I hope someone doesn’t spend too much time trying to find Cinergy Field. I guess that there must be some city department that handles this type of thing.
CNNMoney.com: Satirists cash in on oil spill
Sad, but funny.
Cincinnati.com: Another Shepard Fairey mural painted over
This is a case of vandalism as the owner was not involved in the painting over. This is really embarrassing to Cincinnati as it reinforces the perception or the reality that we’re not very accepting of new ideas.
UPDATE: Here’s a picture of what the mural looked like before it was vandalized.
Virgil’s Cafe on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives tonight at 10PM Food Network.
I have a guess about what might be on DDD tonight:
I was at Virgil’s Cafe in Bellevue last Sunday for brunch and tried the DDD Breakfast sausage napoleon. It was delicious! 
I noticed that since the last time I was there, the art on the walls had changed and the creepy clown painting was gone.
It was replaced with some smaller prints that I couldn’t quite make out from where I was sitting. Not really an improvement on the clown. 
Cincinnati.com: Listings For All 7 Area “Diners” Shows Starting Tonight
NYTimes.com: For One Promising Pitcher, No Need to Tour the Minors
Nice article on Reds’ rookie phenom Mike Leake. In the short time Leake’s been with the Reds, he’s become one of my favorite pitchers to watch. Leake doesn’t have overpowering stuff, but he’s got great control, mixes speeds, and challenges hitters. It’s just fun to watch.
Cincinnati.com: Shepard Fairey mural painted over after objections
This is over in Covington, KY, 242 W. Pike St., in the middle of the Covington Arts District.
From this:
to this:
From the article:
Michael A. Claypool, who owns the building and the business, said Thursday about the mural, “We had no clue what they were going to put up. When it went up, we were the first to think it was offensive.”
My reaction:
Know what you’re getting into when you volunteer your building for artwork. My first reaction was that Shepard Fairey probably should have chosen a more appropriate image if he knew that there was a school nearby. But, thinking about this more, is the image really offensive? Isn’t art supposed to provoke some kind of thought or discussion. Like, why is this Southeast Asian child carrying a gun? Painting over things won’t make issues in the world go a way.
UPDATE: Here’s more information about the image, Duality of Humanity 4.
Pro Series Tetherball. For kids that want to grow up and play professional tetherball. 
NYTimes.com: Bristol Palin to Hit Speakers’ Circuit
Bristol Palin is hitting the speakers’ circuit and will command between $15,000 and $30,000 for each appearance, Palin family attorney Thomas Van Flein said Monday
…
Bristol Palin, 19, is listed on the speaking group’s website as available for conferences, fundraisers, special events and holidays, as well as women’s, youth, abstinence and ”pro-life” programs.
If there’s anything the Palin’s know how to do, it’s cashing in. Now you can have Bristol over the holidays speaking about how abstinence teen pregnancy pays!
USAToday.com: Tax bills in 2009 at lowest level since 1950
Federal, state and local taxes — including income, property, sales and other taxes — consumed 9.2% of all personal income in 2009, the lowest rate since 1950, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reports. That rate is far below the historic average of 12% for the last half-century. The overall tax burden hit bottom in December at 8.8.% of income before rising slightly in the first three months of 2010.
No one wants to pay taxes, but if you listen to the conservative rhetoric, you’d think that we’re being taxed at the highest rate ever. But it’s not so.
Newsweek.com: Why I Hate 3-D (and You Should Too)
3-D is a waste of a perfectly good dimension. Hollywood’s current crazy stampede toward it is suicidal. It adds nothing essential to the moviegoing experience. For some, it is an annoying distraction. For others, it creates nausea and headaches. It is driven largely to sell expensive projection equipment and add a $5 to $7.50 surcharge on already expensive movie tickets. Its image is noticeably darker than standard 2-D. It is unsuitable for grown-up films of any seriousness. It limits the freedom of directors to make films as they choose. For moviegoers in the PG-13 and R ranges, it only rarely provides an experience worth paying a premium for.
I agree with everything Roger Ebert has to say about 3-D films. I love technology and its use in films is good if it can advance a story and bring a meaningful new experience. I think in the right hands, like James Cameron with Avatar it can be beautiful, but with others it is just another noisy visual special effect.