring the news to residents.

After my stint with the Messenger ended, I can't express enough gratitude to Kurt Weiland for allowing me to continue to report and stay in touch through Bexley Public Radio, to write for the blog and to indulge my latent interest in broadcasting. I think Bexley Public Radio is a tremendous asset and it will only get better and continue to grow - with community support.

I will be writing and editing for the Herald-Palladium in St. Joseph, Mich.. It is a vibrant community and popular summer lakeside resort in the southwest corner of the state, 90 miles from Chicago and 30 miles from South Bend, Ind. You may see occasional dispatches from me on the cultural scene.

There is a young man in the H-P newsroom who worked for the Dispatch a few years ago. He fondly recalls attending screenings at the Drexel, lamenting that St. Joseph doesn't have an art cinema.

I am looking forward to my move, but I am reminded even there that Bexley truly is a special place to live. It needs all of you to keep it special.

John Matuszak

Bexley Public Radio senior correspondent John Matuszak accepts job with Michigan's Herald-Palladium.

Bexley Public Radio senior correspondent John Matuszak has accepted a reporting and editorial job with a Michigan community newspaper. The newspaper is the Herald-Palladium and it reports news for St. Joseph, Michigan.

The city of St. Joseph is a summer lakeside resort in the southwest corner of the state, 90 miles from Chicago and 30 miles from South Bend, Ind.

Bexley Public Radio has requested John to send us dispatches on sailing regattas and other festivals in the St. Joseph area.

John has a fifteen year career reporting on Bexley and Eastside Columbus suburbs. His knowledge of Bexley's civic history gave value to his readers. John's insatiable interest in culture can be seen in any catalogue of his stories but his especial reporting interest was in the written word.

During the span of his career reporting about Bexley, John developed friendships with the writers who call Bexley their home. Some of John's literary friends grew up in Bexley; others have made Bexley their new home. If they were writers, John would find them and write about them.

John's work with Bexley Public Radio followed the same subjects as his written reports: culture and civic affairs. Every Wednesday, together with his long-time reporting colleague Dianne Garrett, John hosted Bexley Public Radio's "Eastside News Round-up." John regularly covered Bexley city hall and city council. Cultural events at Eastside venues were also part of his regular beat. John's trademark black round frame eyeglasses were familiar in city hall and local art galleries.

John found some delight in his Wednesday reporting on city hall events a day before his print competitors whose deadlines were Thursday. John reported the news on air a full twenty-four hours before his print competitors.

The value of having a career journalist at Bexley Public Radio included John's depth of community knowledge brought to each reporting task.



Bexley Public Radio senior correspondent John Matuszak interviews interim Bexley library director Sue Studebaker.


In the week prior to last November election, John produced a special five-day program broadcast from the Bexley Public Library. The library had a proposal for an increased property tax and John wanted to demonstrate the importance of the library to the local community. John and Dianne Garrett hosted the five-day long broadcast from the library's browsing room. Some guests were interviewed, others read favorite poems and passages from books. Authors, students, local faculty and teachers were guests and performers.

The levy passed with a seventy-four percent favorable vote. Local pols say that this is the highest favorable vote for a money issue in the Ohio's history. John, with his usual irony, said he is happy to take credit for the successful vote.

Bexley Public Radio congratulates John on his new undertaking and we wish him well.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2010. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2010. All rights reserved. WCRX-LP editorial collective.

Schumacher Gallery at Capital University

Capital University's Schumacher Gallery will exhibit selected items from its ethnic collection, featuring objects from African and Oceanic cultures, now through Feb. 6 on the fourth floor of the Blackmore Library.

A reception will be held Jan. 22 from 5-7 p.m. as part of Bexley's Art Walk, which highlights Art Access, Bryan Roberts and Hammond-Harkins galleries, as well.

Many of the pieces on display at the Schumacher were recently acquired and haven't been displayed.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2010. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2010. All rights reserved. John Matuszak. Photo is copyright 2010. All rights reserved. John Matuszak.

"Residents target porn shop, proposed gun store" writes Bexley Public Radio senior correspondent John Matuszak.

Area residents are angry about the opening of a Lion's Den adult book and video store on Alum Creek Drive, and the large sign erected off of I-70. The building in the background is slated to become a shooting range and gun store, another development that has residents fired up.

A plan for a gun shop and shooting range on Alum Creek Drive has area residents questioning the wisdom of adding firearms to an already high-crime neighborhood.

An adult book and video store next door isn't getting great reviews, either.

On the firing line

Bexley resident Larry Gunsorek, president of Anchor Government Properties, wants to put the gun shop and shooting range in the former Sun TV building at 1030 Alum Creek Drive in Columbus, near Livingston Avenue. Most recently, the site housed offices for the state parole agency.

The proposal for the firing range was approved in November by the Columbus Board of Zoning Adjustment, with a thumbs-up from the Livingston Avenue Area Commission.

That decision is being appealed by the Columbus Compact Corporation, a development arm of the city, on the grounds that the business could contribute to a rise in gun violence. The appeal hearing will be held Jan. 26 at 6 p.m. at 757 Carolyn Ave.

The site already is zoned for retail sales, so no approval was needed to open a gun shop in the building.

During testimony before the BZA, zoning officer David Reiss explained that, when it comes to retail stores, the law makes no distinction between selling guns and toothpaste.

Anchor Properties spokesman Todd Dillon told the BZA that the shooting range would require background checks and memberships for entrance, and such businesses are highly regulated. The retail outlet would offer security systems and uniforms, as well as guns, he said.

Brian Boatright, with the Livingston Avenue Area Commission, said his organization was convinced that the firing range would be safe and that they welcomed a large retail business, as opposed to a vacant building.

Jonathan Beard, director of the Columbus Compact, is not swayed by the promises of safety and security at the site.

"Despite any efforts of the gun store operator, guns from this store will be on the streets in short order, and will be used in violent crimes," Beard warned in a letter to Mayor Michael Coleman. "Gun stores are routinely subject to theft, burglarly, unlawful sales, and straw purchasers that, for drugs or money, deliver guns to criminals."

The Columbus Compact has also filed a lawsuit with the Franklin County Common Pleas Court claiming there was inadequate notice and opportunity for public input before the Livingston Avenue Area Commission and Board of Zoning Adjustments made their decisions, and that the BZA did not consider all of the facts.

Beard said several neighborhood groups under the umbrella of the area commission oppose the gun range decision. The Columbus Urban League and the NAACP have also voiced objections.

The Rev. Bob Ward, a Bexley resident and pastor of Free English Lutheran Church on the Near East Side, is among those against opening a gun shop in the neighborhood.

In a letter rallying opposition, Ward recalled an incident from last summer that illustrated to him that there are already too many guns on the street.

He was helping to mow vacant lots with a group of young volunteers when a gun battle broke out among men hanging around the corner. Ward grabbed the kids and ducked for cover, but the kids weren't afraid.

"This happens every day. We don't pay any attention to it," they told him.

Ward cites a study done at Ohio State University that shows a 25 percent increase in gun violence around urban gun stores. Nationwide, one-third of guns used in crimes can be traced back to a sale from a licensed firearms dealer within a three-year period, he added.

