In the year 1851 the Constitution of Ohio was overhauled. (Bear with me, this will get more interesting!)
Amongst the many changes and updates was language that allowed for eminent domain by what would become
the Ohio Department of Transportation if … the roadways were free and open to the public.
However, there are license fees and the dreaded Odotzilla fuel tax of up to 52.4 cents per gallon which
you can easily avoid if you are one of the 20 percent of Ohio drivers who schwooosh down the road with
neither a drivers license nor insurance, according to highway patrol stats.
State roadways are also free to daredevil pedestrians, bike fans, horse and buggy operators, construction
equipment and the occasional glider pilot making an unintended landing to name a few exemptions. The
rest of you guys and gals will pay the minimum 46.4 cents per gallon which raises an interesting
question. Where did the free part go?
What we seem to have here is A.) A dichotomy, B.) A contradiction in terms, C.) Mutually exclusive
terminology, D.) A legal problem for the Ohio Supreme Court to resolve.
It would appear that Odotzilla is guilty of reckless driving the Constitution off the legal road and
through many somebodies’ houses.
I don’t speak deer, but you guys are free to go wherever and whenever you like cause you can’t sue God or
the Dept. of Wildlife even when there is no deer crossing sign. But don’t you cows even think about it
because your owner can be taken to the court cleaners. To insure that this letter is educational, Bambi
and his colleagues are the biggest killer of humans. (More than the next nine animals on the list
combined.) Deer hungers should be paid, not charged by the state.
George E. Thompson
Rt. 64 Property Owners Association