By Tom O'Neill
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Peace - from internal to global.

This, in a word, was the clear consensus among Tristate residents interviewed on New Year's Eve about their hopes for the new year.

Family health ran a distant second. There was not a single mention of anything material.

No bigger TVs. No SUVs. No Bengals tickets.

"Oh, peace, that's all," said Georgia Morgan, 82, of Montgomery. "Having lived through World War II, I'm seriously concerned about international peace."

The year 2002 was marked by unrest and uncertainty. Locally, the economy remained largely stagnant, while Cincinnati's homicide rate reached its highest level in more than a decade.

World and national news brought its daily tangle of suicide bombings, color-coded terrorism alerts and a dwindling sense that peace - permanent peace - is possible.

"There's so much going on in the world, just hating, the violence," Allie Labizzo said as she stood at a downtown bus stop, escaping the afternoon rain.

"So, just peace," the 48-year-old Avondale woman said. "You know what I mean?"

Nancy Phillips, 51, of Colerain does know what she means, but she also cited family health.

Scott Feld, 35, of Reading, focused on the health of his three children: D.J., 5; Kayla, 3; and Blake, 10 months.

"When you hear all these people with children with cancer," Mr. Feld said, stopping in mid-sentence. "Be thankful."

E-mail toneill@enquirer.com

2003 arrives safely
World cautious of terror threat