During the BZA hearing, retired Columbus poice officer Roger Runion suggested that about 90 percent of those using the firing range would be cops or firefighters, adding to the safety of the neighborhood.

Bruce Black, president of the Berwick Civic Association, said the people he has spoken with are split about 50/50 on the issue.

Some opponents are questioning the integrity of the applicant.

Gunsorek, who could not be reached for comment, pleaded guilty in November to hiring undocumented workers to do construction and renovations at several of his company's properties, according to a Columbus Dispatch report from Nov. 8. He could be sentenced to five years in prison and receive a fine of $250,000, the article said. One of his companies is accused of underpaying the workers.

Ward is mounting a letter-writing campaign to get the zoning decision on the gun range overturned. Mayor Coleman has asked his development director to look into the issue.

"I share the concerns of those residents who oppose the firearms facility and the new adult bookstore and their effect on the character of their neighborhood," the mayor wrote to Development Director Boyce Safford III, calling them "a community setback."

Roaring mad

The Lion's Den store and its large signs are raising a few eyebrows, as well.

Having a large sign advertising a porn shop at their freeway exit doesn't create the best atmosphere for Bexley, Capital University and east Columbus neighborhoods, Bexley Mayor John Brennan said.

Brennan called it "a slap in the face" that could hamper Bexley's efforts to redevelop its side of Livingston Avenue.

Brennan had his development director, Bruce Langner, contact Mayor Coleman's assistant, and Langner also is looking into sign regulations and Ohio Department of Transportation rules to see if the advertising can be reduced in size.

Berwick resident Gretchen Garner has been doing her homework, too.

"It's the corner store for sex offenders," Garner said of the shop at 1150 Alum Creek Drive.

In fact, there are 47 registered sex offenders living within a mile of the business, she learned.

And she pointed out that there is another porn shop less than half a mile away from the Lion's Den.

But at least it doesn't have large billboards beckoning customers speeding by on the interstates.

The city's graphics commission gave its approval for the 60-foot signs at the I-70 and I-270 exits in August. The applicant was listed as the All-Star Sign Company.

Zoning officer David Reiss explained to Garner that the commission makes its decisions based on the structure of the sign, not its content.

The initial application was for 75-foot illuminated signs, Garner said, but a compromise was reached to OK the 60-foot structures that were put in place.

Garner thinks that is still much too large. "Thirty-five feet would have been adequate."

Garner is continuing to work with the zoning department and neighborhood organizations to get the size of the signs reduced.

Many of her neighbors are upset about it, as well, but Garner is the one who has jumped into the fight."I feel like Erin Brokovich."

Guns and porn aren't what the eastside needs, she believes.

Larry Rubin, who has a $24 million investment in the Bexley Gateway project less than a mile from the area, wasn't happy to learn about his new neighbors to the south.

"It's not making it any easier" to revitalize the neighborhoods to have these types of businesses nearby, Rubin said. He also faulted the lack of communication between Columbus and the residents who are affected by these decisions.

Mayor Brennan said he would not be happy to see the gun shop open on Alum Creek Drive, pointing out that recently two young men were shot to death right across the street. But he didn't think Bexley could influence decisions made in Columbus.

"It isn't a great location, but our hands are tied," Brennan said.


Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2010. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2010. All rights reserved. John Matuszak. Photos are copyright 2010. All rights reserved. John Matuszak.

Bexley police station an arresting improvement by John Matuszak for Bexley Public Radio

When Robert Holdren joined the Bexley Police Department 13 years ago, he was told there would be a new station within two years.

It took a little bit longer than that, but on Dec. 31 Holdren and the other officers walked into a brand new, fully operational facility on the city's north side.

Bexley's new $7.5 million police station on the city's north side became operational Dec. 31. The project, which replaced a much smaller, 55-year-old building on Main Street, came in on time and under budget. Photo by John Matuszak.

Holdren reported that, on taking possession of the 19,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art station, morale immediately shot up for the 28 members of the force. They had been accustomed to a work site about one-third of that size, built more than 50 years ago as a fire station.

Gone are the cramped spaces and leaky ceilings of the Main Street station. But the improvements are about more than comfort and convenience for Bexley's cops. The $7.5 million project was designed to enhance law enforcement capabilities and bolster the safety of residents.

The differences are obvious as soon as you walk into the roomy lobby. A safety room to the left provides an escape for crime victims who are being pursued. The walls of the lobby are bullet-proof, as evidenced by the marks left by a carpenter who broke his bit trying to drill into them.

An array of new communications technology flashes on the other side of the dispatcher's window. The screens give officers a 360-degree view of the station grounds, and improved contact with the cruisers out on the street. There is even a screen that tracks weather conditions. Most of these advances were difficult or impossible to install at the old station.

The station's communications center has been upgraded, and will no longer double as the roll call room, eliminating crowding and distractions. Photo by John Matuszak.


And the communications room will no longer double as the roll call room, which created distractions for officers and dispatchers. Many rooms in the old station had served multiple purposes, often at the same time. One of the major improvements will be spaces dedicated to specific functions, from roll call to training to interviewing crime victims and suspects.

The prisoner holding area now has three cells. The old station had one that was usable. The new facility also has a secure cruiser bay to bring in prisoners, eliminating the need to walk them from the outside. Security for the police property room has also been improved.

Officers now have a weight room and spacious locker rooms with showers. More than an amenity, the equipment will help officers pass the physical fitness tests held twice a year. The showers will allow those working up a sweat, or those who run into dirty conditions on the job, to clean up at the station instead of at home, getting them back on the street quicker.

The firing range provides enhanced training for officers, and it doesn't leak when it rains.

The firing range takes up most of the third floor. Equipment at the old range frequently broke down, and puddles formed when it rained. The new range allows officers to practice under day or night conditions and from multiple angles, more closely mirroring actual situations they might encounter.

Sergeant Robert Martin, a veteran of more than 30 years' service, was one of the skeptics who thought "I'll believe it when I see it" after witnessing innumerable delays in getting the project off the ground.

Now that he sees it, he's very pleased, although he'll only get to enjoy it for about a year before retiring. But he did acknowledge that the station will provide a big advantage in recruiting new officers to replace those who will be leaving in the near future.

A ribbon-cutting and dedication is being planned for the spring.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2010. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2010. All rights reserved. John Matuszak. Photos are copyright 2010. All rights reserved. John Matuszak.

Peter Halliday is Wednesday guest on Bexley Public Radio.

Peter Halliday, co-chairman of the steering committee for the newly formed Bexley Community Foundation, will be a guest on Eastside News Round-Up Wednesday, Dec. 23, at 11 a.m.

Mr. Halliday, a Bexley resident, will talk about the goals for the organization that will raise funds and recruit volunteers for projects that will benefit the community.

He is the founder of the Bexley Heritage Fund and has been a leading advocate for the restoration of Jeffrey Mansion through community donations used in conjunction with city resources.

Listeners interested in more details can find material on the Bexley municipal website at www.bexley.org. Follow leads to "Bexley Community Foundation."

To provide your thoughts and comments on the proposed community foundation, take the formal survey go to : http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=tjTdfsZfpfWE8wIk2jDozg_3d_3d. If this web address doesn't work, the survey is also on the website at www.bexley.org.

