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Vivek might need a bit of education on Ohio colleges

Editorials

Social media platforms can tempt politicians into hyperbole that doesn’t always match reality. It can tempt anyone to do that. So, Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy can perhaps be forgiven for wondering on Threads whether it is possible to eliminate the state income tax (the real question is, if we do, how do we pay for everything?), and suggesting the Buckeye State’s colleges and universities should be consolidated. “Look at the number of universities in our state. I love universities in Ohio. I want us to have the best universities,” Ramaswamy said, ...

Ramaswamy proposes Ohio university consolidation

David Skolnick

Asked about his goal to eliminate the state’s income tax, Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican front-runner for governor, proposed consolidating Ohio’s universities. It was a curious response. Ramaswamy said: “The reason (eliminating the income tax is) possible is that you look at certain areas of excess spending where we can not just cut costs, but improve effectiveness. Look at the number of universities in our state. I love the universities in Ohio. I want us to have the best universities. But we have too many of them. They need to be consolidated. And when you consolidate them, ...

America’s freedom is not free

Editorials

At the height of the energy crisis in the 1970s, when oil prices more than sextupled, The Economist magazine showed a map of the Persian Gulf on its cover with the headline, “What’s a Nice Thing Like Oil Doing in a Place Like This?” The Iranian miscreants, with whom we are now at war, understand that, although they could care less what their own citizens think, in free countries public opinion and support is vital to a president’s ability to wage war. By impeding the movement of ships through the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world’s oil supplies pass, they ...

A scary rhyme across time

Editorials

I’d give anything not to write this column. But the comparisons are clear when history rhymes. President Donald Trump’s America is a foghorn call across time — to Germany in the 1930s, when Adolf Hitler rose to power legally. Note, I do not mean the 1940s, when the Holocaust became the greatest crime in human history. Hitler built grandiose architecture in Berlin to mark his chapter in history, the Third Reich. He had his own architect, Albert Speer, to follow his ideas. Trump has his own master ideas for buildings in the nation’s capital and acts upon them without much ...

Avery’s Law targets lousy dog owners

Editorials

Ohio dog owners, take note. Avery’s Law is now on the books and dog owners who are negligent could be on the hook for their pets’ behavior. Avery’s Law is named for Avery Russell, of Reynoldsburg, who was 11 years old when she was severely injured in an attack by two vicious dogs in June 2024. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed House Bill 247 in December and Avery’s Law took effect on Wednesday. The bill is designed to help prevent similar attacks. Avery’s Law: • Imposes criminal penalties on a dog owner if he or she negligently fails to keep their dog from committing, ...

Trump’s definition of war as ‘excursion’ won’t float

Editorials

Here we go again. What else can one say to the stream of misinformation and disinformation flowing out of the White House and Pentagon since the war in Iran broke out? We have grown wearily familiar with President Donald Trump’s cavalier relationship with the facts. Combine that with his tendency to snatch words out of the air, appropriately or not, and you come up with a jumble of head-scratchers. A leading example is his repeated oddball description of the Iran war as an “excursion,” which caused brows to furrow and eyeballs to roll. Excursion? Does the president know the ...