SEARCHING FOR CLEVELAND'S SOUL

About a month ago a hapless judge in Cleveland, under intense pressure from a community posse, sentenced two young men to 2000 hours of community service [1] (no  affirmation intended/rebutted re: Planetizen viewpoint) to be served over 5 years.

This sentence, the way I break it down,  means that the fellows sentenced will not be able to hold down a legit job because they will need to work in community service for 10 weeks out of 52 for each of the next five years.  Any screw up and their PO will pull them back into court - I don’t think either of the two will make it for 5 years without going to jail. 

That’s a crime. 

Just what NEO doesn’t need…2 more young males just at the threshold of productive lives…stuck in the “justice” system.   Our tax dollars demolishing our society…

I would have imposed a sentence which required the two to improve their graffiti, be responsible about where it was “hung”, and direct their art towards more powerful public expression. 

Think I am nuts? 

Then argue with the art on the bricks!

fyi:  The top image is a panorama sticking together images from about the middle one third of a 200 foot long mural.  I spoke with two of the neighbors who live next to this mural.   One fellow told me he keeps the ivy vines from obscuring the images and picks up the trash blown up against the wall.  The other neighbor told me the mural had been there for at least 10 years - and it hadn't been defaced.  No one knew who the artist was...anyone out there know?   With all the boarded up houses around, the mural's energy was of real value...