Back off!

Amid soaring state deficits as sales and income tax revenues decline and unemployment compensation payments rise, it seems some legislators have other concerns on their mind.

I thought attempts to ban Barbie only happened in Muslim countries, not West Virginia. When did influencing girls not to attempt to be beautiful become a legitimate concern of any government? If some parents don't like Barbie dolls and what they might think the dolls stand for, they shouldn't buy them for their daughters.

Then we have the Connecticut legislature's attempts to take the Catholic Church out of the hands of its bishops and putting it under the control of a board of laymen. Excuse me, but the Bill of Rights aside, didn't Christians who wanted this to be the case do just that in an 130 year long period that started in 1517 called the Protestant Reformation? As a Catholic myself and a member of my parish's finance committee, my advise is this: If you don't like how the Catholic Church is run, please, feel free to become an Episcopalian or go found your own church.