Glass City Jungle

The following is a guest piece sent via e-mail by the office of Representative Barbara Sears to share with readers of GCJ:
Hospital Tax is Putting Jobs and Ohio’s Economy at Risk
Ohioans have long felt the effects of the downturn in our state’s economy. With unemployment in the double digits for the 14th consecutive month, [...]

After writing Looking through the windshield in the Toledo Free Press that came out Sunday, the thoughts that inspired that column are still with me. As I wrote at the time, it really didn’t matter which superintendent candidate TPS selected, the question raised in my mind by the comment made by Tom Watkins exists [...]

The ultimate irony to the Fourth of July holiday is that the date of the fourth of July as being the date the Declaration of Independence be celebrated is disputed by some. Nor did our forefathers really make that big of a deal about our “Independence Day” according to many historical reports including this [...]

The following was sent via e-mail as a guest post from Representative Barbara Sears:
Competitive Jobs Can Keep Graduates in Ohio
Ohio has a wealth of bright, talented students, but due to our burdensome tax rates and poor business environment, our state has trouble holding on to our most promising individuals. Approximately 70 percent of Ohio’s students [...]

I realize there is a real market in this area and our nation to objectify women for the entertainment of male clientèle. It’s legal and apparently many places do very well in providing wait staff, that as part of the requirement have to have certain physical endowments in addition to serving skills. Hearing [...]

Below is an guest writer piece received via e-mail from District 46 Ohio House Representative Barbara Sears:
Federal Health Care Bill is a Bad Deal for Ohio
Like many of you, I am concerned about the America that our children will inherit. Will they still be able to achieve the same quality of life and enjoy [...]

As a brief intro, I want to provide more information/discussion on our environment, especially related to the Maumee River and Lake Erie. Recently having the opportunity to speak with Sandy Bihn, her dedication, passion and knowledge, created my asking her if she would consider writing a monthly guest post. She agreed, so what [...]

This week the Toledo Free Press has two print covers both in connection to the cover story, on the popular musical Wicked which has become one of the hottest tickets to have in this area. Elphaba is one cover, Glinda the other.
Don Burnard focuses on Stepford Republicans while Tim Higgins is looking for the [...]

Some of the columns/news pieces from the Toledo Free Press have already be referenced in other posts but there are a few that I’d like to point out, especially those that are exclusively online. Terry Biel’s, Bleed donors, not workers is a recommended one, I was not aware of the union/management saga taking place [...]

Back when the whole incentive was created to try to encourage more Toledo residents to recycle, we actually were not losing money on our recycling program and we did not have an automated trash service. Every single person who has been given or will be given the new trash carts is being given one [...]

In my e-mail box this morning:

Dear Lisa,
From time to time, I’d like to provide you with updates on issues affecting our community, especially when those issues involve work I’m doing to help make Toledo and Lucas County a great place to live and raise a family.
Today, I have an opportunity to provide such an update. [...]

Waterville Mayor Derek Merrin’s piece on TARTA based on the premise that limo’s would be cheaper generated some discussion online, it also created a response from James Gee of TARTA in this week’s Toledo Free Press, TARTA: Sales tax is more equitable.
I focus on When red lights equal green in my Shredding the [...]

I understand wanting to reward people for their work, I really do. Yet during the current economic climate learning that Mayor Mike Bell has given raises to top level staff makes me cringe. It doesn’t matter how he justifies it, it adds to the mistrust between unions and the administration and makes it [...]

The following was sent in via e-mail as a guest post from Ohio House Representative Barbara Sears:
Ohio’s Tax Code Hinders Economic Growth
In May 2009, Forbes ranked Toledo as the worst job market among mid-sized cities, citing massive industry decline in the past decade. However, the plight of our community is not isolated; Cleveland, Dayton and [...]

I read on Facebook that Mark Fiore is getting death threats over this cartoon:

As a person who has experienced the intolerance of others who think that mere words on a page gives them the right to threaten a person or their family, I wanted to point this out for several reasons. One, it [...]

One of the stories covered in this week’s Toledo Free Press is the change coming Monday as far as local news coverage. For those of you who haven’t visited the FOX Toledo website or tuned in recently, the news that FOX Toledo to launch 6:30 evening newscast may come as a surprise.
Personally, [...]

Personally having finally succumbed to the flu virus that my household has been passing around, tonight will not be “party time” here but…2009 has been a very challenging year for some of us, it is my hope that with the new year approaching those of you who have prospered will continue to prosper. That [...]

One noticeable difference between Columbus’s Color Calendar system and ours is it does not appear that trash collectors get the day after Thanksgiving or Christmas Eve day off of work in Columbus. That’s a mere two days though, and for some reason residents of Columbus have been able to follow this without it being [...]

As I sat down to write this, it was with a deep sigh that I started…I am so tired of the selectivity and the lack of transparency and honesty that’s allowed to continue in our community and the most perfect example of what can only be called “selectivity on steroids” is in the editorial pages [...]

This in via e-mail as a guest post to share with readers of GCJ by Ohio House Representative Barbara Sears:
Welcome to Short Notes from the November 18, 2009 Session of the 128th General Assembly. This is a summary of what happened on the floor of the House in Columbus. This is not [...]

Those of you who know me, know I’m a bit of a Star Wars fan, I’ve had many a light saber battle where as Darth Mom, I’ve been rarely beaten…Probably because my children start laughing, but a win is a win. This week’s cover story in the Toledo Free Press is an interview that [...]

This week’s Sojourner’s Truth our former Mayor is back with his My View column. Ford offers the following commentary directed at the Lucas County Democratic Party:
It seems to me that the Democratic Party has a real problem in Lucas County. A cosmetic makeover will not clean this mess up. If I am Gov. Ted [...]

If you missed this, on WTOL, some of the points made, especially in relation to what the real problem is as to why so many dogs are being killed, have been made here. Part of the editorial:
Dog Warden Tom Skeldon does not deserve to be fired. He is cooperating fully with the advisory committee. [...]

Neither Lucas County Commissioner Ben Konop, who was an actual board member on the Connecting Point, or the daily newspaper focused much on the huge mismanagement issues that took place at the Connecting Point, allowed/ignored by the Mental Health Recovery Services Board. The final solution was a review committee and that process was allowed [...]

This was sent in via e-mail as a guest post from Toledo Public Schools Board candidate Norm Drogmiller to share with readers of GCJ:
My name is Norm Drogmiller, and I am a candidate in the upcoming election for the Toledo School Board.
A little background about myself: I am a lifelong resident of Toledo, and [...]

There are lots of things to cover related to the election, but I wanted to take a moment to rant about something that’s recently come up, the Lucas County Dog Warden and the number of dogs that are killed each year. I’m personally against the idea of pets being killed, I think there are [...]

Yes, the post title is a bit snarky but it’s not really surprising that as a result of all of the publicity leveled at someone who reportedly was doing their job and their only “crime” was being Robert Alexander’s daughter in law that when an opportunity arose for Jody Alexander to leave Toledo? Jody [...]

Perception is everything and we are continually told that violence is directly related to how many police officers we have per capita. We are also told that violence is related to the availability of guns with the perception that if we had stronger gun laws that somehow this would translate to less criminals having [...]

This week’s

The discussion surrounding the Kroger resolution is covered in quite a bit of detail in my post from last night on the Toledo City Council meeting. When I read the Blade this morning the first thing that caught my attention in Body allows public talk, but cuts blast at Ashford was this:
Olivia Holden and those [...]