Credit Kaptur for city's LISC

11/13/2010

Your Nov. 6 article “Embrace greatness, Blade editor tells city; Event marks anniversary of paper, LISC” described The Blade's 175 years of accomplishments and the donation of the proceeds from an anniversary event to the Local Initiative Support Corporation.

LISC was introduced to Toledo by U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D., Toledo). She asked many of us in the community to raise the seed money for the LISC program. The Blade, along with a broad cross-section of community leaders from industry, organized labor, and the professions, quickly raised the money.

Representative Kaptur's leadership, coupled with The Blade and other community leaders, made it possible for a very successful LISC program to be established in Toledo.

John C. Straub

Washington

Another view of Bill Mauldin

Tom Walton's Nov. 8 op-ed column, “Add veterans' voices to Mauldin's record of WWII” brought back memories of my encounter with Bill Mauldin.

In the winter of 1951-1952, while I was serving with a combat engineering unit in Korea, I had the opportunity to meet and spend several days with Mr. Mauldin. He was attached to our unit for an assignment from Collier's magazine.

My platoon was tasked with constructing a command post for the commanding officer of the 5th Marine Regiment. We built a small bunker from logs and sandbags. While Mr. Mauldin was writing about our unit, my platoon sergeant showed him what we did.

As my sergeant was inspecting the work, Mr. Mauldin, wearing dungarees with no identification, walked in on the colonel. The colonel asked: “Don't you have any common courtesies?,” implying that Mr. Mauldin should have knocked and asked permission to enter.

When Mr. Mauldin returned to our command post, he sketched a Marine in helmet, poncho, and rifle slung upside down, and with a beard, walking through the mud. The caption read: “I ain't got no common courtesies.”

Theodore G. Jenkins

Creek Run Drive

Pelosi pushed wrong agenda

You can't seem to bring yourself to say that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi must go, in your opinion, without blame, demonization, and name-calling of conservatives, lest you offend your Kool-Aid-drinking readers (“Pelosi must go,” editorial, Nov. 10).

You finally bring yourself to state the real reason why Speaker Pelosi must go, according to her own party's members. She pushed an agenda that our nation did not want. The President, Ms. Pelosi, and many congressmen are paying the price demanded by the results of the midterm elections.

That is why many members of her own party, especially those who lost, do not want her holding the gavel. They feel their chances of re-election are diminished if she continues to hold a leadership position, albeit a minority one.

You're trying to soften your opinion that she must go by blaming it on Republicans' masterful art of demonizing their opponents. That is ludicrous, as well as insulting to self-described conservatives, most of whom voted against this administration's policies that Ms. Pelosi pushed through.

Judging by the election results, the end does not justify the means — at least in the United States.

Jay Shenk

Maumee

Pelosi must not yield to critics

Why should Ms. Pelosi give up just because she has been vilified by the Republicans? She must not give in to the anti-everything crowd. Since when do we compromise our beliefs because of opposition? That is antithetical to the concept of a leader.

Ms. Pelosi has accomplished more than either of the Republican speakers before her. Even conservative historians say she may be one of the most effective House speakers in the past 100 years.

She is a proven legislator, and has been a solid leader during a difficult time. She must not give in to haters.

Dan Henning

Fremont

Who will pay for Billy's death?

Who's to blame for Billy the dog's death (“Dogs killed,” Nov. 11)? Is it citizens who didn't adopt her, or the Lucas County dog pound for sitting on a $1 million surplus while dogs like her go crazy in cages too small for them?

Peggy Darrah

Clover Lane

Take steps to stop needless deaths

I was saddened to read about the euthanization. It was a good dog that had been offered for adoption, but snapped under the stress of being kept in a too-small cage.

Surely the budget surplus would allow for larger cages. Something should be done to prevent this from happening to another dog.

Mary Callanan

126th Street

Warden wrong to euthanize dog

I was outraged to read that the dog warden, Julie Lyle, euthanized Billy the female Labrador. Why was she placed in a cage that was too small for her, and for three weeks? That isn't humane and it certainly had an impact on her emotional state.

If the warden doesn't have the right sizes of cages for dogs, transfer the dogs to a rescue organization or the Humane Society.

Rachel Jesko Thoma

Holland

Adopt a pet; you'll be glad you did

I was saddened to read that there are so many dogs to be adopted (“Adoptable-dog roundup to appear every Sunday,” Nov. 7). I urge people to adopt a rescue dog.

Rescue dogs come with all of their shots updated. They are already fixed, most are housebroken, and they give unconditional love.

Puppies are cute, but they take a lot of time, energy, and money. Many people cannot handle the stress that comes with puppies, and get rid of them.

If you are interested in a particular breed, you can find a rescue dog at www.petfinder.com. You can also check with the Toledo Humane Society at www.tol-edohumanesociety.com.

Adopting my rescue dog was the best thing I ever did. Won't you adopt one of these loving dogs?

Lynda Urbaniak

Temperance

Rethink how we educate

Our way of schooling needs to be rethought. Home-schoolers call the school system “dumbing down.”

My son didn't learn to read until he was 10. What label would he have worn in a school? Children do things in their own time and have different interests. Schools roll out cookie-cutter kids, expecting them all to be alike.

It's time for change, instead of trying to pump money into a system that isn't working.

Money isn't the answer. I home-schooled my children for free. I didn't have money for books. The library is filled with books.

JoAnne VanSparrentak

Grand Rapids, Ohio

Girl Scouts set positive standard

If U.S. citizens and legislators believed as do the Girl Scouts of America, we would create plenty of jobs in America (“Girl Scouts won't buy uniforms from overseas,” Nov. 2).

It would be easy to create jobs here if people purchased American-made products, and legislators moved quickly to close loopholes and incentives for companies to move operations overseas.

The American product is of better quality. Buy American.

Frank Ruggiero

Maumee