@TheUsualSiteSuspects:

We've got allot of meat on our plate today. First, Dr. Muth, great letter. Just like the "pro-life/anti-abortionists" perennial attempts to chip away at Roe v Wade, unscrupulous business owners will attempt to peck away at SB 346 in the same manner. I don't care if people want to smoke cigarettes, I just don't want to breathe their unfiltered, second hand smoke. I think all drugs should be legalized, but that doesn't mean I want to do them or condone their use or want them forced upon me. This is about mutual respect in public. The medical studies are in and have been in for years now, end of story.

@John clark - You are clearly one of the least informed people that has ever lived.

@Bruce Gary:

Come on, Bruce, you're not going to find any empathy on this site, you're taking home $155k per year! So now you'll be forced to take home $135k per year, a dishonest living wage. Do you really expect us to support forcing this nations CEO's to take pay cuts bringing them in line with foreign, transplant CEO's when you're still way overpaid? In case you haven't noticed, Bruce, that's not the American way. You're supposed to still be working in a sweat shop so consider yourself lucky, lucky that unions were even allowed to exist. The way it works, my man, is called "trickle down", and you guys have gotten way too much trickle. The man at the top is fed up, he hasn't gotten his fair share of late. You unionizers tricked him, strong armed him, held a gun to his head, and now you're going to pay!

@Medina Kook One:

So the Palestinians are "reaping what they've sown?" Okay, let's play with your inane analogy. So if Ohio became Ohio because some powerful, guilt ridden apologists kicked all 5 million Michiganians off their land, displacing them from their homes to a different land, you wouldn't expect some form of retaliation from the Michiganians? That's the modern historical starting point, Kook Klark.....You need to take any train back to "Kooksville".....We won't be meeting you at the station either......And about this quote:
"Those poor starving Gaza Strip citizens have no food, no water, no shelter. But they do have AK-47s, mortars, rockets and, of course, explosives to blow themselves up along with innocent bystanders. To me, that doesn't sound like victims, but perpetrators." There are over 1 million people packed into that strip of land, and thus far of the 900 slaughtered only 300 have been identified as militants and the rest are innocent men, women, and children. The Israelis from the outset of the recent truce have been systematically borderline starving these people, withholding medical needs, and covertly carrying out one by one assassination attempts. Your shortsightedness and one sided view reflects ignorance of history and depth of thinking. Typical Kook..........

@Medina Kook Two:

Read this:

"There are many misconceptions about the Fairness Doctrine. For instance, it did not require that each program be internally balanced, nor did it mandate equal time for opposing points of view. And it didn’t require that the balance of a station’s program lineup be anything like 50/50.
Nor, as Rush Limbaugh has repeatedly claimed, was the Fairness Doctrine all that stood between conservative talkshow hosts and the dominance they would attain after the doctrine’s repeal. In fact, not one Fairness Doctrine decision issued by the FCC had ever concerned itself with talkshows. Indeed, the talkshow format was born and flourished while the doctrine was in operation. Before the doctrine was repealed, right-wing hosts frequently dominated talkshow schedules, even in liberal cities, but none was ever muzzled (The Way Things Aren’t, Rendall et al., 1995). The Fairness Doctrine simply prohibited stations from broadcasting from a single perspective, day after day, without presenting opposing views."

http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0212-03.htm

Once again, more assumptions and the sky is falling KooK balderdash.

@Angela Boland:

Regarding--"How sad that no one even blinks an eye when the incoming president of the Akron school board is pictured on the front page of the Beacon Journal (''Akron schools face year of cuts,'' Jan.5) with his unwed girlfriend and their baby."

Even though this has already been hashed, I'm obliged to re-hash. So "unwed" constitutes a non-family entity? How would one identify them? They're pictured together, they are together, they are all living together. We're back to that piece of paper, traditional thing. Roughly sixty per cent of all marriages in this country end up in divorce. If 18 years from now they're still together, paperless, happy and have raised a productive, wholesome child then God bless them.........As Dylan sang:

"Old ladies sit and judge watching people in pairs
limited in sex they dare, to push fake morals insult and stare
while money doesn't talk, it swears
obscenity, who really cares?
Propaganda ALL is phony...."

Even though Supreme Head Kook Don Miller resides in Stow, and there's a strong KooK following that live there too, Medina is beginning to really show its KooK Kolors. 2009 might be the year that Medina overtakes Stow as the Kook Kapital. Vegas oddsmakers have made Stow the 6/5 favorite to repeat and Medina a 2/1 shot to overtake. More at the end of the year when all the KooKs have surfaced and resurfaced by then. And the key to victory, as the KooKs well know, is getting out the resurfacer's. Like Kook Lorkowski and Kook Lehner, just to name a few......

