Volunteer/Community Service
- Served on the Executive Board of the Columbus Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council from 2014 - 2023. - Served on the Executive Board of the Columbus Central Ohio Building Futures Program from inception (2017) to 2023.
My top priorities are to remove an anti labor activist and replace him with a pro-worker advocate. I intend to remove an election denier and defier, and replace him with a staunch belief in a governance; OF the people, BY the people, and FOR the people. American democracy cannot stand long and proud when our elected legislators deny and defy the will of the voters by refusing to implement women’s right to make their own health care decisions, and refuse to faithfully execute an end to gerrymandering in defiance of ballot box results and repeated Ohio State Supreme Court decisions. I will strive to implement the will of the voters, and stand tall in opposition to degrading the rights of workers to organize.
Our right to vote is the backbone of American democracy, and so important that it is mentioned in FOUR of our Constitutional Amendments. Voting should be easy, secure, and unhindered. The results MUST be respected. And secure means to allow better access to the right to vote, would gain my support. This would include more drop boxes, longer early voting hours, and any other improvements that local Boards of Elections can properly implement. Local Board’s input would be essential in making any improved access. I would also like to explore the feasibility of ‘online’ voting.
As much as I am opposed to the ‘behind closed doors’ approach and the funding platform for ‘Jobs Ohio’, it has been producing. At what cost, I don’t think we really know. We must continue to entice large anchor employers like Intel, Amazon, and Honda. While it is great to be getting so much development from Google, Facebook, Microsoft and others, once built, these data centers provide few, albeit well paying, long term jobs. The real benefit of these facilities is the support services required to maintain. We should be maintaining and improving enticements for our area college graduates to remain in central Ohio and apply their skills and knowledge right here.
I do not support ‘for profit’ K - 12 basic education businesses. Well regulated non profit schools for K - 12 can be a great supplement to our public schools. Adequate funding must be allocated to reduce disparities in resources among our public schools. Emphasizing inclusive and diverse curricula fosters understanding and appreciation for different perspectives. Professional development for teachers and staff can enhance their skills, promoting positive & dynamic learning environments. I would like to see, school scheduling with a renewed emphasis on 5 day weeks. The job market is ripe with job seekers that do not appreciate the importance of being at work EVERY day scheduled, which, in the real world, involves a lot of 5 day work weeks.
In my mind, the only time that the State should interfere with local government entities is when the regulation, restriction, or benefit is to the entire State of Ohio and not just to that local area or residents. For instance, golf carts may be deemed legal for street use in certain local jurisdictions, but should a local jurisdiction try to make them legal for use on interstate highways, that obviously contradicts state and federal laws, not to mention common sense. Not having a law degree, I tend to rely on common sense until law overrides it. (pun intended) Again, the State should support local initiatives when doing so aids that jurisdiction in complying with a state law or the endeavor would benefit the entire state.
It is painfully apparent from experiences around the world that a single payer system would provide our citizens with a much less expensive and more comprehensive form of health care delivery. Good comprehensive health care should not be a luxury reserved for the fortunate. The one good thing about being the last to do something, is that you can and should learn from those that have already done it. We are the ONLY industrialized nation on the planet with a for profit health care system as heavily commercialized as ours, and none is as expensive, inefficient, and inequitable — or as unpopular. Surely, we can do better than this.
We are stewards of the earth and are obligated to pass on its beauty and bounty to those behind us. The move to electrification of transportation and other machinery forces us to continually improve technology and advance cleaner and more efficient methods of producing and storing electricity. The means of producing electricity are much more varied than that of producing fossil fuels and are generally much cleaner. Government does have a role to play in encouraging new and better technology in the electrification movement. I wholeheartedly support this new and evolving technology and commit myself to promoting its continued research and development.
Discriminatory attitudes are not hereditary, they are learned. Given that, discrimination must not be tolerated in our school system, not even in government funded private schools. History must be taught as FACTS dictate. That includes the good, the bad, and the ugly. History at times, just like life, can be uncomfortable, but should never be ignored, lest we repeat it. Athletics should be encouraged, as it is usually a good tool for not only physical conditioning, but for sportsmanship and fairness as well. Discrimination in the workplace should not be tolerated. We should not be presenting likenesses of former traitors in positions of honor, but rather preserve them in museums.
