Comments on CityKin: Issue 9 Mythbusting, or Why Issue 9 is not only ab...

I'm with you kid-cincy - a casino at Broadway ...

2009-10-23T17:13:03.739-04:00

I'm with you kid-cincy - a casino at Broadway Commons would be terrible. Then again, a casino anywhere would be terrible, imo.

Hey, at least there's no regret on my part abo...

2009-10-23T15:29:15.552-04:00

Hey, at least there's no regret on my part about the stadium votes-- I'm proud to say I voted against them (I can't remember now if it was one or two separate issues). I love the Reds, and I'm a fair-weather fan of the Bengals, but I had no stomach for taxpayer-supported stadiums. Plus, I was really hoping the Reds would go to Broadway Commons. I'm really dreading the idea of a casino going there.

@kid-cincy here is the point on "tricked"...

2009-10-23T15:21:59.907-04:00

@kid-cincy here is the point on "tricked". How many issues will we vote for on election day? Not EVERYone will research EVERY issue. I think it is an important responsibility, but not everyone does it.

When they read the ballot language they will see e.g., a trolley or streetcar, they will recall the signs that say "Vote Yes on Issue 9 Stop the Streetcar" and they will go, I don't want no stinkin' streetcar, and vote yes. Or they will vote no because they WANT a streetcar.

THAT'S why I think it is important to let folks know what ALL the consequences are re: Issue 9. So they can make an informed vote.

@kidcincy, I agree with you that people tend to ...

2009-10-23T15:16:45.873-04:00

@kidcincy,

I agree with you that people tend to vote NO if they do not fully understand the proposal, however who hasn't had the feeling of regret of their vote after later figuring out more fully what it entailed.

I would guess many people who voted for the half-cent sales tax for the Reds/Bengals stadium have that regret and felt tricked. In fact, that sense of feeling tricked has hurt levies in Hamilton County ever since.

... he doesn't live in a vacuum or make dec...

2009-10-23T14:57:37.735-04:00
... he doesn't live in a vacuum or make decisions on his own

Well, if he can't make a decision on his own then I don't know if I'd put much weight into what he has to say.

... your average cincinnatian still doesn't know the myths surrounding this issue and will vote yes

I'm not so sure. I agree that most people have no clue what issue 9 is about, and honestly probably don't care, but I think they'll lean towards voting No if they don't know how to vote. In my opinion, voting Yes on something means that I believe in it, and I'm not sure that voters who might be confused or unaware of the issue will necessarily vote Yes.

And I don't buy the whole notion that people are "tricked" into voting for something. Sorry, but to me that suggests a little arrogance on the part of the person making the statement. If the people get up off their butts and bother to go to the voting place (which, what, 60% don't even bother?) I'll give them the benefit of the doubt that they have actually put a little thought into what they are doing.

Drew, Take some comfort in the fact that a co-work...

2009-10-23T13:18:02.740-04:00
Drew,
Take some comfort in the fact that a co-worker from Westwood, super anti-streetcar came in the other day and said, "wow that issue 9 is f'd up" why couldn't they have just made it about the streetcar?
He is active in the westside PowerPac, he doesn't live in a vacuum or make decisions on his own, so I'm sure if he feels this way all the neighbors he talks to on the sidewalk are feeling the same way.

That was one of my motivations for writing this. T...

2009-10-23T12:37:49.581-04:00
That was one of my motivations for writing this. This way I could post it on FB, for folks there, and send link via e-mail to others. I especially hoped they could read a good group of comments, which so far, so good. :-)

i'm worried that all of us bloggers and blog f...

2009-10-23T12:24:27.470-04:00
i'm worried that all of us bloggers and blog followers are living in a bubble and that your average cincinnatian still doesn't know the myths surrounding this issue and will vote yes because coast tricked them in to it. ugh.

About the name calling, I find it fascinating that...

2009-10-23T11:15:50.234-04:00
About the name calling, I find it fascinating that coast has begun calling us progressors, turning progress into a dirty word.
To me, this says mountains about where they are coming from.

Of course I'm not above it calling them cave men.

Citizens Against Virtually Everything

@kid-cincy I still stand by the fact that Issue 9 ...

2009-10-23T10:49:21.837-04:00
@kid-cincy I still stand by the fact that Issue 9 is not JUST about the streetcar. Voting for it to stop the streetcar is going to hurt far more than the streetcar.

But the COASTers aren't stupid, they are trying to tie it closely to this single consequence.

^BTW Kid-cincy; If Issue 9 is deafeated the stree...

2009-10-23T10:47:59.191-04:00
^BTW Kid-cincy;

If Issue 9 is deafeated the streetcar still will not happen unless a few other big hurdles are crossed, such as getting FTA Funding..

Well, I have to say that this is about the best wr...

2009-10-23T10:25:34.661-04:00
Well, I have to say that this is about the best write-up I've seen on the issues involved with the streetcar vote. (I appreciate the lack of name-calling, which seems to pervade most posts on the subject.) But in the end I just think 180 mil is a whole lot to spend on a speculative streetcar project that bases most of its economic benefits on cities that don't closely parallel Cincinnati, and that took place a few years ago (or more) when the economy was a whole lot better.

If the issues fails (i.e. the streetcar can go forward) I won't lose any sleep, but I still believe it's a bad way to spend other people's money.

Great post. And I know for sure there are certain ...

2009-10-23T09:16:41.371-04:00
Great post. And I know for sure there are certain jobs that will be gained if we vote 9 out (e.g. Stacey & Witbeck's regional office).

Issue Nine loses more credibility every day. They ...

2009-10-23T09:10:58.788-04:00
Issue Nine loses more credibility every day. They were hoping to slip something in without being noticed, but the more daylight/publicity/debate brought to this issue the better, especially to the non-blogging public. If the vote was in Spring, they would have no chance of success, but since it is next week, we still have a lot of work to do getting the word out.

Thanks for this great mythbusting post. And, thank...

2009-10-23T08:39:49.077-04:00
Thanks for this great mythbusting post. And, thanks for the picture of the yard sign. I hate the yard sign -- it's so misleading.