Admissions issue is black and white
One apparent irony of the current affirmative action debate might be why this issue revolves only around selected career choices, such as law school admissions? The point is this: If there are qualified candidates who can successfully jump through whatever hoops that may be required, then why not allow everyone so qualified to be admitted to those areas of education versus restricting the education process in some arbitrary fashion?

To put the shoe on the other foot, what if we chose to educate, say, only 80 percent of those who desired to be a truck driver, or a plumber, or whatever? How exactly would we choose which 80 percent would comprise 100 percent of the class? Fortunately, a sufficient number of schools are available to accommodate most students in their respective choice of a career.

Instead of using government money in support of affirmative action, why not use those funds, as well as other resources, to create sufficient educational resources to meet the needs of all would-be students. The race arguments would cease to exist. The needs of virtually every potential student would be served, including black, white, male, and female. Of more importance, the needs of our society would be far better met.

The fact that there could be something black and white about this issue should be obvious to us all. Let’s just keep in mind that the black and white need not have anything to do with race at all.

KARL WALTERS
Fostoria

Promise of pickup leaves us guessing
The Blade posted the date East Toledo was having leaf cleanup. The leaves are raked past the curb to make it easy for the cleaners to do their job. Pay no attention to the snow covering them. Or the lack of parking now available on this street. Will they be there until spring? Once again, one must wait - and see.

CHRIS GOLDEN
Vinal Street

State should also safeguard motorists
The state of Ohio is painting its cruisers white because they are hard too see and we’ve had troopers killed.

The state can spend all this money to safeguard its troopers, but I live near the intersection of Albon Road and U.S. 20A, where there have been numerous accidents, and people have been terribly hurt and killed. This is also true of Eber Road and 20A.

When is the state going to put traffic lights up in these two intersections?

How many people have to get killed or critically hurt before it finally realizes we have a problem?

CRAIG BOEHK
Maumee
The announcement by Paramount’s Medicare HMO that members soon will face a $250 hospital admission charge and pay higher prescription drug co-payments poses serious threats to senior citizens’ access to care and further compromises their ability to afford medications necessary for treatment of chronic illnesses common to this age group.

Additionally, the dispute between Paramount and Northwest Ohio Specialists, if not resolved by year’s end, will disrupt and restrict patients’ access to specialist care.

The fact that Paramount is owned by ProMedica Health System is integral to both issues. It patently implies a conflict of interest, whereby the subsidiary is driven to achieve better financial results in order to satisfy the aggrandizement of the owner.

These circumstances emerge as yet another effort by ProMedica to control access to care and limit patients’ choice of physicians. They seriously belie the message on expensive, high-technology billboards throughout the area espousing ProMedica as "Dedicated to the Community."

Reallocation of ProMedica’s excessive advertising budget to support its Paramount subsidiary could relieve patients from additional health-care costs and prevent unnecessary disruption of patient-doctor relationships.

HOWARD S. MADIGAN, MD
Sylvania

Schools shouldn’t be polling places
Regarding the pending lawsuit against Toledo Public Schools, I wish Rick Landingham luck. When schools are turned into polling places, school districts have unfair advantage during school levy campaigns.

Just about every school in Perrysburg is also a polling place. In years past we have had children in elementary schools standing by the doors pleading with voters to vote for the school levy.

We have had high school students harassing voters on their way in to vote. We have had teachers wearing levy T-shirts and buttons in their classrooms. I have a newspaper photo of a teacher wearing her levy button inside the polling place. We had a former superintendent give a TV interview from inside a polling place.

This year we had the children’s choir singing "patriotic" songs as voters entered the building. The school levy signs were red, white, and blue.

Get the message? If you’re patriotic you’ll vote for the levy. Using schools and school children is wrong.

Perhaps schools should not be used as polling places, especially when there is a school levy on the ballot.

MARY CATHERINE CARON
Perrysburg

A generous community partner
I would like to publicly salute an important leader of our community who has made significant contributions to many downtown events. TARTA General Manager Dick Ruddell has generously donated resources to numerous events, including First Night, the Food Town Holiday Parade, the Third Thursday Art Trolley Trot, and many CitiFest events. These events have been enhanced by the free use of the TARTA Trolleys.

Mr. Ruddell has always seen the importance of being a partner to the community and organizations that strive to bring entertainment to our city. I am sorry to see Mr. Ruddell leave Toledo but know that Fort Worth is gaining a wonderful asset.

JAN AGUILAR
Executive Director
CitiFest