We traveled to Ottawa, Ohio where we learned Pandora-Gilboa high school student Allison Flickinger had just become a non-voting member of the school board. In a newspaper interview, Allison said: “It’s good to have a student voice, instead of only adults who do’t actually attend our school.” Good point. I told the Putnam County Sentinel newspaper that this only made sense, common sense. And as we traveled, we’d share Allison’s story with the hopes of opening the minds of other school boards to this possibility… This evening we attended a Bible Study at a Christian church in Arlington, Ohio. The man who gave the Bible lesson this evening, said he used to attend a church that had an “Accountability Group.” That is, group members would pair up, set goals (more time with family, more time helping the poor…), then meet once a week to “account” for what they’d done to work toward those goals during the week.
We drove south to Defiance, Ohio where I met with George Newton who teaches a “Life Skills” class to the disadvantaged through an ecumenical outreach called: Ravens. Class topics include: How to Prepare for an Interview; How to Budget; How to be a Good Employee… It’s not enough to just “throw money at the poor,” I told reporter Jack Palmer of Defiance’s Crescent News newspaper later this morning. We have to be as creative, and thorough, as possible in helping them get on their feet — and stay on their feet. Mr. Palmer also asked me how I would work to bring more peace between countries. I said that the year before I had interviewed a Mary Knoll priest who is trying to promote a school curriculum that would include students from 5th to 8th grade “adopting” a foreign country. That is, a student would pick a country, study it’s history, read about it’s contemporary affairs on the internet, maybe even develop a pen pal… In America, often, we are so “us [read: U.S.]” focused, we don’t have much understanding, or empathy, for what goes on in other places. Note: At Kissner’s Restaurant in downtown Defiance today I noticed a sign on the wall that read: “Instant human, just add coffee.” And another that read: “Just give me the coffee, and no one gets hurt.”
We headed north to Montpelier, Ohio where local historian Alan Benjamin told me that Montpelierite Paul Siple was chosen by Admiral Bryd to be the “one Boy Scout in America (out of a nationwide selection)” to accompany him on his famous South Pole expedition in 1928. Perhaps of even more note, Benjamin told me Paul Siple went on to develop the first formulat to measure “wind chill.” Benjamin also told me that in 2003, Montpelier, Ohio was voted as having the “best tasting tap water in America.” They’ve since bottled some, more as a novelty, and display it at the Chamber of Commerce. I told editor Jason Schumacher of the Montpelier The Leader Enterprise newspaper that, while we don’t pander to anyone, the people of Montpelier could be assured we’d serve Montpelier bottled tap water at the Inaugaration. However, I also told the editor that Montpelier’s Rowe’s Recreation Restaurant’s “Road Kill Omelette” might not be on that menu that day. Note: Just after Hurricane Katrina, Montpelier adopted the “sister village” of Montpelier, LA, which is 60 miles north of New Orleans and received some flooding. I interviewed Marlene Oxender, whose husband drove down to Montpelier, LA the week before with a check for $1,300 and a truck load of food (including Montpelier bottled tap water, of course), clothing, and so on to help their “sister village” with recovery efforts.
We traveled west to Edgerton, Ohio (pop. 1,000) where I interviewed Ruth Kimpel. In 1943, Mrs. Kimpel started working for the Edgerton Earth newspaper as a reporter. She said how she would often “gather the news,” was she would head out on her bicycle and knock on doors at random througout the town, asking: “Did you go to a particularly interesting place over the weekend? Or is there a new baby in the house? ” Ah, for those ‘good news’ days again… While in Edgerton, I also interviewed one of Ruth’s relatives, Denver Kimpel. He owns a used car lot in nearby Auburn, Indiana. His business doesn’t have a phone, or a fax, or a computer… and all the business is generated by word of mouth. He’s been open 32 years and said family generations come to him again and again, partly: because of his honesty. He said besides displaying the price on the car’s window — he also writes what’s wrong with it ! I told the Edgerton Earth newspaper that wouldn’t it be refreshing if during this year’s World Series a player slid into second and was tagged out before he hit the bag. The umpire, however, misses it and calls him “safe.” Then… the runner walks off the bag and up to the umpire, saying: “Actually ump, I’m out.” Note: When did we stop being that honest anyway?
We traveled to Bryan, Ohio where the family and I took in a Saturday morning soccer game(s). The park had multiple soccer fields with all ages of kids playing, and a good number of parents and neighbors watching… Afterward, I interviewed Bryan’s Paul Langevin who shared his thoughts about Social Security. He said that there’s been consistent talk that the Social Security Fund is in crisis and may actually run out, sooner than later. He said his belief is we should raise the income cap to bolster the Fund. That is, he said there is currently an assessment of a flat 6 and three-fourths percent on income money up to $90,000. Beyond $90,000, there is no additional assessment. Paul said he believes the cap needs to be moved up to, say, $3 million — with an assessment of at least half the 6 and three-fourths on this money. Sure, this would impact the more affluent; yet in the long run, I believe it would help the Fund tremendously and bring more of a measure of social parity to America — especially with the chasm between haves and have nots growing the way it is.
