ICE and The Onion
The headline in the Jan. 30 paper, “Are guns allowed at protests?” made me look twice at the masthead to make sure I wasn’t reading my latest copy of The Onion. The headline dripped with the type of satire at which The Onion excels.
After decades of Ohio’s right-wing politicians doing everything they could to make sure any Ohioan could carry any gun anywhere they want, to read a headline asking if guns are allowed at protests just about made me laugh.
Ohio allows Proud Boys to open-carry semi-automatic rifles to protest parents taking their kids to see drag queens read stories at a church. Ohio allows anybody with a pulse to conceal carry weapons anywhere they want, except, of course, the Ohio Statehouse.
To Ohio’s Republicans, the Second Amendment is etched on a stone tablet delivered to Ohio by God himself. To ask if Ohioans can carry guns to a protest would be Onion funny but for one thing: the Dispatch is redirecting public discourse where the right wing wants it to go, down an alley instead of an interstate highway.
Ohio Republicans and the MAGA faithful are doing everything they can to make the ICE story about the “bad protesters” instead of the murders of Renée Good and Alex Pretti, MAGA’s outright lies, and ICE trampling on constitutional rights in carrying out their brutal and inhumane attacks on anyone they choose to go after.
If the headline was in The Onion, it would be funny. In the Dispatch, it was just sad.
Lou Jannazo, Columbus
Is Keith Faber self-aware?
Re “Hysteria around ICE isn’t justified,” Jan. 28: Is guest columnist Keith Faber actually a sentient human being? His column would suggest that he isn’t aware of what is happening in the USA — particularly in Minnesota.
Does he watch TV or read the news? Or does he get all his information straight from the Trump administration?
Did he not see ICE breaking down the door to pull ChongLy Scott Thao (an American citizen) out of his house in his underwear? Is he not aware of ICE breaking car windows and dragging citizens out of their cars? Is ICE reimbursing citizens for damage to their property? Did he see ICE murdering two citizens in cold blood?
ICE is out of control for citizen and non-citizen alike. They need to go. And Keith Faber needs to go. We cannot have an attorney general as unaware as this man appears to be. With his attitude, I can’t see our rights as Ohioans and Americans being protected.
Joe Robert Tilley, Columbus
Ohio’s energy industry driving investment
Ohio’s natural gas and oil industries have continued to drive economic development in the Buckeye State. This means a flourishing job market and economy, funding for community infrastructure and energy reliability.
Cleveland State University found that total upstream investments were up $615 million in the second half of 2024 when compared to the first half. These numbers reflect the continued growth of drilling activity, especially for oil-producing wells.
Ohio’s shale-energy “drew” in approximately $3.5 billion in fresh capital between July and December 2024. These investment numbers are not new. Since 2011, cumulative natural gas and oil-related investment has surpassed $114.6 billion.
In our rapidly changing energy landscape, where global demand is consistently on the rise, Ohio is uniquely positioned to maintain an abundance of natural resources that not only ensure energy reliability but also economic growth and prosperity.
Like the saying, “What’s good for the goose is good for the gander,” the revenues from natural gas and oil have a direct and positive impact on all Ohioans that is unparalleled.
Bruce Tague, executive director of the Ohio Natural Energy Institute
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio is where Proud Boys can carry rifles, but gun-owning protesters are chastised | Letters
Reporting by Letters to the Editor, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
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