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Published: 3/6/2011 - Updated: 2 years ago


High court a panel of puppets

"Thank God for dead soldiers." What a slap in the face of our fallen heroes and their families ("Protesters at funerals protected from suits; Act is free speech, 8-1 ruling decides," March 3). Yet our Supreme Court says the protesters have free speech rights. Who gave them these rights? Dead soldiers.

This is the same court that took prayer out of our schools. It gave the rich the power to take our homes if they improve the property to generate more taxes on that property.

These justices said that corporations and special interest groups could donate money, the same as individuals. This would make it easier to get their candidates into office.

I guess the Constitution has changed over the past 10 years, or maybe people who interpret the law don't know what justice really is.

l think the court is a puppet of government and big business.

Dennis Floyd

Delta, Ohio

What happened to intelligent life?

The Supreme Court feels, with only one dissent, that it is OK to violate a funeral with heinous language and acts because the First Amendment gives us all the right to free speech.

It follows that any movie or news clip or video game can be violent or vulgar.

Do you really believe our Founding Fathers, in their most extreme imagining, conceived of anything close to the garbage disseminated in today's United States?

When the most-watched person is actor Charlie Sheen, a good man perhaps who has obviously gone off the deep end, there is no intelligent life here anymore.

Nor is there dignity, compassion, or decency.

Sharon Tobian

Adella Street

What matters are dignity and honor

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of the morons at Westboro Baptist Church, allowing them to protest at military funerals. Your March 4 editorial "Protected protest" agrees with the court .

This isn't about free speech. This is about the dignity, respect, and honor the members of the U.S. Armed Forces deserve when they die for their country.

What bothers me most is that not one member of this Supreme Court has ever served in the military.

Maybe the justices and The Blade's editorial staff should attend a military funeral where these people are protesting, and see whether they feel the same way about the right to free speech.

Clyde Appleby

Ottawa Hills

The Republicans are playing dirty

I'm troubled by the tactics of Ohio Senate President Tom Niehaus (R., New Richmond) to ensure Senate Bill 5 would have enough votes to clear the required committees.

I worry that this is the shape of things to come in Ohio for any bill the Republicans want to pass, regardless of the feelings of their constituents.

Mr. Niehaus replaced two Republicans on two committees who were known no votes and replaced them with Republican senators he knew would vote yes.

I guess no disagreement is allowed, even within his own party.

Republicans seem to do whatever they want regardless of the feelings of the people who elected them -- the people who can do little about it until the next election.

Stacking the deck in a card game is playing dirty. This move by Senator Niehaus sounds like the same thing. He, the members of his party, and Gov. John Kasich are playing dirty with people's livelihoods in Ohio.

I thought they were elected to represent all the people, not just those who agree with them.

Bob Fotoples

Corduroy Road

This Republican supports unions

I am a Republican Party member and I support unions wholeheartedly. I only had a part-time job but now, at age 92, I am still receiving a monthly pension check for which I am very grateful.

Dorothy Belongea


If only more people had voted

Gov. John Kasich was elected by a narrow margin. He did not hide his intention to take on the unions on collective bargaining rights during the campaign.

Senate Bill 5 will severely affect thousands of employees statewide. There have been rallies and protests across the state.

In the November election, Ohio voter turnout was less than 50 percent.

I am sure that Senate Bill 5 would not exist if everyone affected had voted.

Jim Ustian


Rally photo gave false impression

It was with great disappointment that I viewed your March 2 front-page photo showing an aerial view of the demonstrators protesting Senate Bill 5.

I participated in that protest rally. Much of the time I was standing in the elevated area in front of the Statehouse columns, which are depicted in the photograph.

The photograph gives a false impression of the actual number of protesters present. Based on the position of the shadows in the photograph, it apparently was taken in the late afternoon, when the rally was breaking up and fewer protesters were present.

I also question the headline saying there were 8,500 protesters. Based on my personal observations, I believe there were many more.

Donald Rozick

Woodville, Ohio

A zoo levy for Wood County?

Regarding your March 3 article "Toledo Zoo may seek 5-year levy in Wood County": Go ahead and ask Wood County residents to support the zoo levy. Maybe the City of Toledo could put a levy on the ballot asking Wood County residents to support its trash collection and recycling.

Joy Creutz


Is a dog's life more important?

Every pro-choice liberal is an imbecile. They raise a ruckus about dogs euthanized at the Lucas County dog pound, and The Blade publishes a list of dogs killed.

Who publishes a list of the millions of unborn babies murdered in the womb every year since 1973, when Roe vs. Wade legalized infanticide?

President Obama and the Democrats think it's constitutional to use taxpayer dollars to fund infanticide under the deception that abortion is health care.

Cut off all government funding of Planned Parenthood and any other entity involved in promoting abortion.

Even a single-celled embryo is inherently a human life. Killing that embryo a minute after conception is simply murder.

James A. Adams

Carleton, Mich.

People fed up with their leaders

Many revolutions are taking place around the globe. People are fed up with their leaders.

The world desperately needs a new breed of men and women who have an honest and pure desire to create a safe and livable country for their citizens.

We need leaders who have a moral compass, lacking greed and the need for domination, if they are to save their countries from disaster.

Gerard W. Jacobs

Fairhaven Drive

Snow days are costing us plenty

Your Feb. 26. article "Toledo breaks record for snowiest February" reported that Toledo Public Schools will have to pay about $2.5 million for two extra days of instruction at the end of the year, because the district has already used five school calamity days.

Am I understanding this correctly?

Teachers and other staff had those extra days off with pay, when they didn't teach or work, and now they will be paid again for those two days when they show up to work at the end of the school year. Who agreed to those conditions and, more important, why?

Brian J. Harrington

Holly Hill Drive


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