Hmmm.....funny, I'm only 39 and I know several people who were never smokers and they died from cancer, stroke and emphysema.

BTW, that smoking ban is precisely why a lot of my friends and I do not go out anymore. The smoking ban is hurting some businesses, some clubs, and also the local music scene has taken a hit. Then you add in the state of the economy and those things have really taken it hard. Besides, most of us choose to stay home, have people over, entertain here and we can smoke and drink whatever we want and whenever we want. Most of all, there is less drama and trouble that way.

RapidRobert I am not sure why you think anyone really cares about your ramblings. It is clear that you are a raving liberal lunatic so after the first sentence of your posts I skip to someone who may have something intelligent to say. You will find people may listen to you if you pick your subject carefully and save your conservative bashing for an editorial that deserves it.

And for Angela Boland, good for you. morals are getting harder and harder to come by in this society. Too many lazy ignorant people.

R squared has said it all today...no need for anyone else to chime in. However, Angela Boland, we have already had this conversation as noted by RR and there will be both sides to your letter all day long. If you don't like what he stands for (I don't eitehr), write a letter to the APS Board or call a Board member directly:

Akron Public Schools
c/o School Board
70 N. Broadway
Akron, OH 44308-1911

Phone – 330-761-2922

Board Members
Kirt Conrad - 330/785-9212
Amy Reeves Grom - 330/780-7289
Jason Haas - 330/212-3541
James Hardy - 330/671-2923
Linda F.R. Omobien - 330/867-6571
Shelia Smith - 330/873-1277
Rev. Dr. Curtis T. Walker, Sr. - 330/434-5800

I would first like to state that we do not have a smoking ban... it is a restriction on smoking. A ban implies that smoking is illegal, which it is not.

Second, smoking is still not as restrictive at alcohol. You can smoke while driving. You can smoke while walking down the street. Try doing that with a beer. (Unless you are Robert and then you can do that second thing with a beer).

Third, no matter how you look at it smoking impacts those around you, and you have not given them a choice about that. Alcohol, does not harm those around you. It harms you and only you, within the bounds of law.

Fourth, I am not advocating anything more than protection of one's choice to breathe / drink what they choose. I am with Robert in the stand that many things should be legalized, not because I want to partake, but because people should be given the freedom to make up their own minds... as long as their decision does not make someone elses decision for them.

@Bruce Gary - I agree, especially if they are asking for government handouts.

@Angela Boland, Watching, PacMan - Let me ask you this... what is the more "morale" choice...

Becoming a father and being active in your child life?
- Or -
Becoming a father and running away because you do not want anything to do with fatherhood?

aahhh but uncle ed but you miss the point. I believe not becoming a father until you married is the issue and flaunting this fact when families are trying to teach their children the value of right and wrong and not engaging in certain activities until you married. I understand this offends non religious people but since at least a good majority of Americans believe in a higher being, it is my right and responsibilty to raise my children according to my beliefs. the very beliefs this country was founded on, dare I say it? "Under God"

@ Bruce Gary – I agree with R Squared that you will get no empathy here today (except maybe from UE), and I really doubt the $155k he referred to – I wonder how RR would react to a 12.9% pay cut. What say you RR ?

@ RR (refer: Angela) – (IMO) God would of course still love them, but… I really doubt He would bless them in 18 years if they are still together and unwed. We all choose our battles, and the sides we take and it’s usually based on ‘what’s in it for me’. In this case most just don’t care or see anything wrong with this picture.

Becoming a father and being active in your child’s life in conjunction with being a husband to the mother of that child, is the ‘more’ moral choice Uncle Ed.

@ spd3333 - Hummm.....good to hear you are staying inside your house sucking up all that 2nd hand smoke with your friends and family, keeping it away from me. Unfortunately, my health insurance premiums will rise due in part to the choices/decisions you make.

Spd - the smoking ban is the reason I go out MORE now. I don't have to wake up reeking of smoke or have my jacket dry cleaned once a week. It's lovely. So, I'll make up for your not going out.

Watching - bitter much? Attack the person without any intellegent comments to back it up. Same old, same old.

@Watching and PacMan - but where does it say that being a parent must also mean you are married?

As for the Angela,

If the man is qualified and will do a good job in the position, what does it matter what his family life is? I bet you would like to out all the gay teachers as well for being "immoral". If they are happy, their child is well cared for, and he is a real father in his child's life, get over it. It's better than those white trash married couples who get married at 18 and laze around all day. Mistakes happen. Maybe they intend to marry one day.