Bexley water, sewer & trash bills going up. John Matuszak reports for Bexley Public Radio

Bexley residents will see higher charges for water, sewer and trash collection services come Jan. 1, following votes by city council at its Dec. 15 meeting.

The 8.5 percent increase for water and the 6 percent hike in sewer rates are in response to increases from Columbus, which provides these services to Bexley, Service Director Bill Harvey explained.

Council voted 5-1 to pass along the increases to residents, with Mark Masser absent and Matt Lampke voting no.

Lampke explained that he is not sure that the sewer rate to be charged is enough to make sure the city's aging lines are being replaced at an adequate pace, and he would like to see more long-range planning on these kinds of issues.

Harvey responded that, if council did not pass the ordinance, he would not be able to charge the higher rate, leaving the city in a hole financially.

The Columbus increase is less than what it has been the last several years. Much of the need for rate hikes has come in response to EPA mandates for better treatment of sewage being released into waterways.

The jump in the cost for trash, recycling and yard waste collection resulted from the new, $1 million contract with Rumpke.

Residents age 59 and under will see quarterly bills increase to $73.50, from $60.50. This will put their annual trash bill at $294.

For the first time, residents age 60 to 65 will be eligible for the $18 annual discount offered by Rumpke. Their annual bill will be $246, an increase of $4.

Those 65 and over can receive the Rumpke discount along with the city discount of $50. Their annual bills will go from $$161 to $198.

Seniors do not automatically receive the rate reduction, but must inform the city of their eligibilty.

During the deliberations on the trash rates over the last several weeks, older residents pointed out that they are often on fixed incomes and the cost increase would create an added financial burden. They also noted that seniors usually generate less refuse than a family.

Harvey explained that resients 59 and under are paying more to provide the seniors with a lower rate.The charges to residents have to generate $1.1 million to cover the contract and additional costs.

There will be further adjustments to the rates the next two years, Harvey said, with younger residents probably charged a little less and seniors charged more to equalize the rates.

Rates could also fluctuate due to Rumpke's fuel adjustment surcharge and increases in tipping fees charged by the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO).

BEXLEY CELEBRATIONS AND CITY BUDGET

Council did some last-minute tinkering with its own budget for 2010 before approving the $9.9 million general fund spending plan. A late addition included $5,000 for the Bexley Celebrations Association, which puts on the Fourth of July festivities, Easter egg hunt, Harvest Festival and holiday tree lighting.

BCA President Anne Lewis came to council last week asking for the donation, the first time the organization has requested funding from the city. They are also seeking support from Capital University and other sources.

The city expects to spend $1.7 million more than it takes in for the year.

The 2009 budget was bailed out by estate tax collections of $4.2 million, well over the $1 million estimated.

In addition to the general fund spending, the city plans to spend $5.2 million for capital projects that include street and water and sewer line repairs, and equipment and vehicle replacements.

Harvey told council that $3 million of that figure will allow the city to borrow money to accellerate its street repairs. The money has to be in the budget for the service director to hire contractors.

To get the best price, now is the time to get bids, Harvey said. With all of the federal stimulus moey available, companies are expected to be busy and costs will only rise later in the year, he added.

The boiler at city hall needs to be replaced and wiring for the emergency generator needs to be repaired, Harvey said.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation or WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. John Matuszak.

Bexley city council meeting: solar panels generate heated debate; police open house set. John Matuszak reports for Bexley Public Radio.

A company wants to put solar panels on the carport of the new Bexley police station, but one of the key planners for the station wants to make sure the city doesn't get burned.

At the Dec. 8 city council meeting, David Cohen, with Dovetail Solar & Wind, and landscape architect Mark Scheiber offered the presentation on behalf of Solar Vision, the company that wants to install the panels to generate electricity for the station.

Cohen explained that the company recently obtained grants to allow it to take on projects in Bexley and Athens, Ohio. The Bexley project would entail installing 540 panels on four carports, with Solar Vision paying for the $935,000 construction and ongoing maintenance of the panels and other equipment.

Under the agreement, Bexley would pay Solar Vision for the electricity generated by the panels. Cohen estimated that the panels would generate betwen 15 and 20 percent of the electricity used by the station, and that this would translate into a savings of $2,267 in energy costs in the first year of the contract and $75,000 over 20 years.

Bexley would have an option to buy the equipment down the road, Cohen said.

Councilman Jeff McClelland asked what would happen if better technology became available five or 10 years down the road.

Cohen said big leaps in solar technology are not anticipated.

Lee Nathans, chairman of the Bexley Police Citizens Advisory Committee and for 10 years a leading advocate and planner for the station set to open this month, took exception to Solar Vision's sunny predictions.

He pointed out that many hours went into planning the design of the station, and the city hired the best environmental engineer in the state to make sure Bexley had a "green" building that was LEED (Leader in Energy and Environmental Design) certified. He is concerned that adding the panels at this late date could jeopardize that certification.

The city's architects considered and rejected adding solar panels because they did not believe they would generate enough power to the building, Nathans added.

He called for an independent analysis of all of Solar Vision's estimates for costs, engineering and energy savings, at the expense of the company.

The new police station replaces a structure built during Harry Truman's presidency, Nathans added. In response to Solar Vision's presentation, Nathans repeated the motto of Truman's home state, Missouri: "Show me."

The next step, according to council President Matt Lampke, will be to have City Attorney Lou Chodosh review the contract submitted by Solar Vision. Before council considers the project, the plans will have to be reviewed by the planning commission, board of zoning appeals and the tree commission, he noted.

The city is planning an open house for the new station at 559 North Cassingham Road for Dec. 19 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The station is not expected to be operational until Dec. 31, after which it will be restricted to those with police business.

A ribbon cutting and dedication will be held in the spring.

The new building triples the space available at the current station, built in 1950 as a fire station.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation or WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. John Matuszak.

Janis Ian, songwriter and performer, interview Wednesday December 9, 2009 on Bexley Public Radio.

Singer-songwriter Janis Ian, composer and performer of landmark hits "Society's Child" and "At Seventeen," along with a critically acclaimed body of work stretching over 40 years, will talk with John Matuszak and Dianne Garrett about her life and career Wednesday, Dec. 9 at 11 a.m. Ian has concerts scheduled in Elyria Dec. 10 and Kent Dec. 11. Information about tickets is available at www.janisian.com.

Ian first came to prominence as a teenager with the release of "Society's Child" in 1967. The song about an interracial relationship drew praise from such luminaries as Leonard Bernstein, and protests and even death threats for its controversial subject. Ian's songwriting skills continued to grow with such songs as "Jesse," covered by Roberta Flack, and reached full flower in 1975 with the best-selling and Grammy-winning album "Between the Lines," that included "At Seventeen," a timeless song about surviving teen angst and exclusion.

Despite numerous personal and professional setbacks over the next decade, Ian re-emerged to retake her place as a highly respected artist who continues to record and tour.

WCRX-LP Editorial Collective.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation or WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. John Matuszak.

"Did the Beatles lead a Russian revolution, as documentary claims" by John Matuszak.

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What really toppled the Berlin Wall and the Soviet Union?

The massive arms build-up?

Anti-communist propaganda?

Ronald Reagan's hair?

