Fort Wayne Observed

Cornfield horses

Seen in north central Illinois along US 24.

Photo credit: Fort Wayne Observed | Mitch Harper

Travel in Iowa

Travel at the end of last week took me to Iowa.

Yes, I filled up.

Photo credit: Fort Wayne Observed | Mitch Harper

Timed out

There are morning newspapers, there are fewer and fewer afternoon newspapers, and then there is the new category of "throughout the day" newspapers.

At 6:28 A.M. here is the recording Journal Gazette subscribers heard when they called the Fort Wayne Newspapers phone number:

We apologize.

The Journal Gazette routes are running very late this morning and are being delivered throughout the day.  Thank you.

When the print edition of the Journal Gazette is not delivered timely, it also means a delay in Fort Wayne for Wall Street Journal home delivery.

More: Craig Klugman note.

Rohrbacher's obituary show opens Saturday

Kat Rohrbacher in front of her latest exhibition, “Memento Mori,” which features her drawings of Fort Wayne residents who died during the month of April 2007 and had pictures run with their obituary.

From yesterday's News-Sentinel article on Rohrbacher's show:

What: Opening reception for “Memento Mori”
When: 7-10 p.m. Saturday
Where: SOMA Gallery 1430 W. Main St. in Fort Wayne
Cost: $1 for reception
Note: The exhibit will continue through July 10 by appointment only; call 409-3123 to schedule a time.

More photos from the exhibition follow on the continuation page.

The Second Amendment

The Supreme Court ruled on the Heller v DC case; its opinion states that Second Amendment guarantees a personal right to carry a firearm.  That's news.

Paul Helmke disagrees with the ruling.  That's not news, that was to be expected.

Deputy Mayor to be announced ...

... someday, we suppose.

But it doesn't appear to be anytime soon. There are not even any rumors of rumors circulating the City-County Building.

Presumably the Mayor's Transition Team is still kicking around some possibilities.  As you may recall, the Mayor's Transition Team was reconvened to search for a Deputy Mayor for Fort Wayne.

This has to be a record for the longest transition.  6 months in and still transitioning.

Your neighborly FWOb from your neighborhood library

The ACPL weblog had this entry yesterday:

Recently I started reading Fort Wayne Observed*, a local blog edited by city councilman Mitch Harper, because I wanted to read about the goings-on around Fort Wayne. Why, just today I found out about a monthly bike ride called Critical Mass, which happens the last Friday of every month at 6:30 pm and seeks to make people aware of bicyclists on the roads.

I was pleased to find a huge list of blogs written by Fort Wayne residents, starting about halfway down the left side of the page. Want to know what the neighbors are saying? Whether you like to read political opinions, personal stories, news, or anything else, you’ll find some interesting reading!

Get to know your neighbors. They have a lot to say!

Thanks, Melissa.

Politico: Sylvia Smith knocks the (liberal) bloggers

Ben Smith of the nationally recognized website, POLITICO, has his take on Sylvia Smith's Journal Gazette column.

More: Prior FWOb post on Sylvia Smith, the National Press Club and Larry Sinclair. Prior Jeff Pruit post on Sylvia Smith's First Amendment Fallacy.

Schellinger: an odd lament from a poor sport

Defeated Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jim Schellinger wrote a rather odd guest column published in the Journal Gazette this morning.

Odd because it is a plaintive lament from a candidate who had the most money and the most support from the state Democratic establishment and then proceeded to squander his advantage in what many considered to be one of the most poorly run statewide primary campaigns in memory.

Odd because he failed to take the opportunity to do what most gracious competitors would do for their party after losing a spirited but fair primary.  That is, he failed to take the opportunity to endorse Jill Long Thompson.  It's something he didn't do in the days following the primary and something he didn't do in the weeks running up to the Democratic state convention which was held this last weekend.

The appearance of his column on the first business day after the conclusion of his party's convention was not gracious timing, either.

As the Louisville Courier Journal' Lesly Stedman Weidenbener noted last Friday in her preview of the Democratic state convention:

Thompson narrowly defeated party leaders' choice -- Indianapolis architect Jim Schellinger -- and is working to bring his supporters into her campaign. Schellinger, however, has yet to publicly endorse her, and party leaders didn't say whether he will be at the convention.

Mr. Schellinger asked in his column that those wishing to seek office in the future should seek his sage advice:

I want all of those would-be candidates to know that my door is always open. I would be delighted to help those who might not otherwise run for office understand what a wonderful, life-changing experience it can be.

Can there be many who would seek his political insight?

GM to shut down plant for additional week in July

From the Detroit Free Press:

In addition to its usual two-week holiday shutdown in the beginning of July, GM will idle shut down its truck plants in Ft. Wayne, Ind.; Oshawa, Ontario; Silao, Mexico; and Shreveport, La., for an additional week each in July.