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Sharpshooters wait for Ravenna police chief to leave his house
by
Michael Sangiacomo & Donna J. Miller/Plain Dealer Reporters
Wednesday December 03, 2008, 2:03 PM
RAVENNA TOWNSHIP -- Sharpshooters peered into the home of Michael Swartout all day Wednesday as the former Ravenna police chief refused to come out after a domestic dispute.
(Related story: Original report.)
The standoff began Tuesday night after Swartout fired several shots at hi son, John, who was seated in his car. One bullet struck the driver's door, but no one was injured.
Police were called to the house on Lakewood Road at 9:51 p.m.
Swartout left his house in his car. He drove a short distance, parked and walked back to his house while deputies obtained a felonious assault warrant for his arrest.
When police arrived, Swartout refused to come out of the house, Portage County Sheriff Duane Kaley said.
"He doesn't want to come out," Kaley said Wednesday afternoon." We're negotiating."
UAW to make concessions to win government loans for Big 3
by
Robert Schoenberger/Plain Dealer Reporter
Wednesday December 03, 2008, 12:45 PM
The United Auto Workers will let General Motors delay payments into a trust fund that handles retiree health-care benefits, and the union will likely agree to kill off its controversial jobs bank, a program that pays employees when there is no work for them.
"The jobs bank agreement will probably be revised if it's not taken out completely," said Jim Graham, president of the UAW Local 1112 in Lordstown. Graham was in Detroit today at a meeting of UAW officials.
Two weeks ago, UAW President Ron Gettelfinger rejected the need for further union concessions to win $25 billion in loans for automakers, saying workers did their part last year when they agreed to a new contract. The 2007 contract let the companies create the trust funds to handle retiree costs, allowed them to pay new workers half the traditional UAW wage and allowed companies to close more plants.
The union proposals come a day after General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC filed restructuring plans with Congress to spell out the need for loans.
GM says it needs $4 billion immediately and as much as $18 billion in the next year to survive. Chrysler asked for $7 billion in loans, and Ford asked for a $9 billion credit line, saying it may not need government assistance.
Gov. Strickland says federal cash isn't enough to fix Ohio's budget (audio)
by
Associated Press
Wednesday December 03, 2008, 12:14 PM
Listen to the Gov. Strickland's statement:
But Strickland said the federal government still has an obligation to help states like Ohio as they struggle with unprecedented tough times.
Strickland said today he's confident the federal government will provide dollars to the states though he's not sure what kind of funding they will get.
One of his top priorities, he said, is money in so-called block grants that will give the state the flexibility to use it where needed.
Strickland and other governors met with President-elect Barack Obama in Philadelphia Tuesday.
Health insurers offer their own reform plan: universal coverage, guarantee for pre-existing conditions
by Sabrina Eaton/Plain Dealer Washington Bureau
Wednesday December 03, 2008, 12:06 PM
WASHINGTON -- Facing the prospect that Washington will put the nation's broken health-care system on the operating table next year, the health insurance industry today unveiled its own prescription for reform.
America's Health Insurance Plans, a trade group whose members insure more than 200 million Americans, said it wants to achieve universal health insurance coverage, reduce the growth of health-care costs by 30 percent, and guarantee coverage for pre-existing medical conditions as long as individual coverage is mandated
"Reform needs to be comprehensive and it needs to happen now," said the industry group's CEO, Karen Ignagni, adding that meetings the group conducted this summer in Ohio and other states helped it formulate its plans.
Continue reading "Health insurers offer their own reform plan: universal coverage, guarantee for pre-existing conditions" »Obama names Bill Richardson as Commerce Secretary
by Liz Sidoti/Associated Press
Wednesday December 03, 2008, 11:39 AM
President-elect Barack Obama looks on, at right, as Commerce Secretary-designate New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson speaks during a news conference in Chicago today. Updated at 12:18 p.m.:
CHICAGO -- President-elect Barack Obama named New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson Commerce secretary today, filling a top economic post in troubled times and placing a second former campaign rival in his new Cabinet.
Talking optimistically despite the recession, Obama also said, "We have everything we need to renew our economy, we have the ingenuity and technology, the skill and commitment -- we just need to put it to work."