In the meantime, you should probably write to the Cavs about LeBron James. That man has 2 children and is not married! Look at his morals! We should probably take him off the court because of his home life. How can he be a role model for children?!

A marriage license doesn't guarantee you a good family, a good father or a good mother.

Quit picking on happy unmarried couples and work on fixing that divorce rate.

Uncle Ed: - can't speak for Watching but I heard it on Rush Limbaugh

Uncle Ed: You knew I was kidding, didn't you? As I stated earlier, we all choose our battles, and the sides we take and it’s usually based on ‘what’s in it for me’. You either believe in the Bible or you don't. I do and as soon as RR gets up from his nap I'm sure he'll be chiming in on this 'man made/created' Bible issue.

@ LawCat – let’s not ‘compare’ this issue with gay teachers, LeBron James or any other non relevant issue. Regardless of the kind of job Jim Hardy can do, he is NOT setting a good example (period).

@ PacMan, I agree that perhaps not the wisest choice he has made, but does it impede him from doing his job? Is he a stand up person all other aspects? Does the woman just not want to get married? Does he take care of her in other respects?

Some couples choose to get married in the church and some do not. To be married in this country you do not need to have the man-woman-God dynamic that the church advocates. Because of this, just because someone is married, doesn't automatically mean they are moral. You can be cheating on your wife, and still be married. You can take someone down to the courthouse and marry them for a green card, but that doesn't make you moral.

PacMan - Your health insurance premiums would have gone up anyhow irregardless of any decisions I make in life.

PacMan - Is being married a qualification for the job? No. It's irrelvant. Why focus on it?

PacMan - That would also be the same as me saying that the only reason my car insurance is going up is because all the other people around me are terrible drivers.

LawCat - Go ahead and make up for me not going out. I'm OK with that! The economy is not doing well so I'll save money this way.

The school board president is setting a fine example. Leave him & his family alone, they're happy & together & probably a better family than those pretend happy, married heteros.

@ spd3333 - "That would also be the same as me saying that the only reason my car insurance is going up is because all the other people around me are terrible drivers."

Duh...."premiums will rise due in part to the choices/decisions you make".

@PacMan - Whether you believe in the Bible or not should have no bearing on how someone else lives their life. It also should have no bearing on how you judge someone else in a professional light.

For instance, I am a practicing Catholic who believes that I needed to be married before I had children. I also hold the same beliefs for my children... but why should I hold those beliefs for someone else?

@ LawCat – I repeat… Regardless of: “impede him from doing his job, being a stand up person all other aspects, or if the woman. or if, or if, or because”…regardless of all that, and the kind of job Jim Hardy can do, he is NOT setting a good example (period). That's all this subject was about.

pACmAN - yES, BUT IT MAKES NO SENSE. wHY WOULD MY INSURANCE GO UP FOR SOMETHING you DO. iT SHOULD BE BASED OFF OF THE INDIVIDUAL, NOT THE ENTIRE POPULATION. sOMEONE WHO IS A TERRIBLE DRIVER SHOULD NOT AFFECT ME, A PERSON WITH A CLEAN SLATE!

@ Uncle Ed – I am judging no one - not my job, man!

Just taking a stand and making ‘my’ point. We all choose our battles…and whether you believe in the Bible or not HAS A HUGE bearing on how someone else lives their life.

Shirley, KSU and UA have the lowest tuition rates among the four largest public universities in Ohio. Lowering their rates further just because they have a limited amount of money available would be a waste. Each student might get a few dollars off his/her tuition bill if that much and then only to have the tuition go back up once the extra funds are exhausted. Besides, we don't need more students going to college, we need less. With embarassing low retention rates at both schools, someone needs to start thining the herd at our public universities.

@PacMan... I am ready to hear this explanation...

How does your belief in the Bible have a HUGE bearing on how someone else lives their lives?

@ PacMan - That's your opinion on what a "good example" is. Mine is that the child is well taken care of and loved. Did you wait until marriage? Mistakes do happen, she had the child, and they are engaged. The school board apparently takes no issue with it so writing them is futile. You would rather have a married man less qualified in there so as to "set a good example"?

If you have an issue, why didn't you run for the position?

Uncle Ed - Maybe my note was not clear...it's not 'my' belief in the Bible but whether you (they) believe in the bible which has a huge bearing how you (they) live their life...re read:

and whether you believe in the Bible or not HAS A HUGE bearing on how someone else lives their life.

Hope this is more clear...

@ Jake - "someone needs to start thinning the herd at our public universities"…good luck on that one - thinning the herd means less income.

