Jennifer Brunner - Ohio Secretary of State

McArthur, Ohio -- Vinton County

Posted by Rick Brunner - October 28, 2006 11:54 PM - Permalink

We raced west towards McArthur, Ohio with our happy hearts from Meigs County. McArthur is the least populous county in the state. It has only one high school and every student in the county must drive to the county seat each day or be bussed to the county seat to attend high school. The county party headquarters is an old cinderblock building of about 12 x 15 feet, located not far off the city square. There, an enthusiastic crowd awaited the arrival of their hero, Ted Strickland. We all crammed into the small hall and our candidate spoke, along with Rich Cordray. Then, Ted Strickland took the floor and began to regale the folks and wonderful laughter. Your correspondent heard his very first specific campaign promise from Ted Strickland at this event. Several years ago, the lodge at Zaleski State Park had burned to the ground. It was a source of employment and a source of pride for the local residents. The state of Ohio had somehow used the insurance proceeds for some other purpose and the lodge remains closed and burned. The local residents implored Ted Strickland to reopen the lodge and he promised them that he would find a way because he had so enjoyed the park in the past. It is truly a shame and your correspondent has noted at other times in this blog the state of disrepair in which we have found our beautiful state parks. Ironically, about a year to year and a half ago, the state legislature thought that they could start charging $5 admission to state parks. There was such a general outcry that that plan was scrapped. Nonetheless, the state of disrepair of our state parks is disgraceful. As these folks in Vinton County aptly noted, the state of Ohio had used the insurance proceeds somewhere else and had left them with a burned down hulk of the once beautiful lodge.

We ended our visitation in Vinton County because it was time to move along to the rally in Hocking County.

Posted by Rick Brunner - October 28, 2006 11:54 PM - Permalink