The president-elect called Richardson a leading "economic diplomat for America. During his time in state government and Congress, and in two tours of duty in the Cabinet, Bill has seen from just about every angle what makes our economy work and what keeps it from working better."
Continue reading "Obama names Bill Richardson as Commerce Secretary" »Episcopal Church splits as conservatives form their own denomination
by Associated Press
Wednesday December 03, 2008, 11:33 AM
WHEATON, Ill. -- Theological conservatives upset by the liberal views of the Episcopal Church are forming a rival denomination.
The new Anglican Church in North America will include four Episcopal dioceses that recently split from the U.S. church, along with breakaway Anglican parishes from Canada.
The announcement Wednesday in Wheaton, Illinois, comes after decades of debate over what Episcopalians should believe about issues ranging from salvation to sexuality. Tensions erupted in 2003 when Episcopalians consecrated the first openly gay bishop.
The world Anglican Communion is a fellowship of churches with roots in the Church of England. The Episcopal Church is the Anglican body in the United States. But the new North American church says it represents true Anglican beliefs.
Back to the future: Editors' Picks for Wednesday from The PD
by Peter Zicari
Wednesday December 03, 2008, 9:43 AM
This morning's paper collects new developments in old stories, plus a look back at an issue that seldom gets top billing but won't go away -- global warming.
- Local TV weathermen (whose job it is to hype thunderstorms and the lake effect) say global warming is overhyped.
- The Big 3 Automakers take their bailout wish lists to Congress; (details here and here)
- Our Washington bureau and our bank expert probe whether federal regulators were really the ones to kill off National City; and
- The Cleveland Clinic will require its doctors to disclose business ties.
American folk music legend Odetta dies at 77
by Polly Anderson/Associated Press
Wednesday December 03, 2008, 9:19 AM
Folk performer Odetta sings at the New Orleans Jazz Festival in this 1978 photo. Odetta, the folk singer with the powerful voice who moved audiences and influenced fellow musicians for a half-century, died Tuesday. She was 77.
NEW YORK -- Odetta, the folk singer with the powerful voice who moved audiences and influenced fellow musicians for a half-century, has died. She was 77.
Odetta died Tuesday of heart disease at Lenox Hill Hospital, said her manager of 12 years, Doug Yeager. She was admitted to the hospital with kidney failure about three weeks ago, he said.
In spite of failing health that caused her to use a wheelchair, Odetta performed 60 concerts in the last two years, singing for 90 minutes at a time. Her singing ability never diminished, Yeager said.
"The power would just come out of her like people wouldn't believe," he said.
With her booming, classically trained voice and spare guitar, Odetta gave life to the songs by workingmen and slaves, farmers and miners, housewives and washerwomen, blacks and whites.
Hunters kill 70% more deer on opening day
by Donna J. Miller/Plain Dealer Reporter
Wednesday December 03, 2008, 9:07 AM
Tyler Danner killed this deer with a cross-bow during bow-hunting season in Medina County.Hunters killed 33,034 white-tailed deer Monday, 70 percent more than opening day of the deer-gun season last year, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
Another round of hunting will happen Dec. 20 and 21.
The Ohio agency says the deer-kill was up because of weather. Monday, it was breezy with intermittent rain or snow across the state. Opening day last year, hunters were hampered by heavy rain.
Continue reading "Hunters kill 70% more deer on opening day" »Johanna Orozco pushes to get stalled bill passed
by Rachel Dissell/Plain Dealer Reporter
Wednesday December 03, 2008, 6:35 AM
Johanna Orozco, now 20, is advocating for a state law that would allow judges to issue orders protecting juveniles who are in violent relationships or being stalked by other teens.Last year Johanna Orozco got her Christmas wish -- new teeth to replace the ones blown out of her mouth when she was shot by her ex-boyfriend.
But, unless state lawmakers act soon, Orozco's 2008 wish will go unfulfilled.
The 20-year-old, who has become a local spokeswoman against teen dating violence, wants a proposal to give juvenile court judges the power to protect teens in violent relationships with other teens to become law. Adults already have that protection under Ohio law.
