Crawley the scofflaw
With regard to the continuing Erica Crawley controversy, it appears as though the commissioner is a scofflaw who believes traffic rules don’t apply to her. I believe we have a member of council who suffered from the same affliction until the Dispatch reported her habit of ignoring parking tickets.
With respect to the gift of VIP tickets, she certainly should be aware of the Ohio ethics law concerning gifts. Even volunteers who serve the public are made aware of ethical requirements regarding gifts of value.
John Hoppers, Dublin
Grove City must keep pushing against data centers
Grove City should welcome data centers only when they benefit residents and pay their fair share.
I support no company tax breaks or rebates. Developers
should pay for infrastructure upgrades their facilities require. A carefully structured TIF could direct development-generated payments toward eligible public improvements, with school funding protected, public accounting, and a clear expiration date – rebates to the company.
St. Louis negotiated community contributions without local tax abatements. In Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin, Microsoft’s taxes support TIF infrastructure, and the company has voluntarily given up local incentives.
Grove City should negotiate protected school revenue and additional developer contributions to help support new Grove City and Westland high schools. Promises must rest on verified projections and binding commitments.
Agreements should also support parks, sidewalks, public safety, workforce training and local businesses.
Noise protections must include independent studies, enforceable nighttime limits, controls on persistent humming and low-frequency rumbling, restricted generator testing and public follow-up testing.
Violations should bring meaningful penalties. Companies exceeding environmental and community goals could earn recognition or non-tax benefits without weakening oversight.
Investment should leave us with stronger schools, better public spaces and protected neighborhoods.
William Cox, Grove City
Our enemies in Canada
I studied history while at Kent State University. But now my world history fails me.
I thought Canada was our friend. I thought Ukraine was a country we were helping defend against Russian aggression. I believed that Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine and that China was a military and political adversary of ours.
Apparently, I learned from a different history book than President Donald Trump used.
Our president welcomes President Xi to the White House for a grand state dinner and speaks glowingly about friendship.
Then, when America needs diesel fuel, our president turns to Putin and Russia.
Meanwhile, we pick fights with Canada and increasingly treat Ukraine as though it is the problem.
I'm confused.
Maybe at 73, I'm just too old-fashioned. I grew up believing that America stood by its friends and stood up to its adversaries.
Diplomacy certainly requires talking to people we don't like. Presidents should talk to Russia and China. Sometimes you negotiate with an adversary precisely because they are an adversary.
But words and actions matter.
If Putin and Xi are the people we're courting while Canada and Ukraine get the back of our hand, perhaps somebody in Washington should explain the new rules to me.
Who are our enemies? Who are our friends? With friends like these, who needs enemies?
And if we can no longer tell the difference, why do we need either?
Michael N. Oser, Upper Alrington
Lying for Husted
A recent political attack ad against Sherrod Brown, paid for by the Senate Leadership Fund, features a woman who claims Brown supported transgender surgeries for minors and suggests that she underwent such surgery as a child without parental consent.
The woman, Soren Aldaco, was 19 years old when she underwent surgery, and the procedure took place in Texas, not Ohio.
What Brown said was that children's medical decisions should be made by families and doctors, not politicians.
Unfortunately, false or misleading statements in political advertising are generally protected under the First Amendment, a principle supported by the Supreme Court.
Robust political debate is a critical part of the democratic process, but freedom of speech should not be confused with freedom from responsibility.
Mark Corna, Powell
Trump's two-faced lie
Article 2(4) of the UN Charter prohibits member states from using or threatening the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state.
Ukraine gave up its post-Soviet nuclear arsenal through the Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances, signed Dec. 5, 1994, by Ukraine, Russia, the United States and the United Kingdom, finalizing the transfer of warheads to Russia for dismantlement.
In exchange, Ukraine received security assurances respecting its borders and sovereignty, alongside financial compensation and aid.
Russia invaded Ukraine and continues a war with it, concentrating on killing Ukrainian civilians and damaging its electrical, oil and water infrastructure.
To end this war, all Russia has to do is stop the killing, give Ukraine back its sovereign land, which it has illegally taken, and allow for the exchange of prisoners of war and abducted children.
To that end, our president announced a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to import hundreds of thousands of tons of Russian diesel fuel and temporarily ease U.S. sanctions, all of which strengthen Russia and provide it with additional resources to continue its unjust war.
In response to Ukraine defending itself, he blames Ukraine for continuing the war and avoiding peace.
Joe Barmess, Pataskala
The real trash
The contrast tells it all!
The Department of Justice swooped down on Rep. Ilhan Omar in a fishing expedition, hoping to find some charge against her. After all, she’s a Democrat from that “evil part” of the world.
At the same time, the Department of Justice ignores clear signs of corruption in the administration – like spending public money on political ads and aiding an enemy’s (Russia’s) economy by buying its diesel. Both actions violate our laws, but they go unchallenged by the same DOJ.
Of course, Trump provided “proof” about Omar, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. He said she was “garbage.”
William A. McCartney, Delaware
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Laws don't apply to Erica Crawley. At least not in her mind | Letters
