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Letters to the Editor

We must protect our American forests

DEAR EDITOR: The Endangered Species Act is tremendously flexible, requiring that federal, state, tribal and local officials work collaboratively together to protect endangered wildlife. If ordinary citizens like me do not support it, who will?! President Donald Trump may know something about corporate giveaways and handouts to billionaires, but he clearly doesn’t know what it takes to protect a community or manage a landscape. Pristine forests are the heart of our public lands. They are socially, ecologically and economically valuable just as they are. Opening up our ...

Rep. Joyce should support Goldie’s Act

DEAR EDITOR: As someone who feels strongly that no animal deserves to suffer, I urge our representative, Rep. Dave Joyce, to co-sponsor Goldie’s Act (H.R. 349) this Congress. Goldie’s Act is a lifesaving bill that will ensure that the U.S. Department of Agriculture enforces the Animal Welfare Act as intended. For decades, the USDA has repeatedly failed to take meaningful action to protect animals in federally licensed facilities — despite its obligation to do so under federal law. This bill will change that. Goldie’s Act will require the USDA to conduct more frequent and ...

Too many school districts = higher taxes

DEAR EDITOR: In 1997, the Ohio Supreme Court’s DeRolph decision ruled Ohio’s school funding system unconstitutional. For 28 years, the Ohio Legislature has ignored that decision. Through the years, state and local lawmakers have allowed the cost of education to become an unbearable burden on property owners. There has been little effort to control costs through district consolidations. Trumbull County has 27 school districts, each with boards of education, superintendents and staff. There are 32,932 students in Trumbull County. My home state of Maryland has 24 school ...

Sound off!

Wake up, Warren. I watched the traffic meeting concerning the closure of Dana Street. The owner, Chris Alan, is nothing but an arrogant, entitled shyster who promised 1,000 jobs and has produced maybe 10. Also, he owes back property taxes of $209,000 on Dana and $113,000 on Griswold property. So is this going to be Chill Can 2.0?? — Warren The incident at Harding with a student assaulting a principal over a cellphone is an example of one of the problems in schools: rules. In this case, no cellphones are to be used in a classroom. Problem? The student chose not to follow the rules. ...

Group health insurance an apocalyptic failure

DEAR EDITOR: Columnist and university intellectual Victor Davis Hanson writes of the “Four horsemen of the Western apocalypse,” policies and behaviors Hanson regards as destructive of Western society. He lists those policies and behaviors, such as excessive “green mandates”, and offers explanatory language for their ill consequences and their origins among America’s “demi-god” elites. To Hanson’s list I want to add America’s unique group health insurance. Group health has been described to me by very savvy experts as: un-American, un-Christian, anti-worker, ...

Now is not the time to slow down in Alzheimer’s fight

DEAR EDITOR: At a time when more than 7 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, including more than 236,000 in Ohio, prioritizing how this devastating disease is addressed remains a critical issue for our country. Today, Alzheimer’s is the seventh-leading cause of death in the United States and one of our country’s most expensive diseases. These are among the many reasons we must work toward increased funding for research that would impact the lives of those living with Alzheimer’s, as well as their caregivers. And with the recent development of several new ...