SPD - in the long run, we all pay. You are a higher risk for many diseases that can require costly medical procedures. You're not paying the bulk of it, the insurance company is. And they in turn pass it on to the rest of us. Obese people make the choice to eat too much, smokers make the choice to smoke, etc. But when many many people are making unhealthy decisions that require many medical procedures, drugs etc that the insurance companies pay, the premiums go up.

Healthy choices = Healthier people = less procedures/drugs = less insurance companies have to pay = lower premiums.

SPD - in the long run, we all pay. You are a higher risk for many diseases that can require costly medical procedures. You're not paying the bulk of it, the insurance company is. And they in turn pass it on to the rest of us. Obese people make the choice to eat too much, smokers make the choice to smoke, etc. But when many many people are making unhealthy decisions that require many medical procedures, drugs etc that the insurance companies pay, the premiums go up.

Healthy choices = Healthier people = less procedures/drugs = less insurance companies have to pay = lower premiums.

@ spd3333 – “Why would my (your) insurance go up for something you (I) do?”

Because everyone who participates helps chip in to pay the light bill. I agree that it ‘should’ be based on the individual, but…ya gotta cover the overhead somehow – plus those terrible drivers probably aren’t chipping in anyhow (driving w/o insurance).

Jake - go private. It pays in the long run.

@ pac man. just for clarification. when you say "believe in the bible", do you mean the whole bible, in total? Do you think it is word for word the written word of god? do you think it is impossible to have a good moral compass while thinking the bible is basically a nice PR tool written by men to promote an organized religion?

I'm not trying to taunt you here. I'm attempting to get a handle on your belief system.

Dear Spd3333: There is so much going on today that I do not know where to begin. So I will start with you. I HATE being around smokers. It is a disgusting...vile....expensive...stupid....habit. Why ANYONE would willingly injest poisons into their bodies is beyond any reason. Whu don't you hook yourself up to your cars' exhaust pipe...and do yourself in.....once and for all. The ban has nothing to do with business being slow in bars and restaurants......it's THE ECONOMY STUPID!!! As for health insurance costs being more expensive....smokers sure DO NOT HELP in bringing them down.

@ Jake - you’re excused for the double post – I’m finding this morning that it’s best to exit the editorial letters page altogether and re access the page after posting a comment; and that doesn’t always work because of the way the updates are being handled by the ABJ. A page refresh (F5) isn’t always working this morning.

opps it was LawCat with the double post and not Jake...sorry.

Sorry, it really isn't working very well today!

@ LawCat – not reading the details very well this morning are you? My earlier post to you…he is NOT setting a good example (period). That's all this subject was about and you are correct in that it was my opinion. Aren’t these all opinions?

I believe I said that several times…did you miss that too?

You can bet the school Board is embarrassed by this but isn’t speaking up on this controversial issue…as RR would say, no b@#ls.

By the by, where is The Pope? My fingers are getting tired.

Sorry, he's a fine example of a young man and he met all qualifications. It's not a controversial issue. Controversial is leaving your child's mother, not paying child support, having your spouse divorce you for some illicit act, etc.

I doubt they are embarassed, the members elected him.

He shows ambition, something kids in the APS need. He's smart and has new ideas. How much do the kids even see him to know he's setting a supposed "bad example"?

@PacMan - You still have failed to explain how he is setting a bad example...

Is it the fact he has ambition... is it the fact he is plays an active father role...

Or is it the fact that he has not gone through a ceremony that YOU consider to be essential to be a parent?

@ LawCat – I’m sure this guy has lots of ambition, is smart and has new ideas. I really hope he does do well. However, there is only one (1) issue on the table today even though you continue to get off topic. Let me repeat it for you. The question (issue) at hand:

Is he (James hardy) setting a good example as APS Board President by living with someone, and sharing a child outside of marriage (period)? (I'll give you a clue, it's a one word answer and it’s an opinion - YES or NO).

You don’t even need to reply because I already know what your answer is.

Law Cat, Too late for me...I went public. Not only do I have my sheep skin from UA, I put it to good use realizing no degree is a free pass. I'm now on the other side of the "diploma mill," as some would call it and retired at a young age while working minimally and volunteering in and out of my field of study. To say the least, I have no complaints and am quite frankly grateful for my academic choice.

Nonetheless, I get your point.

Are they living together? It doesn't say that. I didn't live with my husband prior to marriage but that doesn't mean we weren't fooling around while we were engaged.

The only facts are that he fathered a child out of wedlock and is now marrying the mother.

And I'm still trying to figure out how the board is "embarassed" of the situation seeing as they - the membership - elected him to VP and now as President.

the fairness doctrine is a way to stifle speech which may not be popular to some people or groups!
however freedom of speech is still in the constitution. unless the democrats call aconstituional convention and remove it along with the second ammendment.

