Editorial Roundup: Excerpts From Recent Editorials
The Associated PressExcerpts from recent editorials in newspapers in the United States and abroad:
Feb. 26
The Denver Post, on need for securing borders before reforming immigration:
Troubling reports have emerged about the lack of progress on the high-tech fence that's supposed to secure this country's southern border.
A story in the Los Angeles Times last week said the system, which relies on radar images and satellite communication, has debilitating problems and may not be done for another seven years if at all.
Along with the potential for being a colossal waste of taxpayer money, the technological problems are a devastating blow to hopes for immigration reform.
Americans never will be sold on a comprehensive immigration bill nor should they be without first having a secure border.
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has ordered an assessment of the multibillion-dollar project that is supposed to stop drug runners and illegal immigrants.
We hope Napolitano and others in the Obama administration move quickly to devise an alternative plan for border security in case contractors are never able to work the glitches out of the system. ...
At the moment, illegal immigration is far reduced because the U.S. economic situation has reduced the numbers of jobs available. No jobs, no reason to come here.
But when that changes, and it will, the lure of a better life will re-emerge for those looking for opportunities.
This economic downturn was the perfect time to get the high-tech system of electronic surveillance and physical fences in working order.
Unfortunately, it seems as though it will be an opportunity squandered. Napolitano wisely has ordered a reassessment of border security strategy. Immigration reform will not have a chance of becoming reality until the U.S. can better control its borders.
On the Net:
http://www.denverpost.com
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March 1
The Vindicator Youngstown, Ohio, on U.S. House ethics:
Last week marks yet another occasion in the U.S. House of Representatives when a nail was pounded in the coffin holding the body of ethical behavior. ...
The House has a committee that goes by the shorthand name of the ethics committee — its official name is the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct. The job of the committee members is to apply to their colleagues in the House a system of moral principles. Chief among those is to serve the interests of the American people above their own interests.
In that light, consider two of the pronouncements to come out of the committee last week.
In the first, the committee ruled that seven lawmakers who steered hundreds of millions of dollars in largely no-bid contracts to clients of a lobbying firm had not violated any rules or laws by also collecting large campaign donations from those contractors. ...
In an even more blatant case of gutlessness, the committee declined to find that Rep. Charles B. Rangel, D-N.Y., and five other lawmakers who traveled to conferences at Caribbean resorts that were underwritten by private corporations violated House rules. ...
Ethics committee myopia is nothing new. It was epidemic during those years that the House was controlled by Republicans. But Democrats should be asking themselves how that worked out for, say, former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, and his party.
On the Net:
http://www.vindy.com
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March 1
The Rochester (N.Y.) Democrat and Chronicle, on childhood obesity:
Encouraging signs abound that citizens and public leaders are starting to take seriously mounting concerns about obesity, particularly among children.
From the White House to school and civic groups, improving health and nutrition have become overdue priorities. After all, the nation spends about $150 billion every year treating obesity-related diseases, which are mostly preventable.
Over the past 30 years, obesity among American children ages 6 to 11 has more than doubled from 6.5 percent to 17 percent. During the same period, among 12- to 19-year-olds, obesity has more than tripled from 5 percent to nearly 18 percent. No wonder more young people than ever are suffering from type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure.
In New York, 60 percent of adults are either overweight or obese.
Keep all of this in mind the next time you're notified of a health insurance premium increase.
Fortunately, President Obama and his wife, Michelle, aren't willing to sit back as too many Americans dismiss strategies such as banning junk food from school vending machines.
Unfortunately, the Obamas don't seem inclined to take on the powerful bottling industry, which is opposed to a soda tax. Never mind that sugary drinks are a big part of Americans' diets and a huge contributor to the nation's obesity problem.
For the second straight year a tax on sugary drinks has been proposed in Albany, but lawmakers lack the courage to push it forward.
Meantime, anti-obesity forums like the one televised ... by WXXI-TV can go far to help promote changing poor eating habits and the value of becoming active. Such efforts can ultimately make junk foods as unacceptable as cigarette smoking has become to an ever increasing number of consumers.