According to "How the Beatles Rocked the Kremlin," a documentary by Leslie Woodhead, all you need is love to tear down an Iron Curtain.





Leslie Woodhead.

But events after the fall suggest that if you really want a revolution, you might need more than Paul McCartney playing in Red Square to make it happen.

The documentary recently aired on PBS to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, and it makes an intriguing argument about the power of music at a pivotal point in history.

The British documentarian first filmed the Beatles when they were four unknowns playing in the Cavern in Liverpool in 1962. A short time later Beatlemania was circling the globe.

Back in the U.S.S.R., where Western music and culture were strictly prohibited, the Beatles invasion managed to break through and ultimately undermine the repressive regime, interviewees avow.

Forty years after Woodhead first heard the Beatles, he traveled to Russia and other former Soviet satellites, where he heard fantastic stories about the young people who had defied authorities to listen to the Beatles.

"We listened to the music and it saved us," comments Kolya Vasin, considered the biggest Beatles fan in Russia. "We stopped being Soviet slaves. That's what they were afraid of."






Kolya Vasin.


For 40 years Vasin has built his John Lennon Temple of Love, and organizes annual concerts to celebrate the birthdays of all four Beatles. When he first heard the music at 18, "my soul flew to the light," the bearded and bright-eyed Vasin says. "I fell in love with the Beatles. They became my friends, my spiritual brothers. It was the salvation of my soul."

Artemy Troitsky, a Russian rock music commentator, believes that the Beatles had more of an effect on the collapse of the Soviet Union that the tens of millions of dollars spent by the West.

When Vasin and others first discovered the Beatles, it was illegal to possess their records. Airport security guards searched travelers for contraband recordings. Gangs of vigilantes roamed the streets and attacked kids with long, Beatles-style hair, forceably shaving their heads.

Young people were expected to follow the "strict and puritanical" youth culture that celebrated communist values, described by Troitsky as "square, uncool, unsexy."

But broadcasts of rock and roll from Radio Luxembourg seeped into the Soviet Union. Kids would tape record the music and then transfer the recordings onto discarded X-Ray film, using streetcorner recording booths. The flexible records were hidden in coat sleeves and sold on the street for three rubles.

"They could listen to the Beatles on Uncle Sergei's ribs," the filmmaker says.

The music opened up a new world to an entire generation. Nikolai Poturaev was inspired to study the English language and literature after hearing the Beatles.

Sergei Ivanov, who went on to become Russia's deputy prime minister under Vladimir Putin, admits that the Beatles helped him to learn English.

Troitsky observes that the Beatles music arrived in the Soviet Union at the right time to have a maximum impact. In the early '60s, "it was cool to be a Soviet," with such heroes as cosmonaut Yuri Gargarin and charismatic leader Nikita Kruschev on the scene.

By 1964, Kruschev had been ousted and replaced by "much more boring guys" who allowed Soviet culture to stagnate.

In came the Beatles to electrify the nation's young people. Officials did what they could to counter this RPM revolution. A 1966 propaganda film claimed that the Beatles once performed in swim trunks with toilet seats around their necks, and that fans were overcome with psychosis.

But this couldn't stem the tide.

"The Iron Curtain after the Beatles was like a fence with holes," Vasin says. "We breathed through those holes."

The urge to emulate the Beatles was so strong that Yury Pelyushonok made his own guitar out of his grandmother's table and a stolen pay phone receiver for the amplifier pickup.

Liliana Pelyushonok recalls her son's obsession with the Fab Four: "They were gods to him."

Soviet officials finally gave in and started manufacturing guitars and bootleg Beatles records.

Andrei McCarovich and his band, Time Machine, became the Soviet Union's first rock stars in the '70s by imitating the Beatles. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, they were given the privilege of recording in the Abbey Road studios.

By the early '80s, "millions of young people had defected in their hearts and minds," Woodhead notes. Gorbachev came to power as the country's first "rock and roll president" with a more open attitude toward the West. That openness contributed to the eventual fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the collapse of the Soviet Union two years later.

Vova Katzman, who opened a re-creation of the Cavern Club tavern in Kiev after the Soviet fall, says that the Beatles did more to change the society than Gorbachev. Katzman's club attracts older fans who remember the repressive days, and young people who know all the words to Beatles songs.

TV journalist Vladimir Pozner says that the Beatles conquered communism not by being political "but by being very human."

The final triumph came when Paul McCartney played in Red Square in Moscow in 2003, an event Troitsky describes as "like a huge religious ceremony."

While less draconian, there are interesting parallels to the American Establishment's reaction to rock and roll here. White parents forbid their kids to listen to what were called "race records" by black artists. The specter of integration and sexual freedom that the music threatened was as frightening to '50s suburbia as capitalism was to the communists.

But the kids listened anyway, hiding transitor radios under the sheets at night and holding dance parties in secret.

The payola scandal was more a reaction to the raucous music being played than a crusade against corruption. DJ Alan Freed, who named rock and roll, was hounded from the business. Dick Clark, just as culpable but more white bread, was spared.

Elvis's gyrations were neutered on the Ed Sullivan Show. Some believe that drafting him into the army and shaving off his locks was a way to tame this wild, young Sampson. Elvis came out of the military much more mainstream and less of a menace.

As depicted in the upcoming film \i Pirate Radio\i0 , British kids had to listen to rock music beamed from offshore stations because of a BBC ban.

Ironically, while the Beatles bug was eating into the fabric of Soviet authority, John Lennon was being hounded by the FBI as a subversive.

With the rampant commercialization of the Beatles through video games and other outlets, their message today has been blunted.

And how much of a lasting impact did the Beatles have on the Russian mentality that traded czars for commissars?

In a 2006 article for the New Statesman, Troitsky complains that "in the new Russia of sushi bars and oligarchs, the situation is more shameful and rotten" for those who speak out than it was under Brezhnev, where at least "you knew where you stood."

Most depressing for Troitsky, as journalists are murdered and other voices of dissent are silenced, "is that the so-called democracies of the west are turning a blind eye," a stance he predicts we will one day regret.

It remains to be seen whether the lessons of Lennon will trump Lenin in the East and McCartney's message will triumph over myopia and mass-consumption (which he is part of) in the West.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation or WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. John Matuszak. Photos are used by permission of Leslie Woodhead.

Vote means library will live "happily ever after" by John Matuszak

It's a story with a happy ending.

A beloved institution that has brought pleasure to generations is threatened with financial ruin, and the community rallies to make sure that it survives.

Think "It's a Wonderful Life," with maybe John Wayne and the cavalry thrown in for good measure.

Bexley came through trailing clouds of glory Nov. 3 to approve a levy for its library, which has suffered severe cuts in state funding.

The issue passed by an astounding 77 percent of the vote. I have been covering tax issues for 20 years and have never seen numbers like that for any tax levy. I would have considered 60 percent a landslide.

Way to go, Bexley. You should be very proud of yourselves.

Bexley Public Radio had the great privilege to be a part of that campaign with a week-long series of broadcasts from the library that featured the literary lights and community leaders of Bexley eloquently expressing their love for this institution.

