During the recent GLAG there was a lot of discussion and interest regarding the creation of a regional print publication that would contain news, stories, commentary and a variety of content of interest to people living in the Great Lakes region.

We have a good number of people here locally that are willing to do work on such a project and have some experience in this area, and would like to start a dialogue with others in the region who have a definite interest in being involved.

For those of you that might be interested, what would you like to see in such a publication? Content, size, circulation, schedule, format, etc., are all things that ought to be discussed before we begin.

So, feel free to chime in and share your ideas, experience and expertise so we can get the ball rolling!

This morning, the owners of Bernardin, Lochmueller, & Associates in Maryville, Illinois were popping aspirins to deal with their headaches. Maybe the underlings enjoyed the day off. The company car had all four tires slashed, headlights, windows, and mirrors busted out, and paint job ruined. The office building had its locks glued, windows smashed, and exterior painted with "187 ON I-69" and "THE FRONTLINE IS EVERYWHERE."

Police say they're not worried about a document posted on a web site by a self-described anarchist protest group that shows how delegates will get to and from the Republican National Convention.

Pete Panos, St. Paul Police spokesman, said officials aren't sure the March 5 document is authentic. But even if it is, Panos said, it would be "a working document we used at one time." Moreover, Panos said the posted document contains mostly "common sense stuff."

EPA: Salad dressing runoff floods Ohio homes

By Associated Press

POSTED: 08:31 a.m. EDT, Jul 02, 2008

COLUMBUS: An Ohio EPA official says creamy ranch dressing mixed with sewage and storm runoff in the flooded basements of at least 10 Columbus homes.

Sewage from T. Marzetti Co., a Columbus-based salad dressing maker, overwhelmed the Columbus storm-sewer system during heavy rains last week. A resident reported the problem to the state's Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday.

The EPA's Michael Dalton says the agency suspects that the factory's pipes merge with nearby homes, but aren't wide enough to handle extra water during a storm.

Neighbors have complained to the EPA over the last 30 years about discharges from the city sewage line that serves Marzetti into a creek. A company representative wouldn't comment on Monday.

Group chides Ohio for link to sweatshop factories

By Stephen Majors
Associated Press writer

POSTED: 08:29 a.m. EDT, Jul 02, 2008

COLUMBUS: An anti-sweatshop group wants Ohio to pressure two companies it does business with to improve what it says are abusive working conditions in factories abroad.

SweatFree Communities, an organization founded by anti-sweatshop advocates, released a report Tuesday that alleges abusive working conditions in factories that supply the Bob Barker Co. and Dayton-based Lion Apparel.

Activists lock down at ATK factory in Minnesota

Project to Stop the War Industry (PSWI) used lock boxes in an attempt to shut down the entrance to an ATK (Alliant Techsystems) facility in Anoka, MN on the morning of July 2, 2008. ATK is currently considered one of the biggest war profiteers of the Iraq War and has received billions of dollars in contracts from the US government. In addition to producing cluster bombs and weapons with depleted uranium, ATK is the largest producer of ammunition for the US military. Activists chained themselves together through PVC pipe reinforced with a half dozen other materials just before 8am. Police arrived shortly after and started cutting out protesters around 9am. Two protesters were slightly injured when police used electric saws to cut open the lock boxes. In total, 9 were arrested and all but one have been released on bail.