I thought it rather amusing that the Greater Cleveland Partnership (GCP) listed its priorities for stimulus money from Washington recently as the Plain Dealer quoted Sherwin-Williams CEO Chris Conner, GCP’s chairman. Just the guy who would know what the ordinary Cleveland resident most needs. Laughably, three pages over the PD by happenstance reports Conners’s annual income. A measly annual rate of $6,203,510.

 Just another regular guy telling us what to do with our public money.

The article was headlined as GCP’s propagandists would want it to be:

“A push for more minorities.”

Conner is quoted at the GCP annual meeting saying, “We need to accelerate economic inclusion. Why? It’s vitally important to our economic health… that all citizens participate actively in the region.”

Nice for corporate PR desires but where’s the reality?

GCP wants blacks, Hispanics and other minorities to gain more in the executive suites and the workforce. The article didn’t say how many executives at Sherwin-Williams occupy executive status. That might tell us too much.

However, the list of priority projects of GCP hardly projects a thrust that would benefit minorities. Indeed, it smells of the same old corporate elite agenda.

More for us, less for you.

The GCP wants stimulus money for Opportunity Corridor – the propaganda-made name for “Let’s bypass inner city neighborhoods to get to University Circle without seeing any blacks.” People can scoot by the decay without having to notice the city’s ills with the $300-million dream ghetto runabout. How convenient.

Most of the GCP agenda hardly represents the needs of ordinary Clevelanders, never mind those of minorities and those of lower economic status. Maybe we can get to those next year or the next decade.

Of course, Port relocation is on the wish list as is the Flats East Bank (Wolstein) project. A few hundred millions of dollars, they say, is all that’s needed. How about another $50 to $80 million subsidy to stabilize the West 25th area of the Cuyahoga that is slipping into the river. We need a luxury housing site to tax abate for a lucky developer.

Some “push” for minorities, GCP and Connor!

It’s not to say that some infrastructure needs are not good for the most of Cleveland/Cuyahoga residents. But the list certainly leans heavily to the desires of corporate, not public interests.

But can’t we have a bit of truth. This isn’t an agenda for minorities. It’s the agenda – as it always is – of the big money people, for the big money people, by the big money people.

The problem – a bit of truth, cast in language people can understand – might awaken the quiet masses. That would, indeed, be awful, right?