I'm about to start composting and I wonder if it is ok to compost paper
such as newspape and cardboard? If you make your own composter, do you
need to raise it off the ground for air circulation?

Paper, inkless or carefully chosen printed paper, can be composted but it
should be shredded, and the smaller the shreds the better. It needs to be mixed
into regular organic matter in small amounts. You have to look out for
bleached, coated, and other types of paper that will add undesirable chemicals
into your soil. Cardboard and fiberboard are not a good idea, because they do
contain binders, and also because they are often made from recycled paper, and
thus contain even more concentrationed contamination. Shreded paper decays in a
way similar to hardwood, much slower than things like soft food waste because
of the amount of fibers it contains.

A better environmental idea is to allow paper to be recycled appropriately.
-=epm=-

In matters of truth and justice,
there is no difference between large and small problems,
for issues concerning the treatment of people are all the same.
- Albert Einstein