Frankie’s will host one of the most underrated and underappreciated bands of the last 30 years when its doors open for the Meat Puppets on June 24, and if you know anything about rock, you’ll be there.

Meat Puppets

As if 30 years of writing, recording and touring aren’t enough, the Meat Puppets were responsible for influencing the likes of Nirvana and Soundgarden, amongst an endless list of others. In late ’93 the Meat Puppets performed with Nirvana during its acoustic “Unplugged” appearance and the song “Lake of Fire” became a cult hit.
After the “Unplugged” appearance, the band released the “Too High To Die” album. The album, which earned a gold record, was the source of the memorable radio hit “Backwater.” Shortly after the release of its “No Joke!” album in ’95, the band broke up, mainly because of bassist Chris Kirkwood’s substance abuse problems.
After two “breaks” from 1996-2001 and again from 2002-2005 The Meat Puppets have released two more albums, “Rise to Your Knees” and “Sewn Together.”
These two most recent releases have proven this band is still capable of writing and recording amazing material.
As a direct result of its major-label experience and access to massive recording studios, the band made it a point to redefine what was important while putting together the last two albums. They decided to seek out and use a small analog studio so the music became the focus.
Twelve albums and three decades after originally forming as a hardcore punk band, the Meat Puppets still write, tour and give fans what they want. The Meat Puppets are fantastic musicians who play great music and put on a damn good show. Frankie’s is where you need to be June 24.
Doors for the Meat Puppets show open at 8 p.m. Tickets are $12 in advance and can be purchased at Culture Clash, Ramalama Records or any TicketMaster outlet. Tickets are $15 the night of the show.

An expansion of Medicaid that’s part of the Obama health care law will boost the program’s cost to Ohio taxpayers by $1.45 billion over five years, according to projections provided to the Columbus Dispatch by the administration of Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland.

Republicans say the state already is struggling to afford Medicaid coverage for the poor and disabled and wonder how it can afford to pay more.

Under President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul, states will be required to widen Medicaid eligibility in 2014 so that the program covers people with incomes up to 133 percent of the federal poverty level, or about $29,327 a year for a family of four. Also, coverage will be extended to childless adults for the first time. Ohio officials have estimated that the expansion will add 554,000 people to the state’s Medicaid rolls.

Figures supplied by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services to The Columbus Dispatc and to The Associated Press show that during the first five years the broadening of Medicaid will cost the state annual amounts ranging from $136 million to about $333 million, for a total of $1.45 billion from 2014-2019.

The department’s projections also showed that the federal government would pick up $16.9 billion in additional Ohio Medicaid costs over a six-year period beginning in 2013. So, the state is getting a bargain, argued Strickland spokeswoman Amanda Wurst, adding that having more Ohioans insured will lead to overall health care savings.

But Republicans remain concerned about Medicaid’s potential increased hit to Ohio taxpayers.

“It’s already bringing us underwater today,” said Republican state Rep. Jay Hottinger of Newark. “Whatever the cost is going to be, no matter what the feds are going to pay, it is that much more of a burden on our budget.”

Hottinger and House Republican leaders did not immediately return messages for further comment Friday.

The estimates are “rough” and the state’s price tag could change, based on the economy and other factors, department spokesman Benjamin Johnson said Friday. For example, lower unemployment could mean fewer people on Medicaid and more Ohioans insured through employers, he said.

More Ohio school districts are hiring retired teachers and administrators, allowing them to earn a salary and collect a pension at a time when the state retirement system is ailing, the state’s largest newspapers reported June 20.

The deals known as “double dipping” are particularly noticeable among superintendents. More than 25 percent of the state’s 614 superintendents are drawing full retirement benefits.

Allowing superintendents to retire early halts their contributions into the state retirement system and pulls millions of dollars out, the newspapers reported. The State Teachers Retirement System, which has suffered investment losses, has $40 billion in unfunded liabilities and is seeking a taxpayer bailout.

Superintendents say double dipping is legal and they’d be foolish not to take advantage of a system that allows them to retire in their 50s and return to work. Many superintendents also say the practice is driven by a limited pool of qualified applicants.

The State Teachers Retirement System has more working retirees than any other state pension system, paying $741 million to 15,857 retirees last year with an average benefit of $46,800.

Double dipping is not as taxpayer friendly as school officials make them out to be, particularly when hiring retired superintendents, the newspapers reported.

With no automatic savings built into the system, it’s all up school boards to decide how much to offer.

Ten years ago, Mark Freeman retired as superintendent at Shaker Heights near Cleveland, where he was earning $149,675 annually. Shaker Heights rehired Freeman without publicizing the opening or interviewing any other candidate. He now makes $190,000 in salary, plus his state retirement payments, which he would not disclose.

Shaker Heights school member Freda Levenson argues that the retire/rehire practice is “revenue neutral” because retirement payments come from a state fund. Districts pay just the salary of the superintendent.

Some districts appear to have different standards for teachers, administrators or superintendents, the investigation found.

Massillon City Schools adopted a policy in 2009 that basically told administrators they could come back to work in the Stark County district after retiring, but at 75 percent of their base salary. The double-dipping superintendent was exempted from that rule.

State legislators have taken aim at double dipping several times in the past 10 years.