On the Net:
http://www.democratandchronicle.com
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March 2
The Boston Globe, on the federal Clean Water Act:
Recent decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court have undermined the ability of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to stop pollution of the nation's waterways. Congress should pass a Senate bill that would leave no doubt about the agency's authority to crack down on manufacturers, developers, and others guilty of discharging toxic wastes into wetlands and rivers.
For 30 years, the EPA and federal courts — including the Supreme Court itself — had broadly interpreted the Clean Water Act's jurisdiction over "navigable waters" to protect virtually all the nation's wetlands and waters, including tributaries of rivers. During that time, pollution levels fell dramatically and the quality of drinking water improved. Then the Supreme Court muddied the issue by taking a cramped, overly restrictive view of the law's wording. In a 2006 decision, the court said the EPA had authority in wetlands cases only if the wetlands form a "significant nexus" to "navigable" waters. The uncertainty surrounding this ruling has thrown a wrench into EPA's enforcement of the law. According to EPA regulators cited by the New York Times this week, more than 1,500 major pollution investigations have been dropped or put on hold in the past four years. The Times report cited EPA data showing that about 117 million Americans get their drinking water from sources that, under the court rulings, could be excluded from Clean Water Act jurisdiction. In Massachusetts, happily, the public enjoys an extra degree of protection thanks to a state clean water act that is more expansive than the federal law, but the state agency that enforces it has been under budget pressure.
A bill co-sponsored by Senator Benjamin Cardin of Maryland would end the ambiguity in the federal Clean Water Act in part by dropping the word "navigable." Called the Clean Water Restoration Act to emphasize that it simply returns to the EPA the power it had before the court rulings, the bill deserves quick approval by Congress. Even anti-government zealots must acknowledge that it is no fun having a tea party with contaminated water.
On the Net:
http://www.boston.com
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Feb. 26
The Augusta (Ga.) Chronicle, on Yucca Mountain nuclear waste depository decision:
We completely reject the Obama administration's decision to scrap the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste depository in Nevada.
The decision reverses decades of solid research and preparation to store the nation's nuclear byproducts in one safe, secure location. It leaves the country with no Plan B. It risks making nuclear facilities such as the CSRA's Savannah River Site, and every other nuclear location in the country, a permanent dumping ground — an unmitigated breaking of faith with those of us who have toiled with the understanding that there was a coherent plan to the contrary.
Moreover, it comes at an odd juncture, as the president supports growing the nuclear power industry.
It was a plan that boasted a scientific consensus dwarfing the alleged sure-fire consensus surrounding global warming — back when there wasn't as much doubt about warming as there is now.
Somehow, a real scientific consensus in regard to Yucca means nothing to the Obama administration.
Having said that, we also defend the administration's right to change course.
Absent a veto-proof majority of the U.S. Congress saying otherwise, the executive branch of the government is, as President George W. Bush might say, the "decider" in this case.
So, while we disagree utterly with its decision, we must look askance at the lawsuit our friends in Aiken, S.C., have brought against the administration, and other legal maneuvers being contemplated by the state or others. ...
If the Obama administration will not reverse course, and Congress doesn't force it to, then perhaps state legislatures could find ways to intervene.
Most likely this is a matter that will be resolved only at the ballot box — with the election of a Congress and/or president willing to let science and security rule the day instead of politics.
On the Net:
http://chronicle.augusta.com
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March 2
The Times-Picayune, New Orleans, on Chile earthquake:
The earthquake that hit Chile was about 500 times more powerful than the quake that devastated Haiti in January, even though the death count is thankfully far lower.
Because Chile is prone to earthquakes, it has stricter building codes, and it's also a far more prosperous country than Haiti.
But this is still an enormous catastrophe. Chile, like Haiti, will need help — both now, as it works against the clock to rescue trapped victims, and later as it starts to recover from the 8.8 magnitude earthquake and strong aftershocks. The disaster killed at least 700 people and destroyed 500,000 homes, affecting about 2 million people.
"We generally do not ask for help," Chilean President Michelle Bachelet said just after the quake hit. Later Chile's government officially requested international assistance. "We are confronting an emergency without parallel in Chile's history," she said.
