Mahoning County voters should support sales tax

Mahoning County voters should support sales tax
EDITOR:
The letter of complaint about the attitude of "many" county workers being disrespectful to the public and using that as a reason why the sales tax issue on the primary ballot failed is absurd.
I ask the writer, who's "many"? Let's give names and state the case/s where he was treated unsatisfactorily. The letter was unfair because the writer had opportunities to address his complaint at the meetings on the sales tax issue where all of the county commissioners were present, or he could have taken his complaint to the official in charge of the department at the time that he received unpleasant treatment.
Frankly, I believe county workers do a very good job in their departments, and I marvel at county workers who are very patient with people who need extra time and basic explanations to meet their needs.
And now I have the opportunity to express to Mahoning County voters why they should vote for the renewal of the sales tax. Think -- if the sales tax fails in November, it will be another company closing its doors causing many to lose their jobs and the public lamenting how wrong it is. Remember it will be our fault if this company, county government, closes its doors and leads to unemployment for necessary personnel who perform much needed services. They must be there when we need them.
Mahoning County commissioners have shown accountability for the money generated from the sales tax, and if we want to live in a progressive county we must support the issue.
MARY HUDAK
Campbell
Luther hardly the first to translate the Bible
EDITOR:
An article by Associated Press writer Richard N. Ostling about Evangelical Protestants and Martin Luther on your July 4 religion page stated Catholic bibles were available in "Latin only" at the time of Luther.
It seems he is wrong. First of all, Catho lics translated the Bible from Latin into German 100 years before Luther was born. Luther's translation of the New Testament was not published until 1522, and his version of the Old Testament was not published (or did not appear) until 1534.
From 1466 to 1522, Catholics had already published 14 complete editions of the Bible in High German at Augsburg, Basel, Strasbourg, Nuremberg, and five in Low German at Cologne, Delft, Halberstadt, and Lubeck. During the time from 1450 to 1520, Catholics had published 156 Latin and six Hebrew editions of the Bible, besides issuing complete translations in French, Italian, Bohemian, Flemish, Limousin and Russian.
In the Congressional Library in Washington, there is on exhibition a copy of the "Mazarin Bible" printed by Gutenberg, the Catholic inventor of the printing press 30 years before Luther was born.
There is likewise at the University of Notre Dame a copy of the Bible printed in German in 1483, the very year of Luther's birth.
The first person to translate the Bible into English was the Catholic priest Bede in the eighth century.
PETER PAUL PATRICK PANELLA
New Castle
Return to original Pledge
EDITOR:
While you may get many letters to the contrary, I agree with the recent court decision. The public school is not a place for prayer, citizens. The reason & quot;under God & quot; was included was simply to promote government policy against Communism. We did not need it in the pledge when it was first written, and we do not need it now.
I also agree with the law allowing people to smoke as much marijuana as they want for their religion or otherwise because everyone knows our leaders do.
DAVID R. SABINE
Poland