Arts and Culture

Successful cannabis entrepreneurs may either have their picture in the Wall Street Journal or on a most-wanted poster

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Thu, 10/07/2010 - 23:44.

Legal Medical Marijuana from Broadway Wellness Medical Marijuana dispensary in South Denver, Colorado
Legal Medical Marijuana from Broadway Wellness Medical Marijuana dispensary in South Denver, Colorado

How is it conceivable, in America today, that a seriously ill patient in Boulder, Colorado, may grow, purchase and have a medicine cabinet full of state-licensed medical marijuana (MMJ), while a similarly-ill patient in Cleveland may be imprisoned for pursuing the same medical treatment?

How, in the free-wheeling capitalist US of A, could some states and communities encourage free men and women to be MMJ-millionaires and patients, while MMJ-entrepreneurs and adherents in other markets are arrested... nearly 1 million of them a year.

Why would anyone choose to live in a state of Cannabis denial?

Music at Main: Sugata Chatterjee, Hindustani classical vocalist

Submitted by CPL Fine Arts on Tue, 10/05/2010 - 15:00.
11/06/2010 - 14:00
11/06/2010 - 15:00
Etc/GMT-4

Sugata Chatterjee, Hindustani Classical Vocalist

The Cleveland Public Library Fine Arts Department is pleased to present Sugata Chatterjee, renowned Hindustani classical vocalist, on November 6th, 2010 at 2pm in the Louis Stokes Wing Auditorium (325 Superior Ave., Cleveland, Ohio, 44114). Ms. Chatterjee will be performing this program in honor of Diwali (The Festival of Lights). This concert is FREE and open to all ages. For more information call 216-623-2848 or visit http://cpl.org/musicatmain. Please join us for this informal, intimate and entertaining concert.

Born in Calcutta, singer Sugata Chatterjee has cultivated a systematic and disciplined training from her childhood days under the able guidance of guru Satya Ranjan Chatterjee. Under his tutelage, she completed SANGEET PRABHAKAR (six years diploma in vocal), conferred by Alahabad Sangeet Parsad, India, in 1989. She proceeded on to further her training from Pundit Ajoy Chakraborti, and Pundits Mohanlal Mishra, Falguni Mitra.and Girija Devi. Her versatility now includes Hindustani Khyal, Bhajan, Thumri and Ragpradhan. Ms. Chatterjee is also part-time faculty at the Department of Music, Cuyahoga Community College, Eastern Campus, Cleveland, Ohio.

Location

Cleveland Public Library
325 E. Superior Ave. Louis Stokes Wing Auditorium
Cleveland, OH 44146
United States
Phone: 216-623-2848
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"To dictate what we wear appears to have become the role of the State (as if they didn't have other fish to fry ...)."

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Mon, 10/04/2010 - 16:38.


Click here to load video below...

From a Telegraph article on this video, "Two French female students have made a film of the pair of them strolling through the streets of Paris in a niqab, bare legs and mini-shorts as a critique of France's recently passed law".

"In an opinion piece published on the news website, rue89, the anonymous duo – political science and communication students in their twenties – said the film was a tongue-in-cheek way of criticising France's niqab ban, which the Senate passed last month and is due to go into force early next year"

"To put a simple burka on would have been too simple. So we asked ourselves: 'how would the authorities react when faced with women wearing a burka and mini-shorts?," asked the students, one of whom is a Muslim.

Testing

Submitted by yrsayngling on Wed, 09/29/2010 - 09:37.

 

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We will all have our own suspicions about which practices will someday prompt people to ask, in dismay: What were they thinking?

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sun, 09/26/2010 - 20:29.

I often ponder what are they thinking when I reflect on the current state of modern culture and the environment. Clearly, so does Kwame Anthony Appiah, a philosophy professor at Princeton University, who published an inspiring editorial What will future generations condemn us for? in the September 26, 2010 Washington Post, below - see a poll on this subject at the Washington Post website, and participate in a poll on the same issue on realNEO here - When future generations look back on us, what will shock them most?

As organized labor faces declining membership, one of the country's most storied unions (Teamsters) is looking to marijuana

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sun, 09/26/2010 - 00:39.