A bill introduced in 2007 by former state Rep. Michelle Schneider, R-Madeira, proposed a six-month waiting period, effectively banning the practice of overnight retire-rehire for all the state pension funds.

State Rep. Bruce Goodwin, R-Defiance, introduced legislation the same year to require double dippers to take 40 percent pay cuts before returning to work. The proposal was aimed at school superintendents and top government administrators.

In both bills, the Legislative Service Commission, which provides fiscal and legal analysis to lawmakers, could not determine whether double dipping cost taxpayers money.

As part of the solution, the State Teachers Retirement System has proposed requiring public employees to work at least 35 years or to age 60 with 30 years service or face significant benefit cuts. It also wants to drop a cost-of-living adjustment, which helps the pension payments keep pace with inflation, from 3 percent to 2 percent.

STRS estimates that the proposed changes will remove nearly $10 billion from the $40 billion in unfunded liabilities. The measures are designed to strongly encourage STRS members to pay into the system longer before they begin to withdraw funds in retirement.

Laura Ecklar, an STRS spokeswoman, said a separate proposal is needed to make the pension fund’s health care account healthy. It has only about 11 years of solvency left, she said.

The new Miss Ohio says she’s excited to represent the state after years of near-misses.

Becky Minger was crowned June 19 in Mansfield. The 22-year-old graduate of Bowling Green State University competed in the state pageant five times and was last year’s first runner-up.

The Sylvania native captured the title this year from a field of 25 other contestants, winning a $10,000 scholarship and other prizes.

Minger will compete for the Miss America title Jan. 15 in Las Vegas.

Ohio gasoline prices have gone up 6 cents in the last week, mirroring a recent increase in oil prices.

According to a survey from auto club AAA, the Oil Price Information Service and Wright Express, Ohio’s current average price for regular-grade gasoline is $2.71 per gallon, up from $2.65 June 14.

Oil has jumped from $64 a barrel on May 25 to the neighborhood of $80 as fears have eased that a debt crisis in Europe will put the brakes on global economic growth.

Ohio gas is 3 cents cheaper than the current national average for regular, $2.74 a gallon. One year ago, the state’s motorists were paying a little less for gas, $2.66 on average.

Tim Ries, a Tecumseh native who has performed with the Rolling Stones, will headline a concert at 7:30 p.m. June 25 Tecumseh Center for the Arts. The concert will benefit the people of Dundee whose homes were damaged or destroyed in the June 5 tornadoes.

“When I called him, he said ‘oh my,’ got online, looked at the photographs, and said ‘I’ll be there,’” said Johanna Walker, director of Tecumseh Center for the Arts.

Ries plays “a little of everything, from jazz to rock” on his saxophone, Walker said.

Other performers, including Measured Chaos, Pat Dunn and Matt Selkey, will perform, Walker said.

A minimum donation of $12 is requested. Checks can be made out to United Way of Monroe County, with “Dundee Tornado Disaster Relief” in the memo line.

Bowersox

Elliston native Crystal Bowersox, will perform on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” on June 21.

Bowersox is scheduled to perform a song from the CD “Up to the Mountain.”

“The Tonight Show” begins at 11:35 p.m. on NBC. In addition to Bowersox, the show’s guests include actress Dakota Fanning and comedian Daniel Tosh.

When the tornado swept through Northwest Ohio, Donna Cohen, co-owner of the Happy Badger in Bowling Green, wanted to do something to help victims. So she decided to coordinate a series of concerts to help out.

The concerts will raise money for the Hunt family, whose home was demolished in the storm. They did not have insurance and lost everything but some wet socks to the tornado.

To help them, the Happy Badger will sponsor a series of concerts. They will be free. To raise money, they will pass around a basket and encourage donations.

The first concert will be on Friday, June 18 from 6-8 p.m. on the lawn of the shop. The AntiVillains and Estar Cohen and the Power of the Plume will perform.

On Saturday, June 19, the Original Bag with Jason Quick and Ben Langlois will play from 1-3.

On June 26, a group of poets from Toledo will have a reading and acoustic duo Blue Moon will perform.

On July 10 from 1-3 p.m., Anthony Two Feathers will give a flute performance. From 6-8 p.m. on the same day, Katey Sardasky will have an art exhibit at the store. Ben Barefoot will play acoustic guitar.

On Saturday, July 17 from 1-3 p.m., the store will host a silent auction of jewelry, photography, framed art, and other items donated by local artists. Billie Tulk will give tarot readings. All the proceeds will go to the Hunt family, and Blue Moon will perform again.

The June 20, 2010 e-edition of Toledo Free Press is available:

The Toledo Public Schools Board narrowed the list of superintendent candidates to two June 17.

The board chose Jerome Pecko and Tom Watkins as finalists for the position.

Pecko, who has a Doctorate of Education from University of Akron, served as a superintendent for two different school districts. He was most recently a superintendent of Springfield Schools, in Akron, from 2003 to 2007. Prior to that he served as Barberton City Schools from 1994 to 2003.

Watkins is president and CEO of TD&W, an educational consulting firm. Watkins was state superintendent of schools in Michigan from 2001 to 2005.

Pecko is considered a traditional candidate for the position and Watkins is a nontraditional candidate.

The board would like to have a new superintendent by July when John Foley, current superintendent, leaves.