I attended a Bible Study at St. Casper’s Church in Wauseon, Ohio last night. A line from the Beatitudes came up. It was Jesus saying: “Woe to you who are filled now.” I said my take on this is ‘woe’ to us Americans who are ‘filled’ each day with three meals and snacks; or ‘fill’ our homes with central heat and air conditioning; or ‘fill’ our lives with with nice cars, nice furniture, all kinds of entertainment… while some two-thirds of the people in the world live on one meager meal a day, dwell in cobbled together shacks with no electricity, and don’t even have the basics in medicine, clothes… This morning after Mass at St. Casper’s, Fr. Robert Holden told me he thought it was important for people not to just stay in the cloister of small town, or suburban, bubbles; but rather to intimately experience the poor. Apparently, a good number of the people in the town of Ridgeville Corners, Ohio (pop. 400) don’t agree. A pastor at Christ Community Church there offered to retro-fit his church to provide temporary shelter for 50 displaced people from New Orleans. What’s more, the church was going to set up a network of “host families” to help each person in as many ways as possible. But a vocal contingent in town spoke against it at community meetings, and the zoning board wouldn’t ok the church’s building plan. While the idea fell through, what happened in Ridgeville Corners has become a national story (with overtones of prejudice, etc.). We journeyed there today… Christ Community Church member Holly Hershberger (their pastor was away in Biloxi, Mississippi helping hurricane victims this day) said although their idea to use the church as a shelter was voted down, the church was helping coordinate an alternative plan to house some eight (so far) hurricane victims in host family homes around the area. “We are a ministry of common sense,” said Holly. “If people need shelter, food, clothing… we try and find that for them…” Christ Community Church also has a Friday Homeschooling Co-op at their facility and I was asked to give a talk to their high school “God & Politics” class. The issue of abortion came up, and the students offered a series of alternatives: adoption, providing a safety net for women in crisis pregnance, and… abstinence in the first place. Students Arminda Whitlock and Rebecca Font said they regularly talk to junior high school and high school classes throughout the area on the subject of abstinence, including why they personally have chosen this path. Interestingly, the girls said they had just met with their state representative in Columbus who told them there was a bill being considered that would ban the use of the word “marriage” in the public schools (motivated, apparently, by a gay rights agenda, according to the girls). The girls were chagrined, saying in their talks they often recommend youth stay abstinent until: “marriage”… We traveled on to Stryker, Ohio where I talked to an old time resident who explained in 1912 Stryker High School won the State Championship in football. Several years later, a Stryker High School football player died of a head injury on the field. And since then — the school hasn’t had a football program.
We have traveled to Napolean, Ohio where I interviewed two representatives of the American Foundry Society (AFS). Glenn Nelson represented AFS in D.C. last year by lobbying about a variety of issues, including the increasing outsourcing of foundry jobs in America. “Our industrial base (in the U.S.) is diminishing considerably,” he said. And there is not much of a dedication to “buy American” these days among U.S. consumers either, he added… I was then interviewed by Napolean’s News Signal newspaper. I told editor Brian Koeller that we should look at the higher gas prices, not as a “crisis,” but rather as an: “opportunity.” An opportunity to learn to conserve, while moving to more alternative (and cleaner) modes of transportation. I then talked about the hybrid bus we had researched at Bowling Green State University the day before… We then headed to Wauseon, Ohio where I talked with Steve Short about trade. Short is not an economist, but rather an average citizen — with some common sense — who has been simply thinking about trade issues for quite some time. He said in order to even the playing field internationally: To trade with countries like, say, China, the stipulation should be that workers there (in a specific field) get the same kind of ‘living wage’ (working conditions, benefits…) that American workers in the same field here get. In addition, Short said he believed that country should also adhere to the same environmental protection standards for industry that we do here… I was then interviewed by Fulton County’s The Expositor newspaper. Reporter Steve Colan asked me if there was anything different about this campaign, than the previous two. I said the main thing is that “we’ve learned even more things.” Then I talked about the Bowling Green State University hybrid bus, as an example. Note: Colan pointed out that many indicators would point toward us losing the election again. (It wasn’t clear which polls he was referring to, but nevertheless…) I said in response that if a town picks up on the hybrid bus idea and the air is a little cleaner for my children, or his, to breath: “We win.” I also said that, by the way… we are trying to win the whole thing as well.