Matthew Harris works with a white widow marijuana plant at Marjyn Investments LLC in Oakland, Calif.
He is among 40 workers who joined the Teamsters this month. (Associated Press)

In states where medical marijuana is legal, there are a wide range of jobs created in diverse industries, including healthcare, food preparation, pharmaceutical research and development, retail, and agriculture.  In Ontario, Canada, there are over 100,000 jobs associated with marijuana cultivation alone - and most of the marijuana grown there is exported illegally to America.

A 2010 Pew poll found approximately 40% of Americans have tried Marijuana, about the same number believe marijuana should be legalized outright, and 73% of Americans - over 7 in 10 - believe medicinal marijuana should be legalized. Those polling numbers say the writing is on the wall - marijuana is becoming mainstream industry in America, as Americans get their way nationwide! Where marijuana is legal, it is a high-growth economic engine churning activity in many clusters.

Music at Main: Joshua Rzepka, trumpet

Submitted by CPL Fine Arts on Fri, 09/24/2010 - 10:40.
10/02/2010 - 14:00
10/02/2010 - 15:00
Etc/GMT-4

Josh Rzepka, trumpetThe Cleveland Public Library's Fine Arts Department is pleased to present:

Joshua Rzepka, trumpet
David Thomas, piano

Saturday, October 2, 2 p.m.
3rd floor lobby Main Library

Performing original compositions as well as jazz standards from Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Antonio Carlos Jobim and more.

This program is free and open to all ages. For more information call 216-623-2848.

26 year old rising trumpeter and composer Josh Rzepka has been described as “a musician who doesn’t believe in limits” by the Tribune Chronicle, and as being “gifted” by the Cleveland Plain Dealer. He has been heralded not only for his jazz playing and composing, but for his classical trumpet playing as well.

With his debut classical CD, Josh Rzepka: Baroque Music for Trumpet, he has made a bold follow up to his critically acclaimed debut jazz CD Midwest Coast, released less than a year ago in the fall of 2009. Quickly establishing himself as one of the most versatile upcoming performers in classical and jazz music, Josh has performed across the country at famed venues including Severance Hall, Boston’s Symphony Hall, Cleveland’s NightTown, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Knitting Factory in NYC. As a soloist Josh has presented recitals and concerts ranging from the baroque, to the modern, to original jazz.

Josh earned his Masters of Music at Boston University and is a graduate of the renowned Oberlin Conservatory of music with a double major in classical and jazz trumpet performance.

Location

Cleveland Public Library - Main
325 Superior Ave 3rd floor lobby
Cleveland, OH 44114
United States
Phone: 216-623-2848

THIRD FRIDAY at 78th Street Studios – October 15, 2010

Submitted by Where4ARThou on Thu, 09/23/2010 - 13:49.
10/15/2010 - 17:00
10/15/2010 - 21:00
Etc/GMT-4

A monthly building-wide art walk showcasing west-side Cleveland’s largest art center, home to world class art galleries, artist studios, and creative businesses

Location

78th Street Studios
1300 W 78th St
Cleveland, OH 44102
United States
Phone: 4405035506
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realNEO Word of the Day: Scheme - [skeem] - Unfavorable overtones (selfish, devious) began to creep in early 18c.

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Tue, 09/21/2010 - 10:28.

scheme
   [skeem] noun, verb, schemed, schem·ing.
–noun
1. a plan, design, or program of action to be followed; project.
2. an underhand plot; intrigue.
3. a visionary or impractical project.
4. a body or system of related doctrines, theories, etc.: a scheme of philosophy.
5. any system of correlated things, parts, etc., or the manner of its arrangement.
6. a plan, program, or policy officially adopted and followed, as by a government or business: The company's pension scheme is very successful.
7. an analytical or tabular statement.
8. a diagram, map, or the like.
9. an astrological diagram of the heavens.
–verb (used with object)
10. to devise as a scheme; plan; plot; contrive.
–verb (used without object)
11. to lay schemes; devise plans; plot.