Reaching out is the right thing to do, and President Barack Obama and other international leaders signaled a willingness to help even before Chile made an official request. The stricken country's initial list of needs includes temporary bridges, field hospitals, field kitchens, satellite phones and generators.
This disaster, coming on the heels of the Haitian quake, will no doubt strain the resources of relief agencies. But as a spokesperson for the National Children's Fund told The Wall Street Journal, "We would never say to Chile if they contacted us, 'Sorry, we're too busy in Haiti and can't help.' We would definitely respond somehow."
Louisianians understand why that's important. While many voices predicted that Katrina fatigue would set in quickly, organizations and individuals who came to our aid after the storm have continued to help in our recovery.
That same spirit should move people to respond to Chile's people as they did earlier to those of Haiti.
On the Net:
http://www.nola.com
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Feb. 26
The Salt Lake City Tribune, on a health care package:
No one expected President Barack Obama's health care summit to produce a bipartisan compromise. What Americans will get is a one-party compromise, a bill in which Democrats come to agreement among themselves, although even that looks like a long shot. Never underestimate the ability of jackasses to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
If, however, the Democrats fail to come together and pass a comprehensive health care reform bill, they deserve to lose control of Congress in the November election. What's the point of controlling both houses of Congress and the White House, then wasting that mandate by spending a year on an effort that produces nothing? Why should the American people renew that mandate?
The president's clear signal from the summit is that he intends for his party to push through a package based on the bill the Senate enacted on Christmas Eve. That's a variation on the strategy that would have been the easiest in terms of congressional procedure, that is, having the House pass the Senate bill. If the Democrats had been willing to do that, no other action would have been necessary in the Senate, and the need for a 60-vote Democratic majority to squelch Republican filibusters would have been moot. ...
Which brings us to budget reconciliation. Under Senate rules, budget reconciliation measures can pass by a simple majority rather than a 60-vote supermajority. As others have pointed out, it may be possible to pass amendments to some of the most odious features of the Senate bill using reconciliation rules, assuming the Democrats can round up 51 votes. That appears to be the president's strategy.
So, yeah, we would like to see a final bill include the public option. But mostly we would like to see a completed bill. Let the Republicans defend the status quo in November, including tens of millions of uninsured Americans, rampant health care inflation and denials for pre-existing conditions.
On the Net:
http://www.sltrib.com
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Feb. 28
The Seattle Times, on Veterans Affairs programs:
Nothing is too good for our men and women in uniform. So give it to them. Nothing! Too often that is how the news out of Washington, D.C., reads.
One maddening story reinforces the suspicion, yet two others offer a measure of hope that service and sacrifice glibly celebrated will be honored with serious commitments.
The Pentagon abruptly pulled the plug on a popular program that gave military spouses financial aid for college tuition and professional licenses and certification. Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts provided an extraordinary boost for families that relocate often and have normal education and job paths interrupted.
The aid bolstered economic opportunities and offered a potent, practical morale boost for the entire family. Reinstate the program. Whatever the cost, it is a bargain. ...
The military-industrial complex thrives, but budget writers get all parsimonious when the troops return home. Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki struck a different note when he announced he would reopen review of disability claims filed by Gulf War veterans.
The Associated Press reports the decision by the former Army chief of staff may affect how the 700,000 veterans who served in the war receive benefits. No new benefit is created, but closed cases for complaints of a war-related illness will get another look.
Four months ago, Shinseki announced Vietnam veterans — an estimated 200,000 — will be reconsidered for compensation related to exposure to Agent Orange herbicide. Long overdue attention.
The VA is moving quicker on preliminary data showing dramatic increases in veterans suicides. Washington Sen. Patty Murray has been working to improve mental-health services and outreach. A year ago, the Journal of the American Medical Association reported suicides among active duty personnel and reservists were also up.
Last week, the House Committee on Veterans Affairs held hearings on the relationship between VA-prescribed medication and veteran suicide. The committee is trying to reconcile the availability of treatment and the help provided.
These are works in progress, but vital topics are getting a closer, respectful review.
