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Letters to the Editor

October is National Domestic Violence Month

To the editor: October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, a time of unity to connect victims, advocates, and allies across the country. Domestic violence affects millions, both women and men, of every race, religion, culture and status. It’s not just punches and black eyes — it’s yelling, humiliation, stalking, manipulation, coercion, threats and isolation. It’s stealing a paycheck, keeping tabs online, non-stop texting, constant use the silent treatment, or calling someone stupid so often they believe it. Since the Violence Against Women Act passed in 1994, ...

Taliban must fully cooperate with US

Getting U.S. troops out of Afghanistan would be quite a coup for President Donald Trump. It would give him a foreign policy advantage going into next year’s election — one no Democratic candidate could criticize. But would it also be setting the stage for a bloodbath? Would it mean a return to the day-to-day brutality that was the Taliban regime prior to 2001? Of even more concern to Americans, would Afghanistan return to being a haven for Islamic terrorists? Trump’s administration has been negotiating with the Taliban, who were ousted from Afghanistan after the Sept. 11, 2001, ...

Senate Bill 3 bad for our communities and children

To the editor: Last fall Ohio voters overwhelmingly rejected Issue One, which sought to drastically reduce penalties on drug dealers and repeat drug offenders. Senate Bill 3 seeks to use tax dollars to make Ohio lenient on drug dealers and eliminate accountability for drug users at the expense of our public safety. Nearly all property crimes and violent offenses have their roots in substance abuse. SB 3 is bad for our communities and our children. SB 3 will decrease penalties for drug dealers. Rest assured, drug dealers know drug laws as well as their lawyers and typically carry with ...

Kindness costs nothing but means everything

To the editor: Thursday at the fair, I was in line to buy tickets to the truck and tractor pulls when they asked everyone to rise for the National Anthem. There were two young guys (late teens I think) about three people in front of me. I watched as the one with the baseball hat on took it off for the National Anthem and then some older gentlemen followed suit. Made this mom of a veteran smile and I caught him as he was leaving the booth and told him thank you. Then, during a break at the pulls, a gentleman, who obviously had trouble getting around on his own, was standing on the ...

Support for the RECLAIM Act

To the editor: Ohio’s coal-mining communities have helped power the nation for generations, but this history also has left the Buckeye State with numerous abandoned mines. The bipartisan RECLAIM Act offers Ohio a way to not only reclaim these abandoned mines, but also to create wildlife habitat, support jobs and combat climate change. I just returned from meetings in Washington, D.C., with several of Ohio’s members of Congress. I am thankful for their time and their staff’s willingness to learn more about the RECLAIM Act, which would leverage $1 billion in surplus federal fees ...

Use common sense while handling fireworks

To the editor: Phantom Fireworks hopes everyone has an enjoyable and safe family Independence Day celebration.  If you plan to use consumer fireworks, please use them safely.  Phantom’s primary safety tips are:  Use Basic Common Sense  — The fireworks products burn hot & produce fire and sparks when functioning.  People must respect the products for that fact and handle the products with extreme care and caution. Only Adults Should Handle the Fireworks —  (1)  Children should never be permitted to handle fireworks products.  (2)  A designated shooter (a sober, ...