The fall of a few mafioso politicos is far from the end of the house-cleaning needed in Northeast Ohio and Ohio

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sun, 09/19/2010 - 07:00.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer pimped the Opportunity Corridor into existence and has greatly disrupted our economy over that - the St. Louis-sourced publisher Terry Egger is the leader of the Opportunity Corridor whorehouse and bulldozing committee - flightless queen-bee-designee Terri Hamilton Brown exists for the Opportunity Corridor - ex-Con made Concilman Jeff Johnson pimps for it - RPM Prince Randell McShepard and Most-Made-Handmaid-to-the-Rich Ronayne Pimp for it - Gund top-gun Abbott Pimps for it - flabbergasting Cleveland Foundation flops Richards and Kuri pimp for it - and the usual suspects that profit from it pimp for it... Cleveland Clinic, all organizations UCI and all local universities, some churches and non-profits, the CDCs and their sponsors, the architects and contractors and their trolls, the unions... the web of crooks who have fucked up everything in this region for decades, and are the enablers of all the corruption now being dismantled with County and city government here, by the FBI. The state, county and city levels of government have failed and are being dismantled here, along with the entire statewide mafioso Democratic party regime and their networks of funders, contractors and colluders.

So when the incompetent, sell-out, paid-to-pimp Cleveland Plain Dealer proclaims in their latest pimping for the Opportunity Corridor that "The project is a top priority of elected, business and neighborhood leaders", I'd like to know EXACTLY who are the elected, business and neighborhood leaders that are not corrupt and benefiting financially from the Opportunity Corridor and are willing to step forward today, with the degree of corruption at all levels of leadership here, and say the Opportunity Corridor is the top priority for Cleveland and Northeast Ohio today.

I want to know, before the next election, which candidates for any offices are pimping that the Opportunity Corridor is the Top Priority of the region.

NOW THAT'S A NICE HEADER

Submitted by Keith Winston on Sat, 09/18/2010 - 14:52.

    I Love this header because I'm always thinking and praying for my boys. They are victims of the system and I'm just not fortunate enough to have alot of money which is only what they wanted but there's a bigger eye in the sky that see EVERYTHING!!!! and I hope to oneday see them again as free men before I leave this place.               LATER!!!

Cleveland Public Library Social Sciences Book Club Discussion 10-14-10

Submitted by newmillenniumli... on Fri, 09/17/2010 - 09:46.

The Social Sciences Department of the Cleveland Public Library will hold their non-fiction book club discussion Thursday, October 14, 2010 at 12:00 PM in the Social Sciences Department.  We will discuss the book entitled, "When Ghosts Speak", by Mary Ann Winkowski.

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Time to Take Down the Ivy League Boys Behind the Corruption in Ohio, Starting With X-Commissioner Peter Lawson Jones

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Fri, 09/17/2010 - 06:00.

Part I: County commissioners Jones and Hagan talk about Dimora

Seeing Commissioner Lawson Jones on stage on his Cuyahoga commissioners' pulpit, claiming "I am not a crook", with his co-moron-in-office Tim Hagan, makes me physically ill. I shared valuable intellectual property and spent significant time trying to improve this community for such scum, believing they were honest and caring for citizens. Now I look forward to seeing Jones, his cronies and their families suffer the full consequences of their actions. As one contribution to cleaning house here in Northeast Ohio, I intend to lead a recall drive against Commissioner Jones' political protégé, Gary Norton, who was made Mayor of East Cleveland under illegal circumstances.

We as a community have much more to learn, share and discuss about the take-down of local government finally upon us

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Thu, 09/16/2010 - 06:05.

Jimmy Dimora reacts after arraignment in federal court

We as a community have much more to learn, share and discuss about the take-down of local government finally upon us. From current reporting on Cleveland.com, it appears there are innumerable sitting judges, Cleveland city officials and other county officials, employees, appointees and contractors still to go down, along with a massive web of area businesspeople.

I proposed positive change to some of the officials who appear to be going down, and I was disappointed by my experiences working with them. So I have long considered the "County" corrupt... the "Democrats" corrupt. Based on my observations from the outside, we are just seeing the very beginning of the FBI actions against public and private parties here, and it seems things will get far worse before they get better - Jimmy DiMora and his goon squad will see to that, as demonstrated in the video above.