@ Uncle Ed (LawCat this applies to you too)- You are smarter than this Uncle Ed (and LawCat) and you know the ramifications of this example have a much bigger impact than can be conveyed or measured in a sentence or two. The fact that he has not gone through a ceremony that I consider essential, to be a husband 1st, and a parent 2nd has little impact on the overall consequences of those who think this to be OK.

This 'example' uncontested, overtime, will eat us alive down the road just as greed has done, along with those those taking out loans they can not afford, etc.

Sometime, somewhere, we have to start taking responsibility for our actions else we'll pay for it later.

PacMan - The problem is you do not know this man or his fiance's situation. You assume they live together (which you do not know)and you assume the school board is embarassed (even though they elected him). Is it the ideal situation? No. Is he taking responsibility? Yes. Perhaps the fiance has problems and only had a certain time to have children. You do not know, you assume. My friend had cancer in his "man parts" in his early 20s. He was engaged to his fiance who he had dated since high school. The cancer was fast moving and the only way they were to have natural children was to have them then prior to marriage and to push back their wedding. Is he immoral for doing so? Is he setting a bad example?

RETIRED COP WIFE - The Constitution was fine until the PATRIOT ACT was introduced by Bush.

TRUTH SOUGHT - Where did it say that I'M specifically a smoker? My friends smoke. The bar business sank as soon as the law went into effect and before the economy really tanked. Get your facts straight before attacking me.

Rapid Robert: I agree with much of what you say in your posts... but not how you say it. You only harm your point of view with the name calling and personal attacks. If you want people (those who agree with your opinion and/or those who don't) to read your posts, you might want to consider easing up on the rhetoric. Personally, I think you are intelligent and your posts would be given more thoughtful consideration by those with different views if you were more polite.

@ renae - nice going, that's all RR needed to keep him going another week or two - telling him you think he's intelligent. He should be up any minute...he had a long night.

@ retired cop wife. are you a retired cop or a retired wife? Or the wife of a retired cop? either way, you are one ignorant poster when it comes to the tenants of the Fairness Doctrine. I suggest you actually try investigating the merits (or not) of an issue before reciting your buddy Rush. You might learn something.

@WatchingtheGOPgodown: I never even read the first sentence of your posts, until I saw my name this time. You Right-Wing Kooks don't like getting it back in your faces like Rush and Hannity deliver to the left. You war mongering chicken hawks, Under God, don't bat an eye when forging illegal lied about wars and sending kids into harms way not to mention killing thousands of innocent civilians. No, impeaching a President for committing perjury regarding oral s*x is more of a "moral" priorty in your Kook world. By the way, God was never in the "Pledge of Allegeance" until Eisenhower signed a bill around 1952 as a reaction to McCarthyism. And the "moral" stalwarts you refer to that founded this country, ("Under God") as you say, had slaves and presided over an attempted extermination of the Native American. So much for yours and their "moral standing".........Read about the "trail of tears" and how Jackson turned his back on them while they were removed from "American style living" and forced west and died on that trail from diseases, hunger, and murder. You jingoistic frauds do in fact cling to Jesus and Guns and your diluted sense of history. God is on our side. God is smiling down on the good Ole USA. This is His chosen country. You've probably never traveled to a third world country, and Tijuana doesn't count. Most of your ilk hasn't, and that's part of the problem. We are no better than any other country or people on this planet. By the way, did you volunteer to go to Iraq, Kosovo, Vietnam, Korea, WWII, WWI?

Bruce Gary I agree with you. Who do you all think buys these new cars? The middle and upper class buy these new cars that these top paying excecutives depend on us buying for their paychecks and benefits. So I ask, if the middle class and unions fail (like I'm sure some of you would love), who buys the cars then? You begin asking the working class to take pay cuts, then they can't afford to buy these new cars either. The foreign car companies pay just as much as the American car companies. The only difference in the pay is the difference in benefits. Don't get me wrong, there are many things about unions that just fry my a**, and those are the things that need to be addressed, not pay. For instance, a union worker that still holds a job that sits on his a** all day, sleeping half his shift away, while the other workers pick up his slack. Get rid of the slackers, but this is a whole other issue I realize. I don't expect anyone to agree with me, and I'm sure there are many out there that will put me in my place, but that's what's great about posts, we have that freedom.

Israel is responsible for sequestering an entire population of people and subjecting them to an economic and cultural genocide. With 50% unemployment, no access to basic necessities like food and medicine, and no true freedom, the Palestinians have reacted accordingly.

Pac Man,

Hardy setting a bad example?

Hell, boy, the BJ's made him the POSTER BOY for AKron Public Schools! LOL!

