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Suitcase causes bomb scare at Akron bus terminal
Akron City Council OKs higher speed on I-77
Chapel Hill isn't rolling right along
Motorcyclist killed, wife injured in Stark County crash
New eateries expand menu of options
Man says he was punched, robbed by 3 people in parking lot
Patrick McManamon: Here's what the Browns should try the rest of the season
Louisville athlete commits to play for Boston College
Family found dead in Ohio home
Blogs:
Pets:
It Takes All Kinds
The Heldenfiles:
Tuesday Notebook
Patrick McManamon:
An interesting thought from a reader
Akron Zips:
Akron vs. Mount Union — Liveblog
Tribe Matters:
Indians announce spring dates
Cleveland Browns:
Mangini doesn't name a quarterback
Kent State Sports:
Flashes interested in another Cincinnati player
Cleveland Cavaliers:
Shaq: It’s All About Winning Championships
Buckeye Blogging:
Buckeyes Roll 100-60 / Season Outlook
Varsity Letters:
Report: Walsh baseball player commits
All Da King's Men:
More On The Fort Hood Jihadist
Blog of Mass Destruction:
Simply Incapable of Telling The Truth
Akron Law Café:
Health Care Financing Reform: (63) Commonwealth Fund Report on Primary Care
See Jane Style:
Muffle Your Muffler
Car Chase:
Clock Tender- Extending the Life of Collector Car Clocks
Let's Talk Real Estate:
Rumors: Akron Starbucks Closing
Ohio Travels with Betty:
Jack is looking for a trip to Southern Ohio the week of November 16.
Sound Check:
Aeromsith looking for new singer as Steven Tyler contemplates solo career
HRLite House:
Personal Rant – Why People Do Not Live in Northeast Ohio
Akron Gamer:
Video: 'Modern Warfare 2' hits the streets
Published on Monday, Jul 07, 2008
If only the matter were black and white, the opposition wearing uniforms so one could distinguish the real bad guys from the low-level Taliban, innocent villagers and ordinary criminals.
What was Richard Reid before he attempted to kill a planeload of strangers with a shoe bomb? He was a terrorist. Who knew?
Neither his British neighbors nor the French security officials who allowed him to travel freely aboard a plane bound for the United States knew him to be a terrorist.
How about the 9/11 terrorists? Before flying a plane into the World Trade Center, Mohamed Atta was an architecture and urban planning student. In fact he was a student most of his life.
As to the decision regarding the Guantanamo detainees' legal rights, the outcomes of their cases seem predictable, based on interviews with those who have been released. It will be very difficult to prove a connection to a terrorist organization.
The rules of engagement have changed. Many don't recognize or care to accept that reality — but those who were murdered in New York, London, Spain and on the USS Cole leave a legacy of reality.
Is a reporter more qualified to separate the truly bad guys from the low-level Taliban, innocent villagers and ordinary criminals than the United States military? (''Not all are 'worst of worst,' '' June 15).
What would McClatchy Newspapers reporter Tom Lasseter's techniques include? Would he subject the detainees to probing interviews, speak with their neighbors, teachers and friends? Ask if they were terrorists?
Terrorists like Atta are insidious, evolving and multifaceted.
Or would Lasseter still categorize him as a student? How about when he slit the throat of the flight attendant to gain access to the flight cabin? We knew for sure after he flew the plane into a building full of people.
America will make mistakes in this war on terror. Had Atta been detained before 9/11 and sent to Guantanamo for seven years and released, would he be categorized by Lasseter as a student or a terrorist?
Or would Lasseter say we turned him into a terrorist?
Paul Samide
Hudson
Fast talk on gambling
Concerning Joe DiSalvo's comments (''Gambling on casinos,'' June 29) about gambling in Ohio: The people of Ohio have voted against gambling time and time again. According to DiSalvo, we are wrong, but we are in the majority. That should be the end of the argument.
The people who want to build a casino are not concerned about creating 5,000 new jobs or generating $200 million in new tax revenue for Ohio. Get real. Don't let them brainwash you.
It's a heck of a lot easier to keep the door shut than to let some fast-talking salesperson get his foot in it.
Allan Butler
Cuyahoga Falls
Model aircraft club
deserves place in parks
Concerning your June 23 story (''Model Airplanes might get parked''), although I am not a member of the Corsair Model Aircraft Club, I am sad to learn that they could be ejected from their field due to the new extension of the Metro Parks. For several years, I have visited the field occasionally to enjoy watching the flying. I have found the operators to be safe and skillful pilots.
