Taylor Swift's Eras Tour was 'Super Bowl of Beyond Your Imagination' | Opinion

Editor's note: Handshakes and Headshakes are my quick takes on local events, groups or newsmakers whose actions, decisions or performance deserves to be celebrated or called out.

In all the hoopla surrounding Taylor Swift's stop in Cincinnati for her Eras Tour, it might have been easy to overlook this heart-warming nugget. Hamilton County used its allotment of concert tickets, plus the private suite the county has at Paycor Stadium, to take 120 foster kids to the concerts free of charge. One hundred got to sit in the stands and another 20 in the private suite.

You don't have to be a "Swiftie" to understand the significance of this. Foster kids face many challenges starting with the grief and loss of being separated from their biological family. Many have to overcome the instability, anxiety, fear and mistrust that can come from multiple placements. And some have very limited exposure to opportunities many of us take for granted, like going to a concert, especially one where ticket prices ranged from $1,282 to a whopping $18,430.

"Sending youth in foster care to the Taylor Swift Eras Tour was the Super Bowl of Beyond Your Imagination," said Commissioner Stephanie Summerow Dumas, founder of the Beyond Your Imagination Initiative. "These are important life experiences and provide long-lasting memories that all young people deserve."

The county could have given those tickets to anyone or any group it wanted. It was good to see them wind up in the hands of some of our most vulnerable and underserved kids.

Headshake: When will Cincinnati finally be fed up with gun violence?

Enough has been enough for an awfully long time. Yet it feels like nothing ever changes when it comes to gun violence in Cincinnati. As of June 5, the number of people shot this year (204 fatal and nonfatal) is higher than each of the past three years over the same period, according to Cincinnati Police Department data.

No one is immune. Not even those who have worked tirelessly for years to combat the number of shootings.

Shamari Mingo, the niece of the Rev. Peterson Mingo, died at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center this week after being shot at Fifth and Walnut streets near Government Square. A 16-year-old boy was struck by a bullet during the incident and hospitalized as well. Rev. Mingo, the longtime pastor at Christ Temple Full Gospel Baptist Church in Evanston, led the God Squad, a street intervention group that combats violence in the city. The loss of his niece to that same violence is the cruelest of ironies.

It's not like things aren't being done across the city either. There are community meetings, rallies, initiatives and the city is even suing the state of Ohio so that Cincinnati can pass its own gun laws. But still not enough is happening. There are still too few people involved in crafting solutions, and too many parents unable or unwilling to control their child's behavior. I'm left wondering whether our city is truly fed up with the violence, or is "enough is enough" merely a banal platitude we espouse every time there's another murder?

I guess time and the city's body count will tell.

Handshake: Keep 'talking your s---,' Ja'Marr Chase. Just back it up

After a video of Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval trash talking the Kansas City Chiefs and quarterback Patrick Mahomes before the AFC championship game went viral, Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase said, "The mayor probably did a little too much there." Some football aficionados were saying the same thing about Chase's response late last month when asked his opinion about the best player in the NFL. Without hesitation, the Pro Bowl wideout answered Joe Burrow, adding "Everybody knows that." When Chase was told Burrow chose Mahomes, Chase doubled down, "Pat who?"

Chase's dig got quick and strong responses from Mahomes and Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, who didn't take too kindly to the "disrespect." I don't mind a little trash talking by the players on the field. I think it adds extra spice to a growing rivalry between two of the NFL's best teams and quarterbacks. I love that Chase was backing up his guy (Burrow) and not backing down from the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs. Confidence and swag are a part of the Bengals' brand now, largely because of the Burrow-Chase tandem.

There's no disputing how supremely talented Mahomes is or the two championship rings he has on his fingers. And like Kelce said, the Bengals and Chase had better be prepared to back up their words when they visit the Show Me State on New Year's Eve. Just as the Chiefs used the "Burrowhead" comments as fuel in the AFC Championship game, Chase's remarks almost certainly will give Mahomes and Kansas City some fresh bulletin board material and extra juice for this year's matchup.

Still, as phenomenal as Mahomes is, I think Chase was merely expressing the sentiment of many in Who Dey Nation: We'll take Burrow any day of the week and twice on Sunday.

Headshake: Lakota school board member gets failing grade

Lakota Local Schools Board of Education member Darbi Boddy gets a failing grade for her continuing shenanigans at district meetings. Her latest stunt took a page right out of U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's playbook when she accused fellow board member Isaac Adi of assaulting her at the end of a June executive session. Boddy even went so far as to file a report with the Butler County Sheriff's Office four days later. She alleged that Adi told her "your brain is empty" during the executive session. Boddy apparently wanted to capture Adi's remarks on video, so she pulled out her cell phone and began following him around, asking him to repeat himself. According to the sheriff's report, Boddy claimed Adi asked if she was recording him, then proceeded to slap the hand in which she was holding her phone.

The Butler County Prosecutor's Office said Wednesday that no criminal charges would be filed as the incident did not rise to the level of an actual assault. Officials said Boddy could pursue a civil complaint if she wanted to press the issue. Boddy has said she has no intention of pushing things further. She said the purpose of filing the report was to "let the community know there is a violent man in the community." This is where I think Boddy crossed the line into Marjorie Taylor Greene territory.