Second Hand Smoke causing deaths is pure nonsense. I have had doctors tell me that this whole second hand smoke thing is a scam. What is mor deadly is the toxins put in the air by automobiles, buses, trucks and construction machinery. A person that drives 1 mile to work and back puts 1,000 times the amount of toxins in the air in one day than a average cigarette smoker puts in the air in one year.

Problem is Healthcare people, Insurance Companies, politicians and citizens are biased about smoking without real evidence, concocted evidence yes.

Second hand smoke is like the magic bullet theory in the JFK assasignation. The government really doesn;t want you to know what and who is really killing you for the sake a big oil corporations and auto manufactureres.

Jenn,

I think when the CEOs went to ask for a bailout, most said they would work for a dollar. Agreed, if your asking for $ from the government, take less money yourself. However, I'm not up in arms about Exec pay. It's not a responsibility I would ever want. They get paid to make intellegent, analyzed decisions that affect the company, the stockholders, the workers, their families, etc. They aren't Joe Sixpack slapping a door or a bumper on a car. He's not making any crucial company decisions and he is paid accordingly.

LawCat,

They are taking $1 in annual pay, sounds great doesn't it. They will still collect their huge benefits. Don't let the $1 pay fool you. I agree that these people worked their way to the the positions they are in and should reap the benefits. But aren't they really the ones that got these companies where they are now? Their "intelligent, analyzed decisions that affect the company" -- isn't that the real issue? Not the working class. Guess we'll just agree to disagree on the issue.

@Renae: I appreciate the feedback regarding the form and content of my posts. Whether right or wrong politics has devolved, for the most part, to this level. The right-wing republican sect, under the tutelage of Herr Rove, is foremost responsible. Swift boating, race baiting, jingoism, wedge issues (Gay Marriage), Jesus, guns all tools to stir emotions, strike fear, and divide the country as a means to get elected. They invented hate talk and hate radio. I'm a left leaning Independent; I served in the Navy and was off the coast of Vietnam (another lied about war). I'm not going to be called unpatriotic or a cut and run because I won't follow along like the good sheep they want me to be when they want wage another one of their phony follies. They don't like getting themselves back, most chicken-hawks don't. Maybe contemporary politics as we know it will change with a breath of fresh air come 1/20....Maybe that's a pipe dream....

Jenn,

One of the main reasons the Big Three failed is prices. Foreign cars are cheaper. The working class have priced themselves too high, created ridiculous job banks, etc and thus it reflects on the price of the car. The CEO can only do so much. The unions wouldn't negotiate until recently. Did they invest in technology that didn't pan out? Certainly, but all businesses do. And 2 of the 3 CEO's have only been there about a year.

@Mars Bumfire: Please, the science is in on secondhand smoke and it's health effects. Sounds like you believe the science when it comes to air pollution and global warming though? Boy this last paragraph of yours was a real doozy:
"Second hand smoke is like the magic bullet theory in the JFK assasignation. The government really doesn;t want you to know what and who is really killing you for the sake a big oil corporations and auto manufactureres."

Even for you this is really out there. I'm sensing a crack pipe contribution today.....

@Mars Bumfire: How about we let a few facts get in the way of your argument:
" TUESDAY, Jan. 13 (HealthDay News) -- A new report card gives the U.S. government consistently failing grades for not protecting Americans from illnesses caused by tobacco.
According to the American Lung Association's State of Tobacco Control 2008, the federal government as well as most states failed to enact critical policy measures, such as higher taxes on cigarettes and to adequately regulate tobacco products.
"Effective tobacco control saves both lives and money," Charles D. Connor, president and chief executive officer of the lung association, said during a Monday afternoon teleconference. "Tobacco use is the number one preventable cause of death in America."
Tobacco-related diseases such as lung cancer and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) kill more than 392,000 Americans each year, and another 50,000 die from exposure to secondhand smoke, Connor said."

@Tomword: Not only do these people know nothing of history but they know nothing of what the facts are today.....

PacMan, it is a shame you have to keep defending and repeating your OPINION simply because some posters can't seem to stay on topic.Love those eyes by the way!

@Kendependent: I doubt that any of these bible thumpers have read or even know about the Skopes Monkey trial. They should have to read a transcript....

Believe what you want, 3 doctors have told me so far that second hand smoke is not a real problem except for those that already have respiratory ailments. The fact that cars and vehicles polute is a known fact and we know how much pollution is caused by fuel spent at this great quantity. To blame it on cigarettes is absurd.

There are other industries that they are trying to protect, it is obvious. The last paragraph may seem absurd to you but it makes the point I am trying to make. You can't trust government to tell you the truth about these things. Money talks but does it always tell the truth?