One after another, these writers - Bob Greene, D.G. Fulford, Robert Shook, Kevin Boyle, Harvey Wasserman, Michael J. Rosen, and many others - spoke with passion about what the library means to them and the city. Greene, whose books have chronicled Bexley's past and present, said he couldn't imagine Main Street without the library, "the heart of the city."
Josh Radnor, actor and screenwriter, took the time to call in from California to say that he still stops by the library when he is in town.

The week concluded with a marvelous testimonial on the importance of literacy from children's book artists Christopher and Jeanette Canyon.

Best-selling authors, activists, capitalists, poets, storytellers, historians, librarians, students, all eagerly offered to lend their time and talents to talk about the library.

What started as a celebration of the library became a pageant of the comunity's cultural life, as representatives from the Bexley Community Book Club, the JCC Jewish Book Fair, Gallery Players theatre and other organizations chimed in.
Everyone unhestitatingly volunteered to speak on behalf of the library. I had 15 years of contacts and a list of more than 90 writers with Bexley connections to draw from. Suggestions came from everywhere for potential guests. I barely scratched the surface of this small city's brain trust. We could have done three weeks of broadcasts of people willing to extol the virtues of the Bexley Library.

I have said it before and I'll say it again, that I believe that no other community in Franklin County has the rich intellectual and artistic life to be found in Bexley - in its galleries, the Drexel art cinema house, Capital University's Conservatory of Music, the JCC.

But speaker after speaker stated that it all begins at one place - the Bexley Library.

The voters made it abundantly clear that they want to see the library survive and thrive. Many welcome additions to its offerings will be coming. The shelves that hold new acquisitions, almost empty due to budget cuts, will be full again.

While we trumpeted all that the library and the community has to offer, I think we also amplified the possibilities that Bexley Public Radio presents for community service. The parade of patrons that voiced their support over a week isn't something that could be duplicated in print. There are more causes that a broadcasting outlet dedicated to Bexley could tackle.

In the coming weeks, we will be seeking a more spacious and central location for our broadcasts. As always, the non-profit station seeks underwriting support to continue and expand upon the offerings now available at 102.1 FM.

Information is available by emailing wcrxlp@yahoo.com, or by visiting www.agentofcurrency.blogspot.com.

At WCRX "LP" stands for "Local Power," and we will continue to harness it for the good of the community.

In the meantime, see you at the Bexley Library.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation or WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. John Matuszak.

Studying history can offer cautionary tales for today by John Matuszak

I have spent most of my life studying history, enraptured by the rich narratives and fascinated by the connections of the past with the present.

But, at times, I find myself asking "Does history really matter?"

In times of crisis, does it provide a blueprint for the future or a negative that only blurs our choices and blocks our judgment?

Does history ever really repeat itself, or are we left alone without a map to guide us through a shifting mine field?

I have been posing these questions to myself as President Obama ponders the policy choices before him in Afghanistan, Pakistan and other hot spots. Hanging over him, along with the centuries of history of the unruly region, is the spectre of Viet Nam and the consequences of ill-considered action that this war demonstrated.

Are there lessons to be learned about current conflicts from our involvement in Southeast Asia? No two historical situations can be completely analogous. But are there at least broad comparisons to be drawn, or are we left to blunder blindly forward?

History, while often taught in wide brushstrokes, is lived through minute details that are are unlikely to be replicated. The columnist Gwynne Dyer noted that the course of events, like a raindrop down a window pane, does not follow a straight line but is directed by almost invisible imperfections.

So what good is studying history if every situation is unique and the landscape is always changing?

As I contemplated this question, in the midst of my reading I was hit with an observation so profound and unexpected that it made it blindingly clear to me that while history's contours might change, human nature does not, and that there are flaws in ourselves that must be heeded before we take another step into that uncharted land.

I stumbled across this bit of wisdom while reading a short biography of Ulysses S. Grant by Josiah Bunting III. The author was making a connection between the obstacles Grant faced in reconstructing the South after the Civil War and the roadblocks encountered by the architects of America's Viet Nam counterinsurgency policy. The comparison seems perfectly apt to the present crises in central Asia and the Middle East.



Bunting borrows from ancient history to shine a light on recent events.

"You have not yet begun to consider what sort of men are these Athenians whom you may have to fight," the Corinthians warned the Spartans before their ill-fated encounter with Greece.

In other words, Bunting explains, "you cannot imagine how different they are from yourselves. Things you revere, they abominate; actions you may take to demonstrate goodwill and magnanimity, they will see as demonstrations of weakness of the most abject kind."

The author finds a particular flaw in a democracy, that its citizens cannot for long support policies that "however noble their goals, do not demonstrate measurable progress."

"Moral stamina...is a perishable commodity in the American polity," Bunting observes.

Bunting offers the final word on the outcome as it occurred in the South, in Hanoi, and, one could project, as it may play out in Kabul and Baghdad: "You do not understand us; you presume to impose your will upon us, but you will fail. For there is a final consideration in the analogy: we are patient, and you are not."

So Obama is confronted with the age-old, but nearly impossible challenge of "Know thy enemy," as well as a gap in our democratic DNA that makes us demand gratification with the insistence of an ADD child.

I did not expect to find such a cogent coda on American nation-building in a biography of a 19th century general and president. Sometime it takes a lot of sifting to uncover such gems. And it seems that the ancients have much to offer when it comes to understanding the present.

In the end, I believe there are two important reasons for studying history: to understand how our place in history is unique, and also to see how the patterns of human behavior (if not their precise actions) repeat themselves.

I am currently reading "American Passage: The History of Ellis Island," by Vincent J. Cannato. This author illustrates that every alarm being raised today about the threat of Hispanic immigration has been repeated throughout American history almost verbatim with the arrival of the Irish, the Italians, the Jews and other minorities. But no one would argue today that American life hasn't been enriched by these same groups that were maligned and marginalized when they first arrived.

There are lessons to be learned by studying the past. The path of history is made by walking, not standing still, but there are road markers behind us about what to fear and what not to fear. Looking over our shoulders from time to time as we move ahead is never a bad idea.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation or WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. John Matuszak.

"Bumbling Browns have finally worn out their welcome" by John Matuszak.

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I think it's time to hang a sign outside of Cleveland Browns Stadium: Football team free to a good home. Call right away and we'll throw in a slightly used baseball team.

That's not really fair. The Cleveland Indians have produced their share of star players in the last several years. Two of them, Cliff Lee and CC Sabathia, both Cy Young award winners, played in the World Series. They just got swallowed up by the behemoths on the east coast.

The Cavaliers, of course, have King James.

The Browns, on the other hand, haven't produced a true marquee player since the Johnson administration (Lyndon, not Andrew, although it can feel that long since we had a championship).

Before their 1995 defection to Baltimore they were able to field some hometown heroes in Bernie Kosar, Brian Sipe, Ozzie Newsome. Since their repatriation in 1999, gridiron greats have been as scarce as Cuyahoga County officials who aren't under indictment.

In the last 10 years, buying a Browns jersey with a player's name on it is as pointless as planning a Cleveland wardrobe for tomorrow based on the weather forecast for today. Like the Browns roster, you know it's going to change in the next 15 minutes.

Must be a lot of Tim Couch jerseys at yard sales. Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson apparel might not be far behind.

