Craigslist takes a lot of heat for a company that follows the law. But does it deserve your sympathy in the dustup over prostitution-related ads? No. Not as long as Craigslist purports to be something it isn't. Susan Nielsen, The Oregonian http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/Susan%20Nielsen/index.html

Arts education continues to suffer in Oregon. It suffers from a lack of caring on the part of the everyday people in our state. Don't blame the policymakers making the hard decisions; they will cut those programs that they feel no one will stand up for. Letters to the editor http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveoreglet/index.html

Thank you for telling it like it is, especially John Canzano -- his Sept. 6 column hit the bull's-eye. We have a rudderless City Council with no backbone and definitely no leader relative to what is best for our city. Letters to the editor http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveoreglet/index.html

A Florida pastor's plan to burn copies of Islam's holiest book leaves the world waiting for the violence the act will surely spark The Oregonian Editorial Board http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveoregedb/index.html

Neither candidate has served before in elective office, but both have the political know-how to maneuver effectively on the county board The Oregonian Editorial Board http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveoregedb/index.html

Earl Blumenauer: We live in an astoundingly interconnected world. For evidence, look no further than the impact of a Florida pastor's plan to burn Qurans on the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Guest Columnist http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveguestop/index.html

Despite a visitor's perception, not all Portland homeless are aggressively accosting people downtown. Though I understand retailers' frustrations. Steve Duin, The Oregonian http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/sduin/index.html

economy, infrastructure, obama Jack Ohman, The Oregonian http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/johman/index.html

Dear school administrators, secretaries and teachers in our community:   I know you got some attitude today from parents who were busily dropping off their kids at school and not wanting to abide by tighter security measures you've put in... Elizabeth Hovde, Oregonian columnist http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/ehovde/index.html

Greg Chaimov: The people of Oregon allow themselves to pass some laws that they don't allow the Legislative Assembly to pass. Laws allowing casinos are among those. Guest Columnist http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveguestop/index.html

Melissa Madenski: What does it mean when we say in Multnomah County that one in five adults is at level one or level two in the latest national assessment of literacy? It means that 20 percent of adults in our community struggle to read simple phone contracts, labels in the supermarket or a voters pamphlet. Guest Columnist http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveguestop/index.html

Robert Woolsey: We've had a number of police shootings in the area over the past few months and, in thinking about them, I believe we as a society have set up circumstances in such a way as to make them inevitable. Guest Columnist http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveguestop/index.html

My husband and I stopped at one of our state rest areas recently. There were two folks holding signs asking for money for fuel and food. One was a young family with two little girls; the young man was desperately seeking a job. ... The other person was a woman of about my age, and I could just feel her humiliation... Letters to the editor http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveoreglet/index.html

Ruth Marcus: in the midst of supposedly heightened concern about deficit spending, the current debate about the Bush tax cuts involves whether to extend most of them (at a cost of about $2.3 trillion over the next decade) or all of them (adding another $700 billion to the tab). This is not dumb and dumber -- it's irresponsible and irresponsibler. Syndicated columns http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveoregsyc/index.html

Alberta Phillips: The whole thing about Glenn Beck hijacking King's legacy didn't happen. Perhaps Beck recognized that King's mantle could not be easily ripped off or replicated. Or maybe King just wasn't big enough for what Beck had in mind. In any case, Beck went, well, higher, invoking the name and hand of God. Why mess with a mere mortal when you can bring the Main Man to the party? Syndicated columns http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveoregsyc/index.html

Rich Lowry: Who is trapped in a deeper, more inaccessible bunker? The 33 Chilean miners getting food, water and messages from the outside world through a tiny borehole, or Rahm Emanuel and the fellas at the White House who have apparently not yet received word that the American public is summoning itself for a shattering rejection of the administration's spending? Syndicated columns http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveoregsyc/index.html

Leonard Pitts Jr.: Saturday is International Burn a Koran Day, the brainchild of one Terry Jones, pastor of the tiny Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Fla. You will not be surprised to hear that his plan to build a bonfire of Korans has stirred passions around the world. Syndicated columns http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveoregsyc/index.html

Walter Rodgers: The right wing's challenge of President Obama's religious beliefs and the whispering campaign that he is a closet Muslim are more than just shameful bigotry. They are an attack on religious freedom. Syndicated columns http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveoregsyc/index.html

Misspelling can lead to "gross" errors as well as incomprehension on the part of the reader. A professional associate of mine submitted a draft management report to his supervisor (me) for review before submission to the client. The word "whorehouse" had been substituted for "warehouse" by the word-processing spell check. Letters to the editor http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveoreglet/index.html

Calls for early shutdown of PGE's Boardman plant ignore the economic impact on those of us who live near the plant. It represents about $7 million in tax revenue for Morrow County schools and libraries. It would take decades to recover from a shotgun shutdown. Letters to the editor http://connect.oregonlive.com/user/oliveoreglet/index.html