House Bill 247, introduced by Toledo-area Democrat Edna Brown, passed the Ohio House unanimously in May but has stalled in the Senate and will die if it is not passed before this session ends in a few weeks. The bill is named after Shynerra Grant, a teen in Brown's district who was killed by her ex-boyfriend in 2005.
Continue reading "Johanna Orozco pushes to get stalled bill passed" »Cleveland Clinic to post its doctors' business ties
by Patrick O'Donnell/Plain Dealer Reporter
Wednesday December 03, 2008, 12:28 AM
The Cleveland Clinic will divulge business ties its doctors have after being stung by conflict of interest charges involving cozy relationships between researchers and drug and medical supply companies.
The Clinic will announce today that the relationship between all its doctors and any companies will be available on its Web site, www.clevelandclinic.org.
Doctors will be asked to disclose any relationships yearly.
Clinic spokeswoman Eileen Sheil said she believes the Clinic is the first hospital in the country to make such disclosures.
"It's the right thing to do," Sheil said. "Transparency is really important."
Ohio, 48 other states flunk national college affordability test
by Janet Okoben/Plain Dealer Reporter
Wednesday December 03, 2008, 12:21 AM
Ohio flunked a recent college affordability test. The test is based on how much of the average family's income it costs to go to collegeOhio and 48 other states have flunked the college affordability test, according to a report released today.
Only California got a passing grade -- a "C" -- from the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education. Its report, "Measuring Up 2008: The National Report Card on Higher Education," rates states in five key areas: college preparation, college participation, college affordability, college completion, and benefits to the state.
Two years ago, the last time the biennial report was released, the independent, California-based group handed out 43 "F"s for affordability. The measurement reflects how much of the average family's income it costs to go to college.
The report says that since the late 1990s, the share of family income needed to pay for attending four-year, public colleges in the Buckeye State has climbed from 28 percent to 39 percent.
Not surprisingly, Ohio higher-education officials questioned the failing grade.
The figures include the costs to attend private colleges, said Michael Chaney, a spokesman for the Ohio Board of Regents. A more accurate -- and more favorable to Ohio -- study came from the College Board in October, he said.
The College Board study found Ohio public colleges and universities with low growth in prices compared to other states, mostly because of two years of tuition freezes.
Continue reading "Ohio, 48 other states flunk national college affordability test" »Cleveland-area TV meteorologists disagree with prevailing attitude about climate change
by Michael Scott/Plain Dealer Reporter
Tuesday December 02, 2008, 10:35 PM
They will tell you when the skies might rain or snow in fickle Northeast Ohio, when to bundle up the kids in a cold snap and when to make weekend plans if steady sunshine spans the five-day forecast.
They also will tell you that human-caused global warming is hogwash.
They're your local TV meteorologists.
Andre BernierThe local TV weatherscape is indeed populated with on-air personalities who are pushing hard against the prevailing winds of climate science.
GAO report suggests regulators played biggest role in National City's demise
by Stephen Koff and Teresa Dixon Murray/Plain Dealer Reporters
Tuesday December 02, 2008, 9:56 PM
A report from the Government Accountability Office Congress suggests strongly that federal banking examiners played the dominant role in denying National City Bank bailout assistance.WASHINGTON -- Blame National City Bank's final chapter on the regulators. Or credit the regulators, who may have saved billions of taxpayer dollars.
Either way, a new report to Congress suggests strongly that federal banking examiners -- and not the Treasury Department -- played the dominant role in turning down the 163-year-old Cleveland bank when it sought bailout money in October.
This goes to the heart of a question that has troubled members of Congress in trying to pinpoint blame for decisions made in Washington that may have hastened National City's demise.
Regina Brett: Don't miss out on this mail call
by Regina Brett/Plain Dealer Reporter
Tuesday December 02, 2008, 9:52 PM
Someone once gave me this advice:
If you're going to stumble through life, stumble forward.
I stumbled on Sunday when I suggested people send Christmas cards to service men and women at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. It turns out they are not taking cards addressed to A Recovering American Soldier.
But the American Red Cross hopes to deliver 1 million holiday cards to American troops.