Quinn, the Dublin native and first-round draft pick, was benched early in the season after a long-anticipated but disappointing debut. Last Sunday, replacement Anderson's quarterback rating at halftime was 0.0, bringing to mind the grade-point average of Bluto Blutarsky in "Animal House." The team stands at 1-7, the lone victory a touchdown-free fluke against Buffalo.

New coach Eric Mangini brings to mind the dismal days of Bill Belichik's stay in Cleveland, minus the charm.

So now they have canned their general manager, who took over this summer, as part of a promised full-house inventory. And Kosar has come on board as a consultant. But it's not the GM who is responsible for five turnovers in a game or a defense that allowed 30 points against a team that got pounded the week before. And Kosar isn't going to drag his broken body onto the field to revive the glory days of the Dawgs.

No less an authority than my father, who has watched the Browns for 61 years, declares that this is the worst team they have ever had. And this is from a guy who had season tickets during the Mike Phipps years. But what was mediocrity then has morphed into masochism now.

Veteran Cleveland sports writer Terry Pluto stated in his 2004 book "False Start: How the New Browns Were Set Up to Fail" that the returning franchise was put together in a slapdash manner on purpose to ensure continuing futility.

It was difficult to believe at that time that the NFL would deliberately design a team destined for disaster, even in light of the struggles of the re-emerging club.

Five more years of folly later, and Pluto begins to look like the Nostradamus of Northeastern Ohio.

The fans have kept coming, despite frozen fannies and broken hearts. Now some of the faithful have called for a one-quarter boycott before the Browns host a Monday night game Nov. 16 - to what effect, it's hard to know. There is no Otto Graham or Lou Groza or Jim Brown on the sidelines or over the horizon ready to rescue the city's hopes.

So maybe it's time to close up shop and turn the stadium into a giant outdoor casino. The odds would have to be better than they are now with this rigged crap game.

I remember right where I was and what I was doing when I heard the Browns were leaving town in 1995. It was like hearing that the lake had dried up - inconceivable. I recall the feelings of loss that Browns fans everywhere shared. And I remember the elation when the team came back.

Now I'm not sure it would matter in the same way if the team packed up and moved to Topeka or Tulsa or wherever, except to some of the bizarre boneheads who like to play Halloween on gameday.

Well, the treats are gone and the trick's on us. Brown and orange dreams scatter like leaves caught in a bitter cold wind off the lake.

Browns for sale. Exasperating Browns for sale.

If LeBron James bolts after this season, we might even throw in a basketball team.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation or WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. John Matuszak.

John Matuszak: 2 kings of TV comedy pass on

I'd like to pay tribute to two television icons who recently passed from the scene.

One is a writer who gave us a group of army surgeons who fought against the insanity of war with their own kind of divine madness.

The other is a seller of propane and propane accessories who rode herd on his loopy neighbors and family members in the town of Arlen, Texas.

Goodbye, Larry Gelbart, co-creator of the TV series M*A*S*H, who died Sept. 11 at 81.

Goodbye, Hank Hill, patriarch of the animated series "King of the Hill," which aired its last episode Sunday after a 12-year run.

Gelbart served his comedic internship thinking up gags for cut-ups Danny Thomas and Bob Hope (even touring Korea), and then did his residency keeping TV audiences in stitches along with Sid Caesar, Carl Reiner, Mel Brooks and Neil Simon.

He won a Tony for "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," about a scheming Roman slave thwarting authority.

The Vietnam War was still dragging on in 1972 when Gelbart took on the challenge of introducing a serio-sitcom about combat to American audiences more accustomed to the domestic doings of the Brady Bunch.

TV viewers were beginning to accept more contemporary offerings such as "All in the Family." But it was far from certain that they were ready for the combination of comedy and carnage Gelbart and Co. had in mind.

Gelbart wanted to stay away from the "frolics at the front" mentality of such wartime shows as "Hogan's Heroes." The early episodes did lean toward the silly side, with surgeons Benjamin Franklin "Hawkeye" Pierce and "Trapper John" McIntyre boozing it up, chasing nurses and tormenting Major Frank Burns, in between 18-hour stints in the OR.

The series hit its serious stride with the first season's "Sometimes You Hear the Bullet," in which a childhood friend of Hawkeye's dies on the operating table before his eyes.

"All I know is what they taught us in command school," Col. Henry Blake tells the grief-stricken Pierce. "Rule Number One is that young men die, and Rule Number Two is that doctors can't change Rule Number One."

Never before had a television audience been presented with such a portrait of humor and horror as M*A*S*H. It took them awhile to embrace it, with the series languishing at the bottom of the ratings for the first season. But with network support it built a following that allowed the series to continue for 11 seasons, becoming an American icon enshrined in the Smithsonian Institution.

Through Hawkeye, his alter ego, Gelbart's perspective on war could be applied to our own current adventures in nation-building:

I don't know why they're shooting at us. All we want to do is bring them democracy and white bread, to transplant the American dream: freedom, achievement, hyeracidity, affluence, flatulence, technology, tension, the inalienable right to an early coronary at your desk while plotting to stab your boss in the back.

Gelbart stayed with the show for the first four seasons, its most creative and iconoclastic. He went on to earn Osacar nominations for screenplays for "Oh,God," a wickedly funny epistle on our misguided attitudes about religion, with George Burns as the Almighty; and "Tootsie," in which a cross-dressing Dustin Hoffman took on feminist issues.

With other changes in the cast and creative team, M*A*S*H lost a lot of its edge and became increasingly sanctimonious and formulaic, although it remained popular. Its two and a half hour finale in 1983 drew a record audience. Even those of us who had abandoned the show, like myself, had to watch to say "Goodbye, Farewell and Amen" to the men and women of the 4077th.

Watch those early episodes now on DVD, minus the network-imposed laugh track, and realize just how groundbreaking the show really was, how the combination of comedy and drama still cuts to the bone.

Besides making me a pacifist, I have one other thing to thank Larry Gelbart for. He gave me my only nickname. After work my friends and I would gather to watch M*A*S*H reruns. Our apartment became known as the Swamp, after the surgeons' slovenly quarters, and I became Trapper John, or simply Trap, to all the people who came to kick back and get a little crazy (with lots of coffee instead of alcohol).

I tuned into the last original broadcast of "King of the Hill" with the hope that the final frames would at least approach the sublimity of the earlier efforts. Unfortunately, it was as flat as the southwestern plains.

Most comedies have a short creative life, usually about four or five years. There is only so much gold you can mine out of a particular situation or character.

"King of the Hill" stayed sharp for about that long. What made the series appealing to me was that Hank Hill was the only American father on TV who wasn't treated like a complete idiot. He could be as misinformed as the rest of his redneck neighbors, but he usually recognized this at some point and was able to make amends. Just as often, when everyone else doubted him, Father, it turned out, did know best.

Creator Mike Judge treated the denizens of Arlen with a balance of satire and sweetness. Soccer moms and school board dunderheads took their hits along with the local yokels.

So I'd like to say my own goodbyes to Hank, his Boggle-champion wife, Peggy, and pudgy pre-pubescent prop comic son, Bobby; neighbors Dale Gribble, the conspiracy theorist who never discovered that his wife was having an affair under his nose; desperate divorcee and army barber Bill; mumbling Boomhauer, with an accent as thick as Texas five-alarm chili; and the entire galaxy of Lone Star State residents he conjured up.

