Updated 5 hours ago
Toledo's dirty little secret
BY JEFF GERRITT BLADE DEPUTY EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR
This column is one in a series of commentaries this year in The Blade on violence in the Toledo area, and possible solutions. …

Published 5 hours ago
Abandonment, hope, and a man who hangs in
BY KEITH C. BURRIS BLADE ASSOCIATE EDITOR
A few days ago, I spent a couple of hours riding around blighted Toledo with ex-Mayor Jack Ford and his friend Weldon Douthitt, who was celebrating his 80th birthday. We were surveying the city’s housing stock — some of its many abandoned homes and forgotten neighborhoods. …

Published 6 hours ago
Drinking, driving, freedom
Editorials
More than any other nation, the United States can’t quite make up its mind whether alcohol is a blessing or a curse. Founding Fathers such as Benjamin Franklin liked to lift a glass. …

Published 6 hours ago
Homeless service systems must change
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Your May 15 editorial “Cutting shelters” includes incorrect information about funding for centralized homelessness assessment. You unfairly place blame for a rift with Toledo shelters solely at the feet of the city administration and Toledo-Lucas County Homelessness Board. …

Published 6 hours ago
Broader look at tree saga
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
In response to Blade Associate Editor Keith C. Burris’ May 11 op-ed column, "Toledo, spare those trees," about the Cherrylawn Drive reconstruction project: In 2007, Cherrylawn was in an unacceptable condition. I told the neighborhood that I would champion the repairs necessary to correct the situation. …

Published 5 hours ago
Express distress
Editorials
New academic study confirms what Toledo area air travelers already know: The number of passenger flights out of Toledo Express Airport plummeted by three-fourths between 2007 and 2012. The report warns that our local airport “may be at risk for future loss of all network carrier air service.”A …

Published 6 hours ago
Still a place on campus for affirmative action
BY DAVID KUSHMA BLADE EDITOR
Any day now, the U.S. Supreme Court will answer a fateful question: Does the Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection under the law still allow universities to take race into account when they decide which applicants to admit? …

Published 6 hours ago
Obama wrong on Social Security
BY NORMAN WERNET
President Obama, to balance his budget, proposes cutting Social Security cost-of-living adjustments by adopting the “chained” Consumer Price Index (CPI) formula. That plan would cut the buying power of more than 2.1 million Social Security beneficiaries in Ohio. …

Published 6 hours ago
Administration scandals cross sacred lines
BY DAVID SHRIBMAN POST-GAZETTE EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Any presidential administration should know better than to mess with the press or the Internal Revenue Service. …

5/17/2013 11:33 PM
Nigeria’s test
Editorials
The state of emergency declared this week by President Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria is a clear signal to that country’s armed forces that it is time for them to take decisive action. …