No greater joy than fatherhood

6/15/2003

Fatherhood - there isn't much more that has brought me greater joy than raising my daughter. I wanted to share that joy with your readers. For years I've relegated Father's Day to simply being with my daughter, Jordan. No ties. No cologne. I ask her each year just to write me a letter reflecting on our relationship. No four consecutive words have more power than I, love, you, and dad.

This Father's Day is particularly bittersweet. Jordan graduated from high school, and we are getting her settled into a college four hours from home. I'm completing another course in God's great meal. It's a dish we fathers prepare for 18 years, then serve with the greatest intentions and with all the hope and prayer one human can muster.

The sit-down dinners she never really liked, the Sundays she didn't want to go to church, and the curfews she debated to extend all seem tolerable on Father's Day.

But her notes, her smile, her humor, and, hopefully, her laundry are moving on. While all four may return home occasionally, I realize that her life is heading in a direction that is less dad. And that's more sad. I've raised a wonderful, respectful human being that I'm very proud of. She didn't get every answer correct on every test, but she answered my prayers 100 percent.

So to all fathers, remember to tell your child how much she means to you. Then revel in the one thing you can do that no one else in the world can do - be the father of your child. Because the best thing I can leave my daughter is happy. The best legacy I can leave is a model for good memories. And when she has her own children, she'll know how much she meant to me.

TOM WANIEWSKI

Sylvania

So Attorney General John Ashcroft wants even more power. What a surprise!

Maybe we should just give him and Donald Rumsfeld unlimited power to protect us poor sods from the evils of the world. Maybe we should just get rid of that nasty ol' Constitution and rely on their keen sense of moral justice to save us from those nasty liberals and associated terrorists.

Maybe we should just make the President the emperor and forget about all that liberty nonsense. After all, freedom isn't free you know. We have to be willing to make concessions in order to be able to live our lives in blithe ignorance. The least we should be willing to give up is our civil liberties.

I mean, we can trust this particular administration to do only the right thing with no political or any other consideration like campaign contributions and such. After all, they wouldn't lie to us would they?

No, I think the thing to do is suspend the civil liberties of all Americans, just in case they might have any wisp of connection to a terrorist or quasi-terrorist group - as defined by Mr. Ashcroft and Mr. Rumsfeld of course.

In that way we can stifle any and all of that nasty liberal thinking and liberal questioning of Emperor, uh, I mean, President Bush and at the same time we can get rid of all those nasty foreigners who have no idea that the price of freedom is freedom itself. And, at the same time, we can rid ourselves of the nasty provisions of the Constitution that hinder Mr. Rumsfeld's and Mr. Ashcroft's righteous protection of us.

RON J. BORES

Fostoria

Many have speculated as to why the militant Muslim extremists hate us so. Perhaps this quote from Osama bin Laden's “Letter to America” provides a clue:

“You are a nation that permits acts of immorality, and you consider them to be pillars of personal freedom. You have continued to sink down this abyss from level to level until incest has spread amongst you, in the face of which neither your sense of honor nor laws object.”

Is he speaking to the debased Hollywood culture that we greedily export to every corner of the world as representative of the American way of life or to the personal lives of some of our most visible public officials? What a provocative indictment from such an unseemly source!

Maybe the entertainment industry should refrain from blaming the Bush Administration for a necessary war and consider how its own lifestyles on stage and off can actually affect world peace.

According to a survey of 44 countries by the Pew Research Center, “In general, people around the world object to the wide diffusion of American ideas and customs.” In addition a study by Boston University of 12 countries, discovered that our brand of entertainment was brewing a “culture of hate” among youth who believe Americans to be dishonest, drug-abusing sex fiends deserving to be harmed.

But who is bin Laden to judge and decide on punishment for America?

That he should feel threatened by the moral climate and the effectiveness of the judicial system in America such that he would declare war against the whole of western civilization is beyond the pale.

Perhaps our present commander in chief by his personal character and his proven willingness to fight to protect the American people has now evoked the respect of even our enemies.

CHUCK BUSCH

Fredericktown, Ohio

I am a little confused.

A licensed social worker employed by the diocese as a pastoral associate in one of its diocesan parishes sends harassing letters to a victim of sexual abuse.

Her employer, the Toledo Catholic Diocese, refuses to intervene, denying that she is one of its employees and stating that she is free to express her opinions.

And she describes some victims as not “good Christian examples?”

Thank goodness that the State of Ohio Counselor and Social Worker Board was able to identify unethical conduct and appropriately reprimand her in a situation where her employer, the Toledo Catholic Diocese, was unable or unwilling to do so.

It is no wonder that some victims of sexual abuse are reluctant to come forward.

LINDA WATERS

Sandusky

The Blade's June 8 editorial, “Maine plan shames Ohio,” seems to take for granted the fact that Maine's prescription drug legislation is a good idea. Research points to the fact that this plan may be bad for the citizens of Maine and hence bad for any state that follows Maine's lead.

Reducing the profits that a drug company can make on its successful drugs (only about 10 percent of the drugs a company produces will actually make money) will leave it with less money to cover the losses and, importantly, less money to invest in producing future drugs.

Furthermore, a recent study of U.S. drug prices by the Fraser Institute shows that when the proportion of prescriptions in a state paid by Medicaid increases, the average price of drugs increases. It found that when consumers are not responsible for the cost of their prescriptions, the incentive to find the best price disappears and costs skyrocket.

These are issues that should not be overlooked in an attempt to “do something.”

AENGUS BARRY

Buckeye Institute

Columbus

We are residents of New York state who recently spent a few days in your great city of Toledo. It was our first visit and we were not familiar with streets, exits, etc. We sometimes drove slowly looking for our street, and we are sure this was annoying to the residents. We sometimes made errors, but not once did anyone honk horns or show any kind of “road rage.”

When we asked for directions people were kind and helpful. It is rare that you find this in cities and even small towns. Thanks, Toledo!

BARBARA and ODELL SCOTT

Naples, N.Y.