[ back ]
Letters to the editor (Updated July 9)
Something on your mind? Tell us about it! Write a letter to the editor! Submit yours to westside@columbusmessenger.com.
“Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody”
Given the amount of potential voters who didn't come out for the May vote, this story seemed appropriate. It speaks to the element of apathy.
This is a story about four persons named “Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody.”
“There was an important job to be done and Everybody was asked to do it. Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody’s job. Everybody thought Anybody could do it and Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn’t do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.”
I count myself among those who can do more, but every little bit helps and every day is another chance to get involved. I’ll be voting for the levy, I hope you will too.
Brian Bosworth
Grove City
Why not call it Wasteland or Franklin Lows?
I am a tour guide who takes students to Washington, D.C. In June, I was traveling with a Bluffton, Ohio group on a bus. I was seated across the aisle from their head chaperone. In casual conversation, this lady turned to me and said, “My son is finishing up graduate work at OSU and wants to live in central Ohio. He really liked the Grove City area, but they have problems with their schools, so he bought a house in Hilliard.”
This cannot be our future. Do not allow Grove City to become Grave City. Do not allow Central Crossing to become Central Cursing. Do not allow Franklin Heights to become Franklin Lows. Do not let Westland become Wasteland.
Please support our schools and communities by voting yes on Issue 2 on Aug. 4. We simply cannot become the only school district in Ohio that has no after school activities for students.
Dick Curtiss
Columbus
Thanks to all who made home and garden tour a success
On behalf of the Hilltop Home and Garden Tour Committee, I would like to thank all of those who helped turn our committee’s vision for a 2009 home and garden tour into a reality. This year’s tour featured the neighborhood of Westgate and was a huge success.
The proceeds from the tour benefit our three hosting organizations, Friends of the Hilltop, Friends of Westgate Park and the Westgate Neighbors Association. Although the tour just ended, the tour committee is hard at work and looking forward to 2010.
The 2009 tour would not have happened without our homeowner participants who graciously opened their homes and gardens to us and the community. A special thank you must also go to members of this community who served as volunteers. I would also like to express gratitude to our sponsors whose financial support and in-kind donations made this event possible. Most importantly, I would like to thank our three hosting organizations and tour committee members for their hard work and dedication.
Courtney Dekle
Tour Chair
Parade was a disgrace
The Westland Area Business Association’s Independence Day Parade did not have an Honor Guard. The Fourth of July, Independence Day, and no American flag leading our parade!
I realize that in the past, the high school has had this duty, courtesy of the Junior ROTC. This did not occur this year, as the current school board did not allow them to participate out of spite for not passing the district’s levy. This holiday has nothing to do with the schools, it is about the idependence of our nation and our citizens.By not having an honor guard, I feel that it was a disgrace to our schools, our flag and all American citizens attending the parade.
Please ensure that any future parade celebrating our nation’s independence is properly introduced by an Honor Guard that represents and displays our Stars and Stripes in a respectable fashion.
Ralph Moore
Columbus
The voter is not the bad guy
This letter is in responce to Julie Shives’ letter in the June 29 edition of the Westside Messenger.
The only reason kids would get a negative message from people exercising their right to vote would be because they are too young and inexperienced to understand the dynamics of our government. Voting “no” on the school levy means the voter doesn’t beleive the district needs any more money. There are a variety of reasons that would generate such an opinion. Those reasons have been reiterated many times so I won’t revisit them here.
What kids and their parents need to understand is that the voter is not the bad guy here. The people who are taking away the extra curriculars are the members of the Board of Education. There is no real reason for them to do so. The extracurriculars could go on if allowed because parents and families would sacrifice a little more and businesses would add to the support a little more - if allowed.
The board must take away extracurriculars because that is the only thing they can use to blackmail the voters. They have used this tactic over and over again, and so far, it has always worked. It is the only tool they have to keep them from exercising fiscal responcibility.
Parents and students need to flood the board meetings and demand the extracurriculars back. It may take some compromise and negotiations, but there is no reason it can’t be done.
If you want this to be your district, then you have to get involved. Otherwise, those in control will walk all over you. Kids, it is your civic duty to participate in the process of the government. the school board works for all of us. They just can’t seem to understand that.
Len Stanton
Galloway
[ back ]
