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Home > Blogs > Ohio politics > Archives > 2009 > October > 23
Friday, October 23, 2009
Abortion down 4 percent in Ohio
Abortions declined 4 percent last year to 29,613 compared with 30,859 in 2007, according to a report released Friday, Oct. 23, by the Ohio Department of Health.
The total number of abortions in Ohio has been in decline since 2000.
“We are winning the fight against those who push abortion as the first and sometimes only choice for women in crisis,” Ohio Right to Life Executive Director Mike Gonidakis said. “While we take great joy that the collective efforts of Ohio’s pro-life community are making significant strides in ending abortions, the total number is staggering.”
The Ohio Department of Health does not report on the reasons why abortion is declining.
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Brunner’s dog “blogs” for her campaign
Democrat Jennifer Brunner’s campaign for U.S. Senate took a strange tact Friday, Oct. 23, when it posted a blog written from the point of view of her dog, Laney.
The dog blog recounts the kindness of Brunner and her husband when they rescued the puppy two years ago and compares Laney with people struggling with the economic recession.
“I was named “Lane” I guess because they found me emaciated and wandering around Lane Avenue. I was pretty scared and traumatized, just like many people are today with the tough times they deal with,” the posting on JenniferBrunner.com reads.
And the puppy chatter gives supporters an inside look at Brunner’s campaign: “Lately, my mom’s been pretty busy. She’s running for the U.S. Senate. I watch how hard she works and I’ve even heard her on the phone for hours working to raise money.”
Then the dog wraps up with a plea for campaign donations and signs off with a “woof” and a paw print.
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Reps. Morgan, Martin propose “Ohio Firearms Freedom” plan
Reps. Seth Morgan, R-Huber Heights, and Jarrod Martin, R-Beavercreek, have introduced legislation that would allow for firearms made and sold within Ohio to be exempt from federal firearms regulations.
Morgan said on Friday, Oct. 23, that House Bill 315, is mainly a preemptive effort to protect the state against any federal regulations pushed by President Barack Obama’s admininistration.
He added, however, that a debate over the issue of state control should have been held earlier.
“I”m sure there are some (federal) laws that I’d like to see changed,” said Morgan.
Toby Hoover, executive director of the Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence, said the legislation is not needed. Gun advocates seem obsessed with the notion that “people are going to take things away from them,” she said.
“If you’re going to have firearms and ammunition, ….you ought to be held accountable,” said Hoover.
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Telephone customers may see rate increases
Millions of Ohio households with basic telephone service would face steeper monthly bills, larger security deposits, longer outages and potentially quicker disconnections if pending legislation becomes state law, consumer advocates warned Friday, Oct. 23.
“There are no benefits in this bill for consumers. It benefits the telephone industry,” said Ohio Consumers’ Counsel Janine Migden-Ostrander, who represents the interests of residential utility consumers.
Two identical deregulation bills, which are supported by the Ohio Telecom Association, are pending in the House and Senate.
Charles Moses, president of the telecom group, said, “For our companies to remain competitive, we must change the way we do business. Traditional land line telephone companies have lost more than 40 percent of their customers since 2001. Consumers today have more choices and higher expectations for their telecom services.”
There are 9.1 million wireless subscribers and 5.7 million landline customers in Ohio.
The Consumers’ Counsel, AARP Ohio, Ohio Association of Community Action Agencies, and other consumer groups are marshaling forces to defeat the bills that they say will increase rates, weaken consumer protections and lower service quality standards.
