The Ninth Amendment

I wonder how many citizens of the United States of America are aware that the Ninth Amendment to the United States Constitution forbids the government to limit freedoms and rights that are not listed in the Constitution.

The 9th Amendment is concise in its wordage. Don’t take my word for it; read it in its entirety as reproduced below for yourself:

Amendment 9
The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

Clear as mud. Don’t you think? How many people ever talk about or discuss the 9th Amendment? Who would even think about bringing the 9th Amendment into a conversation about our American government? Perhaps, the adherents to the Libertarian Party.

What do you think? What “rights” can we assert are included in that safeguard amendment to our Constitution?

For your contemplation or just for the sake of (perhaps controversial) dialogue, let me throw out a few “rights” that might be covered by the 9th Amendment:
• Safe food, drinking water, and air
• Government-provided comprehensive health care
• Free choice of marriage arrangements (regardless of gender, number of spouses, etc.)
• Freedom from laws or governmental regulations requiring education of children
• The absolute right not to provide financial assistance to private business enterprises
• Purchase of alcohol or any other goods and services at any time on every day of the week (no Sunday laws)
• Freedom from laws or governmental regulations allowing for censorship of any kind including those concerning television, motion pictures, internet, cellular telephones, print media, signs on personal property, etc.
• Immigration into the USA without constraints
• Public breastfeeding
• Public nudity

(Regarding the list of rights above, I have a question for you. Does the following statement seem familiar? “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”)

Disclaimer: The above listing does not necessarily reflect my own personal beliefs, thinking, or perspectives but is intended to provide “food for thought” when addressing the questioning of the meaning of the Ninth Amendment.

Running For Toledo Mayor: Keith Wilkowski

Do we need to Take Back Toledo or do we need to Turn Toledo Around?

I have heard that Keith Wilkowski is making a second attempt to be elected Mayor of the City of Toledo, Ohio. As a former Toledo City Board of Education member, a former Lucas County Commissioner, a former Toledo City Law Director, a former City of Rossford Law Director, and a former Chairman of the Lucas County Democratic Party, Keith Wilkowski is no stranger to public service. There is no shortage of news stories about Keith Wilkowski when one looks at the In The News section of the Keith Wilkowski, Turn Toledo Around, Democrat for Mayor web site.

But what do we really know about Keith Wilkowski? I have known Keith for a number of years, going back to when he was a candidate for election to the Toledo School Board, and even before that because I knew his father Art Wilkowski when Art was an elected member of the Ohio House of Representatives who along with fellow Toledo representatives, Barney Quilter and Casey Jones, masterminded the rise of Verne Riffe as Speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives. (Ah, how I remember those days!)

Rather than relay any inside information I may have regarding Keith Wilkowski, let me just point you to a few places in cyberspace that will allow you to start gathering information you might find helpful in trying to decide about the candidacy of Keith Wilkowski for Mayor of Toledo. I suggest you take a look at:
Politicker
123 People
Campaign Money
The Huffington Post

Use whatever internet search engine you prefer, do a search on Keith Wilkowski, and you will find a lot more information about Keith Wilkowski.

We all know what a Jew looks like. Right?

I received something in an e-mail that I thought I would share with you all.

The e-mail had a subject header of You Don't Look Jewish.

Being the curious person I am and wondering about what a jew looks like, I followed the link contained in the e-mail.

It took me over to a YouTube video. If you care to check it out for yourself, just click on over to [update as of July 9, 2015: the original linked YouTube video is no longer there; consequently I have placed a substitute video]: "The Hebrew Mamita" by The Hebrew Mamita (Vanessa Hidary)

(update as of April 24, 2016) - or, you can watch and listen to The Hebrew Mamita right here:

Look. You Have To. You Need To. Exactly. Right?

How many times do I have to endure listening to asinine verbiage in conversations, speeches, in interview responses, or some other similar oral communications?

Look, you have to understand that I am frustrated at some silly-ass phraseology that tells me what I must do. Look, you need to realize that I do not have to nor do I need to do anything, or react in a way you want me to react, or understand something I have no desire to understand. You understand, don’t you? Exactly, you say.

I thought you would say that. That is another oft overused word or generic response. Exactly.

You catch my drift? Right? Exactly.

Look, you have to acknowledge all this verbal nonsense. I am pleased that you realize you need to agree with me. Exactly. Right?

Exactly. Of course, you have to agree with me on that. And, of course, you need to understand from where I am coming. Of course.

Now then, what is it that you have to say about all this? Look, you need to get it off your chest. Right? Exactly.

Positive Attributes of the City of Toledo and of Lucas County, Ohio.

I am sick and tired of all the negativism that seems to permeate the commentaries and discussions of the City of Toledo and of Lucas County, Ohio. Consequently, I have decided to rattle off just a few of what I perceive, in no specific order, as the positive attributes of Toledo, Ohio and of Lucas County, Ohio.

Moderate Geographical and Population Size
Ethnic, Racial, Religious, and Cultural Diversity
Rail, Air, Water, Highway Hub
Public Bus System
Skilled Workforce
Area Metroparks and Toledo City Parks
Museum of Art
Zoo
Stranahan Theater at Masonic Complex
Symphonic Orchestra
University of Toledo
Area Office on Aging
Children Services Board Agency
Child Support Enforcement Agency
Westfield Shopping Center at Franklin Park
Restaurants
Suburban cities and villages

To reiterate, in my opinion, those are just a few of the attributes. Please feel free to add in the comments section your own list of positive attributes.

Incidentally, I would have loved to put Owens Community College in there, but neither is it in Toledo, nor is it in Lucas County.

p.s. For some really great links, visit ToledoLinks.com.

Ship In A Bottle. Village In A Mall.

It’s absolutely fascinating how some very creative, artistic people can build a ship in a bottle. It takes time, effort, and perseverance to accomplish such a task.

The ship in the bottle is safeguarded from the outside environment and protected from the natural elements of climatic change and shifting weather patterns. That is analogous of how I think of enclosed shopping malls.

For the life of me, I do not understand why some developers have proposed to tear off the roof of an enclosed mall such as the Southwyck Mall in Toledo, Ohio and recycle it into an open-air shopping center. To me, that is just plain dumb. Can you spell S-T-U-P-I-D?

Why would an open-air shopping center be any more lucrative than an enclosed climate-controlled shopping mall in a geographical area that has extremes in weather from the hot to rainy to freezing cold to snow? Please give me a logical answer. I am at a loss to understand the reasoning given me thus far.

I wish some real estate developers would take the concept of a ship in a bottle and apply it creatively to abandoned enclosed shopping malls. Think about it. Imagine if you will a village in a mall.

Take an abandoned or near-abandoned mall and create a self-contained village, I envision a small village under one roof that contains: a nursing home, assisted living units, independent living efficiency and one-bedroom units, medical (doctor, dentist, ophthalmologist, lab, x-ray, etc.) offices, pharmacy, grocery store, dollar general store, hardware store, library, post office, barber, beauty salon, bowling lanes, multi-use theater, diner, theme restaurant, sports bar, coffee shop with free wi-fi, and an indoor park with class roof.

I like that. Instead of tearing down, instead of building anew, it gives expanded use to the concept of recycling. It gives new breath and new life to environmental eyesores that pose the public heath risk of rat-infested abandoned buildings.

How about converting not only Southwyck Mall but also North Towne Mall, a.k.a. Lakeside Centre, in Toledo, Ohio into weather-protected villages. Hmmm. A village in a mall. What do you think?