I've beaten my addiction!

FreePress man, that is where it is at.

Enjoy your freedom!

Block runs that paper like he's a miniature William Randolphe Hearst. This crap with the new dog warden who is on what, day 2 of her job? The school-age jabs at Ujvagi. The bowing down to two of Toledo's biggest douchebags (Konop & Stainbrook).

And that website!

Yeah, I canceled for the same reason. They seem to have become extremely anti-union and anti-public employee. They are using their newspaper to speed up the race to the bottom so that eventually WE WILL ALL EARN THE SAME AS A WALMART CLERK! That's their standard and if you earn more than that you are their target!

Of course they are anti-union, look at what they did to their own union employees!

Cancelled subscription a while ago because of their biased reporting. The article they wrote about Ujvagi should have been a column on the editorial page. While I oppose Ujvagi's call on ethanizing gentle pit bulls like Amos, the reporting was not objective. Why note in the same article that Ujvagi got his job due to his political connections, and his salary? The article would have been fine without all that biased BS. It just detracts from the focus of a very valid issue, the ineffectual policies of the county commissioners regarding adoptions of dogs at the pound. I much prefer the local weeklies, or non-dailies like the Toledo Free Press, to get my news.

You all seem pretty familiar with the contents of the Blade. Are you sure you all have beaten the addiction?

haha

Good Luck with the cancellation. When I canceled mine a few years ago it took three tries, and me threatening them if they didn't stop calling me.

The Blade keeps calling and calling and calling even though we have told them to quit! Very irritating.
Also, did anyone notice the story on the teenage girl on her way to school who was attcked by the pit bull? It was kinda funny seeing it on the same page as the story concerning Amos.

The Blade articles very well demonstrate a central problem with the economy and the attitudes of today. Because of the pressure for lower wages, lower employment, less benefits, people are producing less and they are consuming less. Even though companies basically are sitting on huge stock piles of cash, they are not hiring or expanding production because people basically don't have the money to buy goods and services.

It is a downward death spiral heading towards an economy, as John L. Sullivan said, "based on how little a person can eat."

The PTB got a great victory in turning the working class on itself getting them to fight each other for lower wages and benefits. All the while the wages for the top few percent, including those who derailed our economy, continue to grow in an outrageous manner.

My parents and your parents fought for decent wages, regular hours, and benefits and a say in how the nation's economic pie should be cut. Through complacency and apathy, we had most of the gains they made taken away. It is a shame that now the standard for wages and benefits for all is Walmart, the absolute lowest common denominator. When we all earn Walmart wages then we will be told how outrageous $7.50 an hour is compared to children in India and Indonesia who earn 20 cents an hour and if we want to keep our jobs we better accept less! Mark my words, unless workers challenge the status quo, that's where we are heading!

when the blade had a stable full of very good writers just 5 or 6 years ago, it was possible to overlook the hack jobs and the jrb rants...

but now... blahh

wish the hospitals and universities and the few remaining large corps would gang up and slap block down - they did it in pittsburgh and he doesn't make a peep there.

I recently noticed a Toledo Blade building in a warehouse area in northern Wood County along the west side of I-75 just south of the Wales Rd exit. Anyone know the purpose of this Blade building?

have your read this TFP article yet? fascinating stuff: http://www.toledofreepress.com/2010/04/16/professional-standards/

The new building at the I-75 / Wales Rd exit, is a new distribution center. A distribution center for Blade newspaper carriers to pick-up their papers in the morning. It's already in use.

The Blade is closing 3 centers, and consolidating operations, using bigger distribution centers, and moving carriers around, to other centers. The Blade can save a lot of money by eliminating more district managers. Most carriers will have to travel even further now, to get to their papers.

The Blade saves money because they will lease fewer buildings, and pay fewer electricity and heating bills. It costs a lot of money to heat big warehouses in the winter months. They may be able to eliminate a few truck driving shifts per week too.

There used to be a distribution center in Perrysburg, off North Dixie Highway, close to Churchills. Most of the carriers who picked-up there, had routes in Perrysburg, Maumee, Rossford, Whitehouse & Waterville.

Some of these carriers will pick-up at the new Wales Rd location. Mainly carriers who have routes in Perrysburg or Rossford. Many of these carriers (who deliver in Maumee, Waterville & Whitehouse) are already picking-up their papers at another distribution center, which has been in use for many years, located off Airport Highway, near Holloway.

For many years, there was a distribution center on Lemoyne Rd, across from Northwood High School, but just behind the place that sells hot tubs and pools. The Lemoyne Rd distribution center closed a few weeks ago.

The carriers who picked-up at the Lemoyne location, delivered papers in east Toledo, Rossford, Oregon, Millbury, Pemberville, Curtice, Northwood and Walbridge. A few Perrysburg carries too. Everyone now picks-up their papers at the new Wales Road location.

There is another center on Glanzman, about a block from the old Bowsher High School. This location will close very soon. In a few weeks.

Carriers who pick-up here, have routes in south Toledo. The area includes routes in the old south end, Dorr & Detroit area, Dorr & Secor area, Heatherdowns Blvd, Hill avenue, MCO region, etc. Many of these carriers will begin picking up their papers at the Wales Rd location, within a few weeks. Some carriers will pick-up their papers at the Airport / Holloway location, if it is closer for them, versus the new Wales Rd location.

With the new Wales Rd location, and the closing of the distribution centers on Glanzman, Lemoyne and Perrysburg, it still leaves 4 other centers:

1. Airport / Holloway
2. King & Sylvania avenue
3. Lewis Avenue
4. Hoffman & Manhattan (north Toledo)

I was hoping to remain a subscriber for many more years, but the content keeps getting lighter and lazier.

Example: the new "feature" in the Peach weekend where they will print info about your band or venue, if you write it all yourself and submit it for publication. In other places, that's called a "press release" and it means that publicists and agents (plus hardworking musicians and business owners) are writing articles for the Blade, with zero objectivity, for no pay.

Instead of the occasional science article, there will be a series of columns by hospital-affiliated physicians. It looks like they plan to do the same thing in place of the garden features.

I believe webonomics has driven them to it. Although I really enjoy reading a printed paper, I might need to get the New York Times instead.

I was also a Blade carrier years ago.It is hard for me to like what is left of our local paper.I still have a few old issues of the Blade from the sixties.It is amazing how small the paper has gotten over the last few years.I don't know if I can ever get used to the size difference.Now if the smaller paper wasn't enough to get you steamed,they have included half pages in the sports section.This might be enough to put me over the edge and I too might be giving the Blade the boot.Whoever thought of the half page should be put out on the street.What a dumb ass idea!

I should have cancelled when they cut out the TV listings and made you pay for them, but The Hub watches 99% of the TV and he was only momentarily pissed, so we let it go. Now we get the Sentinel-Tribune and the listings are in there, so back to normal. If I dropped the Blade, I'd probably drop a few blood pressure points, too, so maybe that's a reason, but I'll most likely have to wait till The Hub gets sick of it before we drop it. we're in such a morning pattern around the paper, it's sick.

I was a little worried heading into yesterday. I can't remember a time in my life when I didn't spend a good hour or so flipping the pages of my Sunday Blade. I thought maybe I would regret my decision and cave in. But, I am happy to report that I didn't miss it. It was actually kind of relaxing not thinking I HAD to read The Blade. I just went through my day, and carried on, and only thought about it in the morning because I am so used to the walk out to the box. Anyway, I am cured, and I don't see a relapse in my future anytime soon.