TruthDig - Do Not Pity the Democrats: Our Menace is Unrivaled Corporate Power and the Decay of Our Democratic Institutions

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Thu, 09/16/2010 - 04:52.

Chris Hedges  September 13, 2010 - TruthDig

There are no longer any major institutions in American society, including the press, the educational system, the financial sector, labor unions, the arts, religious institutions and our dysfunctional political parties, which can be considered democratic. The intent, design and function of these institutions, controlled by corporate money, are to bolster the hierarchical and anti-democratic power of the corporate state. These institutions, often mouthing liberal values, abet and perpetuate mounting inequality. They operate increasingly in secrecy. They ignore suffering or sacrifice human lives for profit. They control and manipulate all levers of power and mass communication. They have muzzled the voices and concerns of citizens. They use entertainment, celebrity gossip and emotionally laden public-relations lies to seduce us into believing in a Disneyworld fantasy of democracy.

The menace we face does not come from the insane wing of the Republican Party, which may make huge inroads in the coming elections, but the institutions tasked with protecting democratic participation. Do not fear Glenn Beck or Sarah Palin. Do not fear the tea party movement, the birthers, the legions of conspiracy theorists or the militias. Fear the underlying corporate power structure, which no one, from Barack Obama to the right-wing nut cases who pollute the airwaves, can alter. If the hegemony of the corporate state is not soon broken we will descend into a technologically enhanced age of barbarism. 

Gov. Strickland Uses Ignorant Science Against Marijuana to Condemn Citizens to Pharmaceutical, Petrochemical and Police Control

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Wed, 09/15/2010 - 07:09.

There are few intelligent, informed, unbiased people still walking the Earth so ignorant or corrupt as to publicly preach against Marijuana, hemp, and their health and industrial benefits to society and the Earth, but the State of Ohio is ruled by such a Neanderthal - Ohio Democratic Governor Ted Strickland - who is likely to lose his position of power to a Republican in the upcoming November election because he is such a cowardly, industry sell-out. His Lieutenant Governor, Lee Fisher - thinking he had some success in his work with Strickland that he should build-upon - seems positioned to hand an Ohio Senate Seat to a Republican for similar display of cowardice. And they certainly deserve to lose.

According to the Marijuana Policy Project, about the progress of Ohio to join the civilized world allowing the sick to use marijuana to live better, our Governor is already a loser, and deserves to lose re-election... “The governor feels that the predominant opinion of the medical community is that there are existing medicines available that provide appropriate patient care,“ said a statement issued recently. “So based on that opinion and the current research, he feels this type of legislation doesn’t seem necessary or warranted.

As Ohio is so contaminated by pollution - especially from the heavy mining and industry Strickland and Fisher have supported here - the citizens here live unhealthy lives and die young, horrible deaths. To deny citizens access to any medicine to help comfort them - especially a medicine that may be grown for free - is criminal. Below is more from MPP about the pathetic leadership of Ohio, and what citizens may do about them - followed by a recent article by a doctor about the medical benefits of Marijuana - Andrew Weil: Medical Marijuana's Tremendous Potential for Curing Ailments - Cutting through all the government misinformation - and some of the politics around denying those benefits to citizens, as is perpetuated by sell-out mis-informers like our Ohio Governor Ted Strickland...

Aspire Auctions September Art & Antique Auction

Submitted by Aspire on Thu, 09/09/2010 - 14:57.
09/17/2010 - 10:00
09/25/2010 - 17:00
Etc/GMT-4
Pablo Picasso "Woman-Faced Wood-Owl" est $2,000-4,000

Cleveland-based Aspire Auctions, based in Cleveland, Ohio, ushers in the fall with a September 2010 auction. Opening for online bidding on Friday the 17th at 10 am, this dazzling array of nearly 1700 lots includes paintings, furniture, jewelry, antiquities, decorative arts and much more.  