Some might recall that back in May, Greene, who is white, said she felt "threatened" by Democratic U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman, who is Black, during a war of words outside the Capitol. Greene said, "His physical mannerisms are aggressive ... And I am concerned about it. I feel threatened by him.” Many, including Bowman, felt that Greene was promoting racist tropes about Black men and had put Bowman's life in danger from those who might want to act upon such stereotypes. Boddy, who is white, did no less to Adi, who is Black, in this case. I'm not calling Boddy a racist; I'm simply saying she needs to be more aware of the gravity of such characterizations in this polarized climate.

The same is true for Adi. I don't know whether he actually said Boddy's "brain was empty," or if he did, in fact, put his hands on Boddy or her phone. If true, neither act would be acceptable and, quite frankly, is beneath the behavior we expect from our elected officials.

Lakota school board members, particularly Boddy, need to keep their focus on students. Rather than critical race theory, they need to be worried about what their behavior is teaching students throughout the district.

Headshake: Trump to headline 'Fleece Fest' in NKY

Donald Trump is set to headline a political festival in Northern Kentucky in September, according to festival organizer Eric Deters. Deters, a conservative firebrand, suspended lawyer and erstwhile gubernatorial candidate, should consider changing the name of this year's event staged at his farm from Freedom Fest to "Fleece Fest." Even though admission is free, the twice-impeached, twice-indicted former president will find it hard to resist using his appearance as an opportunity to spread more lies and financially shear his throng of loyal sheep to help cover his mounting legal defense bills.

"It doesn't cost him anything," Deters said of the former president coming to a Trump-friendly region. Right. The real question is, how much is it going to cost his supporters?

Handshake: Ohio law shouldn't victimize people twice

And this week's award for having common sense in politics goes to Republican state Rep. Josh Williams, of Oregon, who wants to change Ohio law to prevent police departments from charging crime victims to retrieve their own property. Currently, state law allows law enforcement agencies to charge impound fees to release stolen vehicles back to their owners. The fees can be hundreds of dollars in some cities. The law shouldn't victimize a person twice. No one asks to have their property stolen, and having to possibly pay hundreds of dollars to get it back adds salt to the wound. At a time when too many politicians are spending their time fighting culture wars, it's good to see policy being put forth that actually rights wrongs and positively impacts people's lives.

Headshake: Fireworks can be beautiful and deadly

The Fourth of July is meant to be a day of celebration, not mourning. But far too often our Independence Day has an unhappy ending for thousands of people across the U.S. due to fireworks accidents.

Last year, 11 people were killed by fireworks and another 10,200 were treated for fireworks-related injuries (38% of them burns), according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. So far this year, three deaths were reported on July 4 − one in Texas, Michigan and Kentucky.

Brian Simpson, 48, of Florence, died when a firework exploded immediately upon lighting it Tuesday night. Simpson was attempting to light a commercial-grade firework using a homemade mortar tube when it detonated, according to the Boone County Sheriff's Office. Most firework deaths are associated with mortar-style devices, according to the CPSC.

My heart and prayers go out to Simpson's family who will likely never see July 4 in the same way again. His tragedy serves as a cautionary tale to those across the Tristate who will continue to shoot off fireworks in the coming days and weeks. Please heed the CPSC's safety tips and its warning to remember that fireworks can be beautiful to watch, but they can also be deadly when mishandled.

Headshake: University deserves a zero for botched reprimand

No matter which side of the debate you're on regarding University of Cincinnati adjunct professor Melanie Nipper, there's probably broad agreement on UC's poor handling of the situation. Nipper, a gender studies professor, failed her former student for using the term "biological woman" in a class assignment about trans athletes. The student, Olivia Krolczyk, posted a video about the grade on TikTok, which gained 400,000 likes and 4 million views, and filed a free speech complaint with the university.

UC officials initially reprimanded Nipper and required her to complete a training on the University of Cincinnati's Free Speech requirements prior to the beginning of the fall 2023 term and submit her syllabus for approval. However, Nipper argued that her decision was well within the boundaries of acceptable censorship outlined in UC's free speech policy and university officials agreed the reprimand was "issued in error."

The flip-flop has left Krolczyk feeling like a victim of injustice and makes UC officials look indecisive at best and political at worst. Those in support of Krolczyk will say UC caved to "woke" culture in rescinding the reprimand, when in reality, it might have been the correct determination all along, per the school's policy. In that case, those who support Nipper might look at the initial reprimand as a purely political move by UC to avoid appearing too liberal − a frequent criticism of academia by conservatives.

Maybe this was an unavoidable mess for UC from the jump, but school officials did little to help themselves by botching the disciplinary process so badly.

Opinion and Engagement Editor Kevin S. Aldridge can be reached at kaldridge@enquirer.com. Twitter: @kevaldrid. If you have any suggestions for candidates for Handshakes or Headshakes, feel free to send them my way.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Taylor Swift's Eras Tour was 'Super Bowl of Beyond Your Imagination'