Keith Shy, the Metro Parks director, expresses concern about noise. The models do make some noise, but far less than the swimmers at Munroe Falls Park or concerts held at other Metro Parks.
One evening while flying was in progress, I saw three deer emerge from the woods into the unmowed section right next to the field. They tilted their heads for a minute or two as if watching, then proceeded to graze.
Concerning safety, have you ever walked on a Metro Park hike and bike trail? I did once and never again. I was grazed by one biker with no apology.
Currently, there are 13 Metro Parks in the system, plus the Cuyahoga Valley National Park nearby. These should provide plenty of opportunities for visitors to enjoy their peace and natural beauty as prized by Shy.
Summit County Councilman John Schmidt points out, ''We carve out niches in our park systems for dogs, for skateboards, for putt-putt golfers and everybody under the sun. And we should carve out a niche for these folks as well.''
I sure agree with him. The parks are for all to enjoy.
Roy R. Divis
Cuyahoga Falls
Mayor's sewer plan
really does have merit
Despite its 100-year-old pipes, and thanks to its cash flow and free use of rainfall, gravity and bacteria, Akron's sewer system has enormous value.
It would be helpful if some individuals could move beyond their hatred of Don Plusquellic and fear of ''big business'' and take a serious look at the mayor's proposal to lease the system and use the proceeds for scholarships.
The mayor's proposal seems wise if we face several realities:
Like other older cities, Akron will see its sewer rates go up in the future, no matter who owns or operates the system. Looming Environmental Protection Agency requirements and an aging infrastructure guarantee it.
Rate increases could be mitigated if a new lessee brings economy of scale to Akron's operation.
Gas companies, for instance, generally have large fleets of appropriate vehicles, up-to-date billing systems and employees trained in similar work.
An asset is an asset. A $100 million sewer system has exactly the same value as a $100 million skyscraper or a $100 million trust fund that would fund scholarships.
Most high school graduates go on today to some form of costly further education. Sometimes it is a traditional four-year college, but it is just as likely to a two-year associate degree program or a proprietary school.
Unfortunately, the substantial loans required to pay for these programs are forcing many graduates to postpone families and home-buying just at the time our cities are trying to reach out to young people.
Scholarships would certainly help our situation, and the mayor's proposal is a great place to start the discussion.
But as a matter of fairness, shouldn't the proposed scholarships be available to the city-dwelling graduates of all the high schools, including the private ones?
And shouldn't they be available to those who have graduated through such alternate paths as charter schools or home schooling?
Also, rather than restrict the scholarships to the University of Akron, shouldn't the proposed scholarships be usable at any school offering advanced education?
UA is a wonderful institution, but many high school graduates could be better served elsewhere.
Jeff Davis
Akron
No longer a Beck fan
I used to be an avid fan of Glenn Beck. I listened to his radio show and watched his TV program.
Not anymore, since he became a political radical.
His dislike and nasty comments about Barack Obama are over the edge. I am no longer an avid fan of Glenn Beck's political comments.
Carol Swank
Wadsworth
Taking blood to test
is serious business
Your June 22 editorial on the Ohio General Assembly's passage of a bill that would allow law enforcement officials to take blood without consent or a warrant (''How about a veto, governor?'') correctly identifies the dire constitutional issues in allowing the government to have blanket authority to draw a person's blood.
Proponents think they are on solid ground. They are not.
The U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed that only in emergency situations where there is no possibility of attaining a timely warrant from a judge, law enforcement may obtain blood against the person's will.
However, the law has not stated that officials can have an arbitrary rule that anyone who has a certain number of prior convictions can be compelled to have blood taken.
In Ohio, law enforcement officials can easily and effectively obtain warrants to seize a person's blood if they refuse to submit to a test.
Judges are available 24 hours a day and can oftentimes produce warrants in a matter of a few minutes.
Without requiring warrants, there is no judicial check on whether a blood test was needed or appropriate.
The act of taking blood from a person's body is a very serious action and should be given full consideration by a judge.
While the desire to reduce the number of drivers under the influence is admirable, circumventing the courts is not the right solution.
Christine Link
Executive Director
American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio
Cleveland
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