Murderous attack in Nice does not represent Islam Criminalizing abortions will not put an end to them Separate bills will be required to replace House Bill 6
The horrific attacks that occurred in Nice, France, last week and took the lives of three innocent civilians have left me appalled and saddened. My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families.
This senseless murder must be condemned in the strongest terms possible, and it must be known that the killer who perpetrated these heinous acts does not represent Islam in the slightest and his actions only serve to insult the character of the prophet. Further, the Quran specifically calls the killing of worshippers abhorrent, while also calling the killing of one person akin to the killing of all mankind. The perpetrator can be called a Muslim only in name.
It is unfortunate that extremism continues to exist in our world, and it is clear that we must begin coming together in order to combat the rise of terrorists acting in the name of religion. These acts of terror seek to divide and weaken us, but we must instead learn from them and stay united.
Omar S. Syed, Pickerington
Many women, not just Roman
Catholics and evangelical Christians, would never choose to have an abortion. Many consider it immoral. However, to make abortion a crime does not mean it will end. It means that cottage industries will spring up, where unscrupulous hacks will mutilate women’s bodies — some well-meaning but totally inept.
In 1970, a young woman was brought to the hospital room where I was recovering from minor surgery. She was bleeding and incoherent, suffering from a back-alley abortion. Doctors were trying to repair the damage done to her uterus. In those days, that was when a desperate woman, who felt abortion was her only solution, saw a doctor — when she was dying.
Today, few people remember those days. They seem to think that criminalizing
abortions will end them. No. It has been a part of life since the beginning of time. You can make it humane for those who choose it, or you can force those who have made this difficult choice to go to a butcher.
Which way does your faith lead you? Diane Hunter, Columbus
The Oct. 24 op-ed “HB 6 has cost Ohio billions in economic growth” by Ned Ford offers an important way forward to the problem of repealing and replacing House Bill 6. He argued that an effective replacement cannot be developed if the goal is another omnibus bill that conflates, as HB 6 does: energy efficiency standards, bailout of two nuclear power plants and two coal power plants, wind energy standards and solar energy standards.
Separate bills are called for to assure Ohioans full consideration has been given to the merits of some very important issues that will determine Ohio’s energy future in the 21st century, consideration unconstrained by utility lobbyists and corrupt politicians. Maybe the best we can hope for is that HB 6 will be repealed during the lame duck session, a session with an unusual number of legislators who were not reelected.
Tom Evans, Granville