We headed into Bowling Green, Ohio where I was interviewed by the Bowling Green Sentinel Tribune. I told the reporter that some 10 years ago, I researched a program called: “Take A Stand for Kids” (TASK) on the Monterey Peninsula in California. Adults from all over the Peninsula had formed a grassroots organization to help parents see, and break, addictive patterns (drugs, alcoholism, compuslive overeating, codependency, compulsive TV watching, gambling, workaholism…), and at the same time, parents would learn about how to significantly improve their parenting skills… Although no amount of parenting skills, I’ve found, can equip you to deal with an acting out two-year-old — like our Jonathan today! I told the reporter our administration may have to formulate some “Special Two-Year-Old Federal Legislation” to curb this growing national problem. He said he has a two-year-old at home himself — and I had his vote… I then went to Bowling Green’s Public Library where I interviewed librarian Michael Penrod about the town’s “Community Reads” Program. Penrod said Bowling Green is in its fourth cycle of the program. Each cycle people in the community read two books, attend discussions pertaining to the books (which include authors and other experts on the book subjects.) During these cycles, there are also things like writing contests, Soup Dinners, and the like. Penrod said the program has really helped bring town factions together, whether city officials, the high school and elementary school, the college, and a good number of the general citizenry… I then interviewed professor Jon Opperman, an instructor of Mechanical Design at Bowling Green State University’s College of Technology here. Professor Opperman’s Department, with a grant from NASA, has designed a hybrid shuttle bus that is being used on campus — and saves 30% on fuel (while generating less pollution) with a design that harnesses, and stores, electricity from the breaking action of the bus. Professor Opperman said with us just about reaching “peak oil production” worldwide, we are going to have to go to alternatives, one of which he said he finds quite viable is: “mass transportion…” After interviewing Professor Opperman, I was interviewed by the Bowling Green State University newspaper. I told the reporter we would take the information about BG’s “green bus” and talk about it across the country in our travels — with the hopes of inspiring municipalities to consider fleets of these. Note: I also told the BG News reporter that while I didn’t pander to anyone, our campaign promise to the BG students would be to change the national symbol from an eagle to a: falcon (BG’s mascott). He smiled. [I tried that last election, but obviously to no avail.]
We’ve headed back into Northwest Ohio where we stumped in downtown Port Clinton and then we were interviewed by the News Herald there. Reporter Kristina Smith asked my wife (and ‘almost First Lady’) Liz about the long road we’ve been on (three elections, 75,000 miles to date). Liz responded that: “We live in a culture of instant gratification. This (the campaign) is long term. It is a real commitment.” During the interview, I said America should be stridently exploring alternative energy sources. [However, one alternative energy source I am adamantly opposed to is: nuclear power.] This evening we took our children to a small beach on Lake Erie, in Port Clinton. As they walked the shore line looking for driftwood and shells, off in the distance — in what could be best described as an: eerie back drop — the Davis Bessee Nuclear Power Plant’s steam rose into the dreary, gray twilight sky. Just a couple years prior, (in what received much national coverage) a part of the Davis Bessee reactor had corroded to an alarming, razor thin thickness — before it was discovered. This technology, based on the research we’ve done, is way too dangerous. And in our quest for “immediate gratification (in the case of nuclear power: abundant energy now),” to quote Liz, we are putting children in this generation, and those in future generations, at tremendous risk. Note: Earlier in the day, we stopped at the Coffee Express in Port Clinton. T-shirts on the employees of the coffee house all read: “Life is short… Stay awake for it!” Let’s all stay awake for this nuclear thing as well.
We spent the weekend back in Cleveland’s inner city. While back here, I talked with Joe Bouman who is running for Mayor of North Olmsted ( a suburb a bit southwest of Cleveland). A strong one for fiscal responsibilty, Bouman showed me one of his campaign signs. It read: “Vote Joe… If You Want Dough.” In an article in Elyria, Ohio’s Chronical-Telegram newspaper, Bouman was quoted as saying: “I’m disappointed in the performance of the (local) administration, especially in waste and debt.” Likewise, on a national level: we have amassed quite a debt. Someone told me USA Today had recently run a piece saying that the current Federal deficit translated to a whopping $124,000 for every man, woman, and child in the U.S. I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m not sure how I’m going to come up with that much… On Sunday afternoon, our kids played football with some inner city kids in a school yard parking lot. I joined in for awhile. The kids (ages 8 to 12) seemed to be having a great time, and were quite lost in the play. Some were probably trying to mentally escape from what’s going on at home. The backdrop for this game was dilapidated row-houses — with metal bars on most of the windows. Inside, some parents (I’m sure) we’re getting drunk, or high, watching the Cleveland Browns football game. (None of the parents were watching their kids play on this cold, gray afternoon.) I couldn’t help but look beyond the game on this parking lot… to these kids’ futures. Fighting the odds (of getting out) seemed about as dismal as this gray Fall afternoon weather in Cleveland.