Ohio laying foundation for growth

7/28/2008

Despite recent negative press about the economy, Ohio s entrepreneurs and small-business owners should take pride in the many statewide efforts to cultivate entrepreneurial activity. In fact, Entrepreneur Magazine ranks Columbus third in the Midwest and 13th in the United States for Hot Cities for Entrepreneurs. With a strong entrepreneurial heritage and leading-edge resources, Ohio offers entrepreneurs a place to take root and grow their businesses.

The Small Business Development Centers of Ohio, housed in the Ohio Department of Development s Entrepreneurship and Small Business Division, is an economic development program funded by the U.S. Small Business Administration, the Ohio Department of Development, and select universities, chambers, and other economic development agencies.

In 2007, the 37 statewide SBDC centers provided free, confidential, in-depth counseling to 8,526 entrepreneurs and small business owners, and conducted no or low-cost training to 12,650 small business owners. The SBDC network created and retained more than 48,000 jobs in 2007, resulting in a total economic impact on Ohio s economy of more than $20 billion.

The SBDC also partners with the Ohio Department of Education to expand opportunities to learn about entrepreneurial thinking with middle and high school students. This partnership supplements the entrepreneurship events already offered by the SBDC centers and their university hosts to high school and college students, as well as through such organizations as the Ohio Business Week Foundation.

In February, the Ohio DOD s Entrepreneurship and Small Business Division, the Small Business Development Centers of Ohio, the Consortium for Entrepreneurship Education, the Ohio Entrepreneurship Coalition, and the Ohio Department of Education co-sponsored a one-day expo as part of Ohio s National Entrepreneurship Week celebration.

As you can see, Ohio is very busy in laying the foundation in becoming a great destination for entrepreneurs.

Nicole Thomas

MemberOhio Entrepreneurship CoalitionColumbus

In the July 24 Reader s Forum there was a hilarious comment from a writer who voiced his concern over those who were opposed to drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and said he wanted to save the planet at all costs. So, do some of the residents of this planet only want to save it if it doesn t cost too much? Reasoning like that makes me wonder if we don t deserve whatever Nature gives us.

Eric Fraker

Middlesex Avenue

Several letters in Readers Forum have stated that drilling will take 10 years to produce oil. That is the biggest misconception the government is giving us. When asked, the oil companies have said that at the most, it would take two years for oil to get to the refineries.

On top of that, just the proposal alone to start drilling will drop oil prices right away. When President Bush rescinded the executive order that prohibited offshore drilling, the price dropped $9 in one day. Imagine if Congress got smart and signed off on it as well. When the rest of the world sees the United States of America is serious about becoming energy independent, the price of oil will plummet.

Of course we still need to find other sources of energy but in the meantime, let s get that oil out of the ground and get out of this economic recession. Alternative sources of fuel are on their way but we cannot stop using fossil fuels in 10 years like the jet-setting hypocrite Al Gore suggests.

As for the environmentalists who don t want to rape our natural resources, who do you think would be a more environmentally friendly driller, the United States or China? Right now, China is trying to gain access to the land off the coast of Florida. Should we allow China to go in and rape the land, or should we take control and responsibly drill for oil off our own coast?

I think the environmentalists and the liberal Left have led us down a dangerous path that has made us dependent upon nations that only want our demise. When are we going to stand up and take our country back? Common sense seems to have left us and, besides threatening our national security, has thrown our economy into a downward spiral.

Robin Nowak

Temperance

I would strongly admonish both Dottie Zimmerman and the supportive Catholic Church not to engage in the biblically prohibited practice known as necromancy or making contact with familiar spirits. Channeling is forbidden (see Isaiah 8:19 and Deuteronomy 18:9-15).

When I read the July 7 story in The Blade s religion section, I was surprised that the Catholic Church would endorse such a demonic activity as praying to a dead person (in this case Padre Pio).

The word of God is very specific about testing certain spirits (I John 4:1) and Ms. Zimmerman is not using any gift that God has given her but has willingly succumbed to being a channeler for a familiar spirit.

To pray to dead people or to receive messages from them is not condoned by the Word of God but is a deceptive practice, and to hear that children are encouraged to develop this gift is or should be of grave concern to the professing and obedient Jesus-centered church.

Ms. Zimmerman should repent and renounce such a sinful practice and forever shun any association with similar practices. The Catholic Church needs to be more watchful and diligent on what God has said about such prohibited practices (Exodus 21:21; Leviticus 19:26, 31 and 20:27) and not be puffed up thinking that prayers to departed people are appropriate or God-ordained.

Come out from among them and be ye separate (2 Corinthians 6:17) is still applicable today. God told us how to live and Ms. Zimmerman and the Catholic Church are accountable for condoning or permitting such an aberrant devilish practice.

Lafe Tolliver

South Byrne Road

I was hoping that Blade religion editor David Yonke s recent story on the local woman who regularly converses with the deceased Capuchin friar, Padre Pio, was to be part of a series. I opened my Blade and eagerly turned to the religion section, expecting to read about the Easter Bunny or the Tooth Fairy, but to no avail.

How about it Mr. Yonke? Don t keep us waiting too long.

Frank Ward

Goddard Road

I recently saw a television show on teenage prostitution in Toledo. I was appalled at the 90-minute response time of the police department. This is totally unacceptable.

Chief Mike Navarre commented that the police get thousands of calls a day that prevent them from getting to the scene in a responsible time. I think that is a poor excuse in this case. Do they think that a kidnapped child was not serious enough to respond immediately?

I ve always held the Toledo Police Department in the highest esteem. But now I m re-evaluating my opinion. I think it maybe it s time to find a police chief who can better handle the job and bring some pride back to the job. It s plain after his comments on the show that he has no idea what s important and what isn t. Maybe it s time to put him either out to pasture or out walking a beat where he can t hurt anybody.

Toledo is hurting bad enough. We don t need the police dragging it further down with such a bad image. I don t know what the real problem is, but it needs fixing. A new chief would be a start.

Robert W. Murray

Coldwater, Mich.