Free2Speak, but you really shouldn't: maybe PacMan shouldn't add facts to his argument such as they are living together (he doesn't know) and that the board is embarassed (they elected him). Hardy is doing the right thing and you don't know his or his fiancee's situation. And unless you waited until marriage, you're nothing but a hypocrite.

I'm going rouge and off topic again...but this is funny:

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-justice14-2009jan14,0,3129787.story?track=rss

And this man was in the JUSTICE dept.

Only an idiot would say that second-hand smoke does not have negative health benefits.

spd3333, I'm glad you and your friends are not going out anymore so the rest of us now can without inhaling your toxic second hand smoke. And BTW, there is no such word is irregardless. The word is regardless. Your spell check will tell you as much. (ain't is in the dictionary too and that still doesn't make it a real word)

Mars, It makes sense that you would know doctors (provided you are telling the truth)who would make such a stupid claim. Do they also believe the world is flat, that we never landed on the moon, the reason why dinosaurs are extinct is because Noah couldn't fit them on the ark and that climate change is a big lie?

BTW, four doctors told me that auto emissions don't polute the air. How about that? After all you can't trust what the government tells you. It's a known fact, eh?

"Usage Note: Irregardless is a word that many mistakenly believe to be correct usage in formal style,... it has met with a blizzard of condemnation for being an improper yoking of irrespective and regardless and for the logical absurdity of combining the negative ir- prefix and -less suffix in a single term...it has been considered a blunder for decades and will probably continue to be so."

@ Free2Speak - I'll take your advice as I'm done repeating, defending my opinion...Robert likes the eyes as well.

@PacBerta: Why are they referring to you as him? We need you to be a she....And a shim won't make it either.....

@Mars - it's true that cars emit more pollutants than cigarettes... that said, I will not be concerned about it until a car walks up and sits next to me in a bar.

It is the fact that smoke is contained in a confined space.

Today's World of MEDward:

"I would first like to state that we do not have a smoking ban... it is a restriction on smoking. A ban implies that smoking is illegal, which it is not."---

MEDward, some people just don't see what they're reading, let alone the fine print.

"Second, smoking is still not as restrictive as alcohol. You can smoke while driving. You can smoke while walking down the street. Try doing that with a beer. (Unless you are Robert and then you can do that second thing with a beer)."---

MEDward has been to Vegas at least once, I see. Yes, we can walk down the street with open container..."And the world looks just the same, And history ain't changed."

"Fourth, I am not advocating anything more than protection of one's choice to breathe / drink what they choose. I am with Robert in the stand that many things should be legalized, not because I want to partake, but because people should be given the freedom to make up their own minds."---

MEDward has once again offered up a MEDtruth.

"@Watching and PacMan - but where does it say that being a parent must also mean you are married?"---

MEDward, "for I know that the hypnotized never lie."....Yes, being the "good" parent supercedes and is most paramount.

"For instance, I am a practicing Catholic who believes that I needed to be married before I had children. I also hold the same beliefs for my children... but why should I hold those beliefs for someone else?"---

MEDward, let me give you an assist on this one:
Nuance
Noun
1. A subtle difference in meaning or opinion or attitude.

Folks, that wraps up Today's World of MEDward....

Mars has been talking once again to the little green men that live in the box his groovy anti-everything beret came in.

@WatchingtheGOPgodown: Regarding--
"RapidRobert I am not sure why you think anyone really cares about your ramblings. It is clear that you are a raving liberal lunatic so after the first sentence of your posts I skip to someone who may have something intelligent to say. You will find people may listen to you if you pick your subject carefully and save your conservative bashing for an editorial that deserves it.
And for Angela Boland, good for you. morals are getting harder and harder to come by in this society. Too many lazy ignorant people.

But you bit, KOOK, didn't you? And talk about ignorant, your last two sentences epitomize your sparse brain capacity! So "lazy ignorant people" are the ones that have no morals? Further, you're implying that the incoming School Board President must too be lazy and ignorant? Bring it on, Kook Watching in Summit County, I'm ready for any of your right-wing, religious Kook drivel. Lets talk about your "Bible" in literal terms. Lets talk about all the wars in the name of God, religion, jingoism, etc. Lets talk about religion as a tool to exploit, control, make money, make war, maintain power, etc. Check out my picture up there...That's what I think of your man made propaganda and people like you who spread the "phony" word.....You cheered on your war criminal president, didn't you?

to all that commented on the letter about Hardy:
Hardy should be ashamed of his actions! How dare he step up and take care of his child. What an outrage. He should have taken the moral high ground and aborted that child, denied responsibility, or left the mother of his child. Hardy you should be ashamed of yourself!

