Thanks for responding.

First off, I feel like a super-schmuck for getting Amelia’s name wrong. (I hate when people do that to me, so I publicly apologize!)

I wasn’t suggesting that you should ever edit your interviews. Just that maybe we should all think twice about using that word. (I’m no fan of “white trash”, either. People I love have been on the receiving end of it and it makes me queasy.)

I hope you can understand that people say things like that, it can be misconstrued as, for lack of a better word, snobby. I love the life that Bar Cento has brought to Ohio City. Hey, I called Bar Cento one of the Five Things Every Cleveland Expat Should See and I’m taking one of them there this week – I just don’t want people to think of Ohio City (or its institutions) as snobby. You know?

And you’re right, anyway… back to food. :)

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I really enjoyed this interview with Amelia. I think she made a lot of great points, and she’s entertaining.

Regarding the interviews, I typically never edit words out of an interview – that defeats the puspose. The only items I ever edit are grammatical – and I’m sure I miss a lot of those :)

As for the word itself, I highly doubt anything was meant by it, but I can appreciate your comments and point of view. For me personally, I try to be pretty PC when I talk. But again, and granted I can’t speak for her, I think she was just trying to convey a point and not trying to offend anyone. Right or wrong, it’s actually a term I hear all the time from people describing something or another – from my white and black friends. And it’s never used with any harm. I guess to me, it’s like when people say it’s hillbillie, or white trash, etc.

Ok – back to food!

That’s true – sort of. Of course everyone is entitled to their opinion. But this blog actually has a pretty high profile, as far as local blogs go. If you Google “Cleveland food blog”, Cleveland Foodie is the 3rd hit. This blog regularly gets linked to on Brewed Fresh Daily and Cool Cleveland. So this *is* part of the public discourse.

There is also a vast middleground between using a word with such a derogatory and possibly classist connotation and “sugar-coating.” Sugar-coating would be saying that RTA is the “bestest transit system EVAR and don’t you dare knock it!!” Which I didn’t — and wouldn’t — say.

The interview was great, otherwise. I agreed with much of Amanda’s assessment of Cleveland. She sounds like a bright and spirited person. And I like Bar Cento, for the most part – I live nearby and eat there with some degree of regularity.

So I’m just going to offer this as perhaps a better way to express the same sentiment:

“I wish that Cleveland had more transit-oriented development, especially in areas where I want to live. I wish that there was more being done to eradicate poverty in Northeast Ohio so I would feel safer using public transit. I wish Cleveland’s trains went where I want them to go.”

You can agree or disagree. And please don’t think I’m taking some snooty high-road here…I just think we should all think twice about using that word.

Regarding the public transit comment:

I’m not sure “ghetto” is an adjective that belongs in civilized discourse. It’s judgmental, unwarranted, and unfortunately characterizes the attitude between the haves and have nots in Cleveland, which (IMO) has gotten worse in recent years.

If you do think that RTA could use some improvement, I highly encourage you to contact them – they’re very receptive to customer feedback. You can even email me – christine AT christineborne DOT net and I’ll do an email introduction for you.

ok, i’m done saying love.

Franny’s is one of my favorite restaurants ever. I dream of their inventive cocktails and remarkable food.