Location

The Bloch Building/Aspire Auctions
2310 Superior Ave. East entrance and parking on 23rd street
Cleveland, OH 44114
United States
Phone: 216-231-5515
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"And that’s what the American people expect of us today -– Democrats, independents, and Republicans." - President Obama

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Wed, 09/08/2010 - 20:24.

Dahlia in Evelyn's garden - East Cleveland

President Barack Obama gave a personable and hopeful speech to an invitation-only Democratic booster-club crowd of 1,300 smiling faces, at Tri-C West College, in Parma, Ohio, today - showing how concerned the National Democratic party is over under-performance and downright failure by leaders of their party here

Appropriate to the weak local platform on which he stands, the President expressed humility, flexibility and openness to change local and national focus within his economic policy. This was not a commanding speech, but one seeking broader coalition. In fact, the speech acknowledged failure under his administration and the role of Independents in the future.

Start Fresh in September at Cleveland Public Library

Submitted by Cleveland Publi... on Tue, 09/07/2010 - 11:27.

September is an opportunity to “Start Fresh” at Cleveland Public Library (CPL) to allow patrons the ability to return overdue books and materials free of fines for the entire month.

“These are difficult economic times and this initiative gives our patrons an opportunity to bring their overdue books back without embarrassment, and encourages them to come back to the library,” said Felton Thomas, executive director of CPL. “Library books that are not returned cannot be used by others in the community.”

Song of the Day: "Take 5" - Dave Brubeck... King Tubby

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Tue, 09/07/2010 - 01:39.

Filmed in Germany, in 1966, this version of the Paul Desmond classic "Take 5" - Dave Brubeck Quartet - is especially beautiful to hear and watch - great composition - upbeat tempo - excellent improvisations - classic German camera-work - austere staging and lighting - crisp clean high fidelity recording - showing how cool four cats in the 50s and 60s could be. Upon his death in 1977, Desmond left the rights to royalties for performances and compositions, including "Take Five", to the American Red Cross, which has since received combined royalties of approximately $100,000 per year.

Welcome David Franklin and hope he makes the Cleveland Museum of Art a greater asset to this community, by stopping burning coal

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Mon, 09/06/2010 - 12:12.

Cleveland Museum of Art

The Medical Center Company provides dirty, polluting coal-powered heat to many of Northeast Ohio's most "cherished" organizations, including the Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA), seriously compromising the value of the CMA to citizens of the region and world - this is being opposed by the real leaders of this community. As the Cleveland Museum of Art has just hired a new Director, David Franklin, from Canada, I must wonder if the Board and Trustees who hired him advised him on these issues surrounding the heating of his new home. Immediately, before worrying about exhibition schedules and completion of the museum expansion, Mr. Franklin must plan to move his museum away from coal, meaning move CMA away from heat from MCCO.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer posted a welcoming opinion editorial championing the Cleveland Museum of Art and its new director to the public, and I was pleased to add to that opinion the fact Mr. Franklin must have very different priorities than the other leadership in University Circle ever has - he must oppose using coal to heat his museum, polluting his community, and he must lead other organizations in University Circle away from coal. How he does that will in fact be his greatest challenge ever. I wish him success, as I always wish the CMA success. I am a sincere supporter of the Museum - the right kind of supporter, without compromise.

Too Good To Ignore - Fox News Shoots Itself In Foot Over The Ground Zero Mosque

Submitted by Charles Frost on Sun, 09/05/2010 - 23:07.

The Parent Company Trap

Fox News is either evil or stupid for not mentioning that Alwaleed bin Talal is News Corp.'s largest shareholder.

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/mon-august-23-2010/

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realNEO Word of the Day: Corrupt [kuh-ruhpt]

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Wed, 09/01/2010 - 16:26.

Explore the Visual Thesaurus »

cor·rupt  [kuh-ruhpt]

—Synonyms
1.  false, untrustworthy. Corrupt, dishonest, venal  apply to one, esp. in public office, who acts on mercenary motives, without regard to honor, right, or justice. A corrupt  politician is one originally honest who has succumbed to temptation and begun questionable practices. A dishonest  politician is one lacking native integrity. A venal  politician is one so totally debased as to sell patronage.