You can send a card to: Holiday Mail for Heroes, PO Box 5456, Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456. Cards must be postmarked by Dec. 10. For more information, see redcross.org.
The stumble forward part came when Kelly Gruscinski read my column and told me about what happened when she asked people to send Christmas cards to soldiers.
Kelly, who is 47, started collecting letters for soldiers after 20 members of the Brook Park 3rd Battalion, 25th Regiment Marines were killed in action. The USO asked for support so Kelly created a Make A Difference project for her psychology students at Lorain County Community College.
Every Friday, she gives students one point of extra credit for doing a good deed. Twice a month she delivers letters to the USO to include in care packages.
Last year Kelly collected 700 Christmas cards for soldiers.
"I haven't done it," Kelly pointed out. "It's the students."
This year, she aimed for 1,000 cards. Word spread and cards flowed in from children at St. Adalbert School in Berea and St. Richard School in North Olmsted. Church groups and volunteers at St. John West Shore Hospital collected cards.
Continue reading "Regina Brett: Don't miss out on this mail call" »U-Store-It Trust may be moving headquarters to Pennsylvania
by Michelle Jarboe/Plain Dealer Reporter
Tuesday December 02, 2008, 9:45 PM
U-Store-It Trust appears to be leaving its Cleveland offices, after months of rumors that the longtime local company plans to move its headquarters to Pennsylvania.
The self-storage company's executive offices, in Suite 2800 of the Terminal Tower downtown, are listed as available for lease on the Web site for brokerage firm CB Richard Ellis.
A few years ago, the self-storage business employed hundreds of people at a corporate headquarters in Middleburg Heights. U-Store-It moved to the Terminal Tower in mid-2007.
NE Ohioans add support for land bank bill
by Aaron Marshall/Plain Dealer Bureau
Tuesday December 02, 2008, 9:40 PM
COLUMBUS -- Marion Gardner is surrounded. Buildings on every side of her Mount Pleasant neighborhood home have been abandoned as the housing market has soured, leaving her on an island on her block of East 113th Street in Cleveland.
"They keep bailing people out that live in million-dollar homes, and I'm running for my life," Gardner said. "My neighborhood is a cemetery. Who can you call when they start breaking out windows across the street or stealing the steps next door?"
Hoping to snap state lawmakers into action, Gardner was part of a busload of Cleveland-area residents who descended on the Statehouse Tuesday to push for legislation they hope will keep the vandals, squatters and absentee land speculators at bay. They packed a Senate hearing room as local officials -- including Cuyahoga County Treasurer Jim Rokakis and Cleveland City Councilman Anthony Brancatelli -- testified for the bill before the Senate's State and Local Government Committee.
Modeled after a program in Michigan, the legislation would allow Cuyahoga County officials to set up a land bank to buy distressed properties or receive foreclosed properties donated by banks. Homes beyond salvaging would get a date with the wrecking ball while others would be rehabbed, with the sales proceeds plowed back into the program.
Jump-starting the land bank would be about $8 million to $9 million in delinquent tax collection penalties that supporters think could be enough to back $50 million in bonds per year, said State Sen. Tom Patton, Republican of Strongsville, who is sponsoring the legislation.
Continue reading "NE Ohioans add support for land bank bill" »Olmsted Falls schools seek $100 million in federal bailout funds
by Edith Starzyk/Plain Dealer Reporter
Tuesday December 02, 2008, 9:35 PM
OLMSTED FALLS -- If automakers and cities are taking a shot at getting federal bailout money, why shouldn't school districts?
That was the reasoning that led Todd Hoadley, superintendent of the Olmsted Falls district, to apply for $100 million from the U.S. Treasury Department's Troubled Asset Relief Program.
Half would go for school construction to accommodate growing enrollment, Hoadley said.
"One way to stimulate the economy is to put people in the construction industry to work," he said. "And in addition to solving our overcrowding, this would provide tax relief to residents."
The other half would repay the district's cost of meeting federal mandates under the federal No Child Left Behind law, such as testing, tutoring and remediation.
Continue reading "Olmsted Falls schools seek $100 million in federal bailout funds" »
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