It is interesting how content drives readership, how it is that viewers find a site, because Google or some other search engine has directed them to the site. The number one post in the last 30 days, with 521 hits, was an article that contained PDF files of the exact language of the five state-wide issues.

1. See Exact Language For Four Proposed Amendments 521
2. See List of Montgomery County Candidates 258
3. As Richard Cooey Faces Execution, Does ” 245
4. Oktoberfest 2008 at the Dayton Art Institute 222
5. Kucinich Says $700 Billion Bail Out Should 203
6. Issue 6: Columbus Dispatch Urges “No” Vote 196
7. Noted Economist, Satyajit Das, Compares 165
8. Nouriel Roubini, Prescient Economist Kno 158
9. “We Learned A Terrible Lesson,” Only One 150
10. Obama Rally Draws Enthusiastic Crowd To 140
11. Fannie And Freddie Not Responsible For H 123
12. Does The Rise Of Sarah Palin Illustrate The Peter Principle At Work? 112
13. Paul Krugman: “Ugly Financial Crisis Wi 111
14. Mike Turner’s “No” Vote Was Attempt To Boost His “Conservative” Credentials 106
15. Naomi Klein Says Economic Crises Repudiates Milton Friedman Doctrines, Right-wing Trotskyists 102
16. “Stealing America One Vote At A Time” At Neon Movies Next Wednesday, Oct.1 99
17. Thomas Friedman: Putting A Total Novice Like Sarah Palin In Charge Would Be “Flat Out Reckless,” The Opposite Of Conservative 99
18. Mike Turner Is A Bum, For Our Democracy’s Sake, Let’s Throw The Bum Out 98
19. Mike Turner Votes “No” On Bailout ; Boehner Blames Pelosi For Bill’s Defeat 97
20. Dan Lipsky involved in consumer fraud? 96
21. Candidates are Certified for March 4 Primary — Few Primary Contests Have Competition 93
22. Montgomery County Jail Computer SNAFU stops visits 90
23. Nouriel Roubini Warns Of Possible “Mother Of All Bank Runs,” Urges Morgan Stanley and Goldmam Sachs To Find Foreign Buyers 89
24. Presidential Slogans: 2008, the year of the fully marketed president 85
25. Is This The End For The GOP? 78
26. Chief Economic Advisor To Kucinich Decries $700 Billion Bail Out, Asks, “Where Are The Revolutionists Today?” 77
27. Is This Church Violating IRS Tax Exempt Rules 70
28. John Doll Says: Jon Husted Won’t Live In District, And If Elected, Won’t Finish Term 69
29. Obama’s Fraudulent ACORN Campaign 68
30. Shouldn’t How To Increase Wealth, How To Fairly Distribute Wealth, Be At The Center Of Our Political Debate? 68
31. State Budget Bill Includes Millions in Pork 68
32. Charlie Gibson, ABC World News, Visits Dayton 64
33. For Congressman Mike Turner, “Pork Has Been a Family Affair” — Mother Jones 57
34. Chris Widener, Republican Senate Candidate, Boasts About Tax Cuts, But How Will He Solve Ohio’s Budget Crisis? 56
35. How To Make The DDN / WMUB Election Forum More Educative 54

Steve Austria, today, writing in the DDN, denied that he is mediocre and listed legislative accomplishments to attempt to prove his point. Austria is the Republican candidate to represent Ohio’s 7th District in the US Congress, to replace retiring Republican, David Hobson.

Austria’s article responded to the DDN’s prior endorsement of Austria’s Democratic opponent, Sharen Neuhardt. The DDN’s October 17 editorial urged its readers to choose Neuhardt saying, “Neuhardt is the smarter, bolder choice for 7th District,” and warned that if Austria is elected this year, the 7th District is likely to be stuck with him. The DDN wrote, “If the voters of the 7th District choose Sen. Austria, they are settling for mediocrity, quite possibly on a long-term basis.“

The newspaper seems to be encouraging Republicans in the 7th District, rather than settle for mediocrity, to reject Austria and to use the next two years to find a stronger, more imaginative Republican — one who would be worthy of support for a long career.

Austria in his ads emphasizes that he is “conservative” and accuses Neuhardt of being a “liberal trial lawyer with extreme views.” But the DDN in its editorial endorsement said Neuhardt is in the “mainstream” and, in fact, in 2006 voted for incumbent congressman, Republican Dave Hobson.

Austria makes a big deal in his TV ads that he is all in favor of making Bush’s tax cuts to the wealthy permanent. The biggest beneficiary of that tax cut, by far, was incomes in excess of $250,000. Austria brags that in the Ohio Assembly he helped pass Ohio’s 2005 Tax Reduction Act, but, again doesn’t say that this tax cut disproportionately benefited top incomes. The 2005 law reduced personal income taxes by $2.2 billion each year. What Austria doesn’t say in his ad is that Ohio’s 2005 law, that he helped construct, gave 26% of this big tax cut to a very small group of taxpayers — to incomes in excess of $340,000, averaging about $650,000.

The original DDN editorial that rejected Austria had two parts. The second part used a strong word in the headline — “shameless” — to describe Austria’s attacks on Neuhardt for befriending a Rwandan refugee, and suggests that Austria is engaging in “gutter politics of the most despicable sort.” Austria likes to use the word “harboring,” but the DDN defends Neuhardt’s actions in helping this refugee and shames Austria for making her generosity in doing so a matter of political attack.

The DDN says, “Sen. Austria points to the case as symbolic of the country’s immigration problem. Not even close. This isn’t about people crossing the southern border in pursuit of jobs. This country’s policy of providing asylum to people who face persecution — bureaucratic as the process is — speaks to our sense of humanity. Sen. Austria needs to display that same sense of decency.”

Here is an exchange between Austria and Neuhardt, during their debate, about the Rwandan refugee: