Yikes!:

YOUNGSTOWN — State Rep. Robert F. Hagan said an assault against him at a downtown Youngstown restaurant over the weekend will not shake his faith in the renaissance of the central city. Hagan was punched in the face and knocked to the ground shortly after entering the The Lemon Grove Cafe on West Federal Street with his family at about 11 p.m. Saturday.

“We walked in, and a gentleman asked us to move out of the way,” Hagan, D-60th of Youngstown, said. “I told him to ‘back away, man,’” Hagan said, as the man taunted him with offensive language. The next thing Hagan said he remembered was interacting with ambulance personnel.

Hagan said the injuries required 11 stitches to his chin. He also suffered a concussion and an injured rib, he added.

Police arrested a suspect at the scene, Hagan said.

Hagan said he considered the assault a random act of violence and that he did not think his assailant knew him.

“I will continue to visit and continue to patronize downtown businesses, and I will continue to talk about how great the rebirth and renaissance of downtown Youngstown is, he said.

This story is simply terrible. I hope Rep. Hagan feels better soon and the assailant goes to prison for a long time.

I’m not sure if Youngstown is experiencing a “renaissance,” but Democrats can call it a truly green city…. with its lack of jobs and industry.

Update: It was belly dancers.

From Douglas Belkin in the WSJ:

DAYTON, Ohio — Here’s an idea for saving Rust Belt cities: Tell bloggers and radio stations to stop calling your town a basket case.

That was one suggestion from representatives of eight of the 10 cities labeled last year as America’s fastest dying. They met at the Dayton Convention Center last weekend to swap ideas about how to halt the long skid that’s turned cities like Detroit, Cleveland and Buffalo, N.Y., into shorthand for dystopia.

But Cleveland really is a basket case.