Like I said, second hand smoke does have a negative effect on people that already have respiratory problems. But in comparison to what you breath outside it is a drop in the bucket. Anyone that can believe that the government is telling you the facts 100% is an idiot. The government allows a specified amount of poisons in your system everyday. Acceptable amounts they call it. They even allow the same ingrdient in baby formula that the babies in China were dying from. There is no acceptable amount of poison for child or adult as far as I'm concerned. What the government has done is pointed many so they are on the wrong track instead of keeping your eye on the ball they make you take your eye off off the ball. I would say some are pretty naive.

We know what you said, Mars. Repeating a lie does not make it true. You always do this. Someone brings up an ill in society and you bring up a bigger ill as though that justifies ignoring the lesser ill. How old are you, eight?

Probably old enough to be your dad. It is not a lie and why are you always fooled into taking your eye off the real issue. The government moves you like a puppet and I guess you enjoy that. Well you are in for a lot of enjoyment in your lifetime because the government is gonna lead you around by the nose until you get your head out of the sand and pay attention.

I have been around long enough to see how governments, corporations and investors work. I have had years of watching how Washington really works and it isn't a matter of looking out for you or me.

Its a money thing as always and if you are anywhere near my age you know it or you are disillusioned.

You don't seem to see deeper than the surface on this issue or other issues. So be a puppet, live in your dream and don't look past the surface. That's your choice, I have mine. Get used to it.

Dear Watching: Next Tues. 1-20......will mark a historic day. Your war criminal President "W".....that stands for wreckage.....will be shown the door.....and I and millions of others will be celebrating. Your GOP is in tatters...flapping aimlessly in the cold winds. Please join us next Tues. at Northside in Akron from 5pm till closing where we will remember these past EIGHT LONG YEARS.

@ RR - A shim? I'm insulted. If someone referred to me as a him then just consider the only source...LawCat - a prowler herself all day today. Plus, PacWoman just didn't have the punch so maybe I dropped the Wo. Get it? WO man. Get it? WhoaaaaaaaaaaaaMan, where ya goin man?

@PacBerta........Please reinstate PacWoman.....I need this when I look at your eyes.......

Angela,
I agree with you 100%!!! The ABJ should not have featured this couple and their out of wedlock child in the newspaper give this man's occupation. Why feature them at all? They had nothing to do with the story, and the ABJ is just giving this lifestyle credibility. This is really wrong given how we discourage our highschool age kids not to have unprotected sex etc.

Great letter!

@VirginMary: Next to the definition of naivety in Webster's Dictionary is your picture. Hey, MaryMuppet, maybe, just maybe, they made a joint decision to have a child even though they didn't believe in that piece of paper that somehow justifies your brainwashed institution. The equation isn't etched: marriage child = family.......How about this for a thought: bonding child = family.......Does that notion wobble your religious right brain?

It's so nice to be living in a country for that for the most part allows us the freedom of speech. Smoking is a choice all be it not a wise one but it is. People smoke for one reason or another and then either can't stop or choose not too. Being citizens of a free country and until it is illegal to do so they have every right to smoke. But lets set it straight if you get sick from it don't blame the tobacco companies for it because everyone and their mothers knows how bad it is for you. Cancer well that can happen to a nonsmoker as well a lot of different factors weigh in when it comes to cancer could be from many different things. As you can see smoking is slowly becoming a thing of the past.

Child support wow thats a tough issue. I understand this cause as a child my real father was never in the picture never paid child support and my mother basically raised 3 children on her own ( My compliments to my Mother :oD) But sadly there are two sides to every story sometimes yes the father is a deadbeat dad or mom(yes we have those too) and deserves to go to jail where as you have the dads who do everything they can to support their children and fight an up hill battle. Sometimes (not all the time) women use the children as leaverage to get what they want and or need from there former spouse. My question is why do the children have to suffer? If the woman or man gets child support it should go directly to supporting the child or children. The individual with custody should have to prove every month that they are using the funds soley for the child and not for themselves as sometimes that does happen. Not always the father is the bad guy, not always is the mother either. Instead of putting them in jail they should work out a way where the child is supported as much as possible. We wonder why the youth of today is all jacked up.

To spd3333:
Bars are not hurting for business because of the smoking restriction. Many states have passed this restriction, and statistics prove that this has not hampered their business. You rant about something that you know nothing about. Second-hand smoke hurts people. Get a clue.

Mars, you see the boogie man where he doesn't exist. Contrary to your distorted and grandiose self-image of being savvy, you are at best paranoid and at least a wannabe.