Touched hearts

Touched hearts

Thank you for Dimon Kendrick-Holmes' detailed article of June 18 about Dr. Zach Smith. The inspirational, well-written story included words of wisdom from the fathers of Zach and Chelsey while featuring the young couple's emotional experience with career changes, infertility, adoption, and pregnancy.

May the transparency and character qualities displayed by the Smith family, shared beautifully in the article, encourage others.

Unknowns

In a Monday L-E story, Dr Lewis is attributed to saying, 'he does not personally know Vickers but that she comes highly recommended, has a ‘wealth of experience’ and is “the best fit for our needs right now.” — doesn't personally know Vickers ... but the best fit for our needs?

Good grief! If this is not a confession of ineptitude, then Webster needs to redefine it in its dictionaries! How does Lewis hire a person he doesn't know over people he does know without condemning them ... and himself?

This is the second time this spring that Lewis has tried to pawn off problems by bringing in outside people to solve local problems. Now, I want to know who was the guru Lewis got the glowing recommendation for Vickers … one, because the board should contact that person and see if he/she was simply getting rid of a person under his/her command, and two, whether the board ought to hire said guru to replace Lewis!

Public disservice

I read the report detailing the plans of St. Paul United Methodist Church to ask City Council to close a portion of Leonard Street to allow church construction as well as a parking lot.

St. Paul is a prominent church with vast resources, and I doubt Council will have the fortitude to turn down their request even though there are numerous signs reading "St. Paul Please Do Not Destroy Our Neighborhood" posted on surrounding streets. There are members of St. Paul on the Council, and they should not vote on this matter.

I can readily understand the neighbors being upset and opposed to this project that will destroy a goodly part of the area with a new building and a large parking lot. The church has no concern for the aesthetic feel and look of the neighborhood, and they seem to be uncaring as to how the neighbors feel about this project. "Love your neighbor" unless you want to construct a building or a parking lot.

This neighborhood has fallen on hard times recently. A house on Cherokee Avenue was demolished in order to make additional parking for Columbus High School, and this construction has already begun. Unfortunately, there is a lovely home right next to the new parking lot. Why was this allowed? Does the city not have any concern for property owners? If Columbus High does not have adequate parking facilities, it should limit parking to juniors and seniors. I simply cannot imagine the eyesore that this parking area will create on Cherokee Avenue. Whoever devised this plan has no consideration for anyone in the Cherokee Avenue neighborhood. The tax-paying citizens of Columbus are being paved over in concrete ugliness.

Ignorant times

“Conservative — a person adopting the principles and practices whose tendency is to oppose change in institutions and methods, especially those affecting social and economic issues.” Characteristics include “die-hard, fogyish, old-line, reactionary, tory, right-wing, unyielding, uncompromising, radical.”

“Liberal — marked by generosity, openhandedness, bounteous, bountiful, free, advanced, broad-minded, progressive, tolerant, lenient, widespread concern, equality, philanthropic, eleemosynary; the antithesis of neoliberal pursuit of closefisted,, miserly, parsimonious, penurious, stingy, tightfisted politics steeped in denial and condemnation of education.”

“Education — the process of overcoming illiteracy by instruction, schooling, training that develops erudition, knowledge, learning, enlightenment, scholarship, literacy, science, culture and tolerance to overcome ignorance and illiteracy.”

As I was conferred an undergraduate degree by my Jesuit mentors, I was admonished that if I believed that conference established my intelligence I was wrong. If, on the other hand, I appreciated my ignorance, then their process was a success. I have always embraced the latter and have striven my entire life to overcome ignorance.

Since the Hoover Administration, the Great Depression and FDR’s New Deal liberalism that delivered all of us from the dark despair fostered by the Wall Street felons Hoover ignorantly embraced, the felons have sought redemption. They found it in Reagan, and since the 1970s the neoliberal proliferation of ignorance, criminality and condemnation of the working class has elevated Hoover to a footnote of little consequence. The maniac in the White House has been deemed incompetent, mentally deranged and unsuited to public office.

This liberal embraces the “Beatitudes” and prays to God for its adherence by all of mankind, maybe even Republicants. Nah, that’s socialism. Tell that to God.

Bang for the ruble

The Russians are coming, not by guns but by just paying off politicians to do the work of destroying democracy for them. Just out-source it! The Republicans and some Democrats don't really care who it comes from. Who needs democracy?

Also, racism doesn't hurt white people, so who cares about racial terrorism? Russia wants to bring the country down and Trump and the Republicans, for the right price, want to, too. The hell with patriotism -- Russia pays more!

This story was originally published June 20, 2017 at 10:00 AM with the headline "Touched hearts."