Thank goodness for reruns, I'll tell ya what.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation or WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. John Matuszak.

John Matuszak: American legends meet again at Schumacher Gallery

One was a poor boy from Ohio who suffered numerous personal failures before answering Abraham Lincoln's call to arms, a decision that would propel him to national fame and the White House.

The other was a wealthy Virginian from one of America's first families, his father a Revolutionary War hero and his uncle a signer of the Declaration of Independence.

They were destined to meet on the battefields of the Civil War, the struggle that ultimately determined the fate of the nation, freedom for African Americans and the future of government "of the people, by the people, for the people."

Capital University's Schumacher Gallery has mounted "Grant and Lee," a traveling exhibit illustrating the lives of these legendary military figures. The gallery has also partnered with the Motts Military Museum to display additional historical artifacts related to the leaders and the war.

Cassandra Tellier, director of the Schumacher Gallery, has been impressed that these two men could stand on opposite sides of the irrepressible conflict and still be regarded as American heroes.

Motts, who has operated his museum in Groveport for 10 years, also noted that this was a unique aspect of the Civil War, that bitter enemies could feel deep respect for each other once the shooting stopped.

But they both acknowledged that issues that sparked the war - from states' rights to racial equality - still smolder in American life.

"The Civil War is still being fought," Tellier said.

The exhibit originated through the Virginia Historical Society, but Tellier thinks that a stop in Ohio is fitting considering the state's leading role during the war. Ohio sent 300,000 troops to the Union ranks, and provided key generals, five of whom later became U.S. presidents.

Brother Against Brother

While the personal backgrounds of Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee were poles apart, they did have some things in common.

They both attended West Point, with Lee achieving a stellar record while Grant excelled only in horsemanship. They both fought in the Mexican War.

They both owned slaves, inherited from family members. The Motts Museum has provided actual slave shackles, a reminder of the reality of human bondage.

At the outbreak of the Civil War, Lee was offered command of the Union armies, but could not consider raising his sword against his native Virginia, calling it "my country."

Grant, after lonely tours on the western frontier, had left the army and was working in his father's tannery, struggling to support his family. He returned to military service at the urging of his friend William T. Sherman.

After some early setbacks, Lee took over the Army of Northern Virginia and built a near-legendary reputation as he confounded a series of Union generals.

Grant made his mark in the west, earning the nickname "Unconditional Surrender" Grant.

While Lee's forces were locked in mortal combat at Gettysburg, Grant's men were besieging Vicksburg, the last stronghold on the Mississippi River.

The Schumacher displays a newspaper printed on the back of a piece of wallpaper, illustrating the privations suffered by the city's residents.The vagaries of combat are demonstrated by a Union and a Confederate belt buckle, both with a bullet that stuck in the plate rather that striking the wearer.

On July 4, 1863, the same day that Lee's defeated troops retreated from Gettysburg, Grant received the surrender of Vicksburg. This set the stage for the showdown between Grant and Lee, as Lincoln brought his fighting general east to command the entire Union army. Grant devised a strategy to use his superior forces to drive Lee out into the open and wear down his ranks. At the same time, he sent Sherman into Georgia to strike at the heartland of the South.

The strategy paid off on April 9, 1865, as Lee was compelled to surrender his starving and decimated army. The generals met in the living room of Wilmer McLean, who had hoped to escape the war after a cannon ball tore off his porch during the first battle of Bull Run. Lee, who initiated the meeting, was resplendent in his dress uniform. Grant, caught unprepared, wore his typical dirt-stained private's tunic with minimal insignia.

Grant dictated generous terms to his defeated foe, and when the beaten rebels filed away, they were saluted by the men in blue.

Lee went on to head Wahington University. He died in 1870. Grant was elected president in 1868 and served two scandal-plagued terms. But he did champion progressive policies, including fair treatment for Native Americans and the outlawing of the Ku Klux Klan.

After leaving the White House, Grant again found himself broke, and was dying from throat cancer. With the support of Mark Twain, he completed his memoirs shortly before his death, leaving his family with financial support and the nation with a literary treasure.

The Schumacher and the Motts Museum have brought to life an important part of American history. A children's section allows young people to discover this remarkable era on their own.

"Grant and Lee," made possible through a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, will be open through Oct. 17. An opening reception, with historical re-enactors and the firing of the Statehouse cannon, will tak place Sept. 11 from 5-7 p.m.

The event is part of the Bexley Art Walk, with other area galleries open to patrons.

The Schumacher Gallery is located on the fourth floor of the Blackmore Library and is open from 1-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation or WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. John Matuszak.

Bans on texting while driving. Sharon Montgomery speaks out.

Sharon Montgomery was Wednesday's guest on the Eastside News Roundup. She was interviewed by host John Matuszak and Dianne Garrett about legislative proposals to prohibit "Distracted Driving" or "text-messaging while driving." State Representative Nancy Garland called in to join the discussion with Sharon.

Sharon said "There is a lot of concern about distracted driving and a lot of talk about what we should or shouldn't do about it. The first step in solving any problem is identifying it. To understand distracted driving, I like a "traffic signal" approach: stop perpetuating myths, be cautious of opinions, and go with the facts."



Around 42,000 people die in traffic crashes on American roads each year. About 1300 of those deaths are on Ohio roads.

These numbers can also vary some from year to year but recent tabulations calculate that 78% of traffic crashes and 65% of the near-misses are a result of distracted driving.

Sharon said that the crashes are not accidents. She explained her point of view from a law dictionary definition of accident as something that "could not be reasonably anticipated." A driver can "reasonably anticipate" that if he doesn't pay attention, he's likely to miss something. It is also "reasonable" to anticipate that what is missed could be important and that missing it could have a bad result. A driver may choose to ignore that "reasonable anticipation," but that doesn't change the fact that it is reasonable to anticipate a crash if you don't pay attention when you're driving. It is a fact, then, that crashes caused by drivers using phones (for conversation or written messages) are not accidents. They can be anticipated and prevented.

Prevention will need a comprehensive approach that includes education, both as public awareness and driver training, new laws, with consistent and visible enforcement and penalties severe enough to act as a deterrent. Data collection and analysis are also needed to measure the scope of the problem and the effects of preventive measures. Sharon also said that increased availability of public transportation will help, too. When fewer cars are on the road, fewer cars will crash.

Shaaron said that it is a myth that all driver distractions are the same. Some are unavoidable--unexpected things can happen outside the car. Some of the avoidable ones, the ones drivers choose to create, are more distracting than others. They can be more distracting because they last longer, and/or because they engage the brain more. Eating a hamburger takes essentially no thought. Carrying on a conversation involves processing what the other person is saying and formulating your response.

Phone distraction is part of the bigger myth of multi-tasking. Brain studies show us that we are not multi-tasking. We are not doing two cognitive tasks at the same time. Our brains are flitting back and forth between the tasks. This is like using a computer. We can have more than one window open at a time, but we can perform functions in only one of them at a time.

Another popular opinion is that this problem will get better over time, as people get more experienced with driving while phoning or texting. The facts are that brain and behavioral studies show that our "other-tasking" skills decline with age and that the people who do the most media multi-tasking actually do that flitting back and forth less effectively than people who are less frequent multi-taskers. The fact is that the number of mobile phone owners grows dramatically each year. Already about a third of eight-to-twelve year olds and two-thirds of teens own a phone. The children with phones will have the phone anywhere/anytime habit deeply ingrained in them before they ever start to drive. Even the children who don't own phones see their parents and other adults using them anywhere, anytime. We learn by example. The fact is that the number of tasks these phones can perform increases continuously.

There are four kinds of unsafe drivers who phone or text. There are the ones with experience and skill with the phone but not at driving and the ones with experience and skill at driving but not with the phone. There are the ones who have experience with both driving and the phone but who are less successful at dividing their attention between mental tasks. There are the ones who have no experience yet with the new ways to use the phone.

The number of mobile phone owners and the number who admit to using them while driving goes up every year so it's a pretty safe assumption that the number of crashes caused by phoning/texting drivers is also increasing each year.

Will laws against this be hard to enforce because the police can't always see the phone? No harder than drunk driving laws. Police can't see alcohol in a driver's blood.

Will laws against this take away your personal freedom? No; your rights extend only to the point that they infringe on someone else's rights. We each have a right to safety on the public roads. Do you complain that speeding laws take away your personal freedom?

Won't education be enough, without a law? People don't always do what they're taught. People have a natural tendency to think, "It won't happen to me." If education were enough, we wouldn't need any traffic safety laws.

Aren't the general distracted driving laws enough? If they were, this problem wouldn't be escalating. Can we "single out" this one distraction? Yes; we've already "singled out" drunk driving and speeding in a construction zone. Should we "single out" this one distraction? Yes; we have years and years of research showing that it is more distracting than other non-driving behaviors drivers engage in.

The bottom line is that just because we can do something, doesn't mean we need to do it, or should do it in every situation. And, it certainly doesn't mean we must do it. The vast majority of calls and texts done while driving are unnecessary. A momentary convenience for one person can result in a life-time of problems for another person.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation or WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Sharon Montgomery.

John Matuszak: New titles at Bexley Public Library.

As our local libraries struggle with maintaining resources in the face of state funding cuts, I thought I'd offer a few book suggestions that should serve as a reminder of the reservoir of information available - a deep ocean of knowledge that could be lost.

On the Waterfront: The Pulitzer Prize-winning articles that inspired the classic movie and transformed New York Harbor - It was a routine assignment for the New York Sun's ace veteran reporter, Malcolm "Mike" Johnson - look into the murder of a hiring boss on the city's tough waterfront. What Johnson discovered, through months of dogged investigation, was a virtually lawless society where corruption was the rule and violence was the final word. Before Johnson's articles began to appear in 1948, most Americans had never heard of the international criminal syndicate that extorted millions from shippers and truckers, jacking up the costs of consumer goods across the country and fueling gambling, smuggling and other illegal activities. Johnson also showed that the gangsters had allies in labor unions, the halls of Congress and even the Pentagon. The courageous reporter, who had served as a combat correspondent during World War II, endured threats to his life and reputation to tell this story that earned him the Pulitzer. Screenwriter Budd Schulberg was inspired by Johnson to take on his own investigation, that led to the screenplay for On the Waterfront. More importantly, the articles and the movie led to important reforms. The book includes Schulberg's articles, as well as an introduction by Johnson's son, Haynes Johnson, an historian and also a Pulitzer Prize winner, the only instance of a father and son both earning the award.

A Stupid and Futile Gesture: How Doug Kenney and National Lampoon changed comedy forever - by Josh Karp - An insightful and often funny behind-the-scenes account of the creation of a comedy empire and the man who gave it its smarts and its soul. Without Doug Kenney - who grew up in Chagrin Falls, Ohio before attending Harvard - there would have been no National Lampoon magazine, which he headed, no Animal House or Caddyshack, screenplays he co-wrote before his untimely death in 1980. National Lampoon, in print, on records and on tour, launched the careers of John Belushi, Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, Christopher Guest and many others. The book follows Kenney (who also played Stork in Animal House) through his formative Midwestern years as an intelligent outsider, to the intellectual ferment of university life and the highly charged, competitive New York offices of Lampoon. It also chronicles Kenney's descent into the cocaine-crazed world of late '70s Hollywood. A must for those whose own sense of humor was happily warped by the nothing-sacred pages of National Lampoon.

No Quarter: The Battle of the Crater, 1864 - by Richard Slotkin - In the summer of 1864, as Union and Confederate troops endured a long, hot stalemate in trenches before Petersburg, Va., Union General Ambrose Burnside formulated an audacious plan: tunnel under the rebel lines, pack the mine with tons of explosives and blow a gigantic hole in the enemy defenses. On paper the plan seemed ingenious. In practice, it turned out to be one of the major disasters of the war. Slotkin, one of the country's most respected cultural historians, shows that the failure of the assault and the slaughter that followed had as much to do with racial politics as military missteps. At that time, Union leaders were struggling with the necessity of sending black troops into combat, an act that southerners (and many northerners) viewed with horror. Hanging over the Battle of the Crater was the memory of the brutal massacre of black prisoners by Confederates at earlier engagements, which led to the order of "no quarter" that led to atrocities on both sides - with Yankees even killing their own black comrades. Slotkin is also the author of a novel about the assault on the Crater, which confronts the moral dilemma of fighting a counter-insurgency. Other books include his trilogy on the impact of the frontier mythology on American society, and Lost Battalions, which chronicles the struggle of black troops for recognition during and after World War I. That is a battle still being fought. In No Quarter, Slotkin points out that white soldiers from both sides are memorialized at Petersburg - but that there is no memorial for the black troops who fought and died there.

IBM and the Holocuast: The Strategic Alliance between Nazi Germany and America's Most Powerful Corporation - by Edwin Black. When the Nazis formulated the Final Solution for the Jews of Germany and the rest of Europe, how did they come up with the lists of names of the millions whose ancestry condemned them to death? How did they move and massacre all of these people with such ruthless efficiency? The answer, Black discovers, is through the use of IBM's high-speed tabulating machines, the forerunner of the computer. He also shows that the company did not merely sell the machines, but worked actively to train the technicians of the Third Reich and create systems specifically for their needs. IBM's president, Thomas Watson, who created a cult of personality around himself as "The Leader," also found an affinity with Hitler and his demand for absolute loyalty. Black, an investigative reporter, has also authored Internal Combustion, on how corporations and governments crafted the transportation policies that keep us addicted to oil; and War Against the Weak, revealing that Germany's ideas about creating a master race originated in America with the study of eugenics.

Bexley Public Radio Foundation broadcasting as
WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM, Local Power Radio
2700 E. Main St., Suite 208
Columbus, OH 43209
Voice (614) 235 2929
Fax (614) 235 3008
Email wcrxlp@yahoo.com
Blog http://agentofcurrency.blogspot.com

Bexley Public Radio Foundation is exempt from federal taxes under IRC Section 501(c)(3). Donations are deductible from federal income taxes for individuals who itemize. Checks may identify the payee as Bexley Public Radio Foundation or WCRX-LP, 102.1 FM.

Design is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Bexley Public Radio Foundation. Text is copyright 2009. All rights reserved. John Matuszak.