On the Net:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com
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March 3
The Times, London, on U.S. intervention over sovereignty of the Falkland Islands:
What was she thinking? By taking a last-minute detour, on her five-day trip to Latin America, to visit President Fernandez de Kirchner in Buenos Aires, Hillary Clinton has — recklessly — given the appearance of throwing America's weight behind Argentina in its row with Britain over sovereignty of the Falkland Islands.
Intruding in the dispute was lamentable enough. But in further offering to mediate between Buenos Aires and London, the U.S. Secretary of State is implying that there may be some fruitful area of grey between their rival black-and-white claims. By suggesting so boldly that there may be room for negotiation when Britain has insisted that there is none, Clinton gives the impression that Argentina has America's tacit support in the dispute. ...
Speaking as one close ally to another, Britain must remind America that it has no need for a go-between in its quarrel with Buenos Aires, since it has full confidence in the legitimacy of its territorial claim. Britain is, rightly, dismayed that Clinton seems to be encouraging Argentina to believe that any hopes it might nurse of possessing the Falklands one day may not be impossibly fanciful. This is a disservice to Argentina, and an undeserved snub to Britain. ...
On the Net:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk
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March 3
Khaleej Times, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on U.S. nuclear arms reduction initiative:
Nuclear arms reduction figures prominently on President Barack Obama's agenda. As a first step, Washington has sought a sizable reduction in its strategic arsenal. While the final objective is to rid the world of nuclear weapons, proliferation also remains top priority.
The U.S. initiative includes the reformulation of the country's nuclear doctrine, promising a dramatic reduction in the existing arsenal while maintaining a strong and reliable deterrence. Such a measure implies a shift in focus towards bolstering conventional weapons capability.
Obama's ability to implement a drastic cut at home is likely to bear impact on negotiations for replacing the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) with Russia. Moscow has so far pledged commitment and is cooperating with the U.S. towards mutual strategic reduction. It is positive to see the two former rivals reach a consensus in this crucial zone of strategic influence despite differences in other arenas such as NATO expansion and the U.S. plans to set up a missile defense shield in Eastern Europe. U.S. efforts to rope in Russia to bear on Teheran to relinquish its activities in (alleged) pursuit of nuclear weapons has become a major issue. Moscow, while opposing a nuclear-armed Iran, has opposed possible military action or imposition of sanctions, in line with U.S. policy of deterrence. ...
Washington is believed to be looking into the curtailment of development of a new generation of nuclear weapons. The idea is to prove U.S. commitment towards reversing the trend. By taking this step at this juncture it hopes to strengthen its stand at the forthcoming Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty review conference. The idea is to seek a tightening of the NPT regime controls, specifically aimed at Iran and North Korea.
It may be a better idea for the U.S. to reassess ground realities and explore new avenues of obtaining its objectives before going gung ho on Iran. Nuclear reduction and anti-proliferation drive will require more than grand gestures, especially when they are viewed as hypocritical — and one-sided.
On the Net:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com
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March 2
The Province, Vancouver, British Columbia, on 2010 Winter Olympics assessment:
One month ago, the rosiest scenario for the 2010 Winter Olympics would not have included half the magic that unfolded during our Games.
Who could have imagined the size of the crowds that occupied every street in the downtown core? Who could have imagined the golden medal haul produced by our athletes? Who could have imagined the overtime win by the men's Olympic hockey team over Brian Burke's gutsy American squad? Who could have imagined Sidney Crosby potting the golden goal, and Roberto Luongo getting the win?
In keeping with the grand tradition of the Olympics, we declare the following as the occupants of the final podium for the 2010 Games:
The Gold Medal: This goes to all of you who filled our streets with life and love. You participated in a two-week-long defining moment in the history of our grand nation. Thank you one and all.
The Silver Medal: This goes to the amazing athletes, who not only competed with the greatest of spirit, but did so fairly. The Olympic doping department occupied the smallest chapter of our Olympic story. Congratulations.
The Bronze Medal: This goes to Siwash Rock. Why Siwash Rock? Well, because it stands as a symbol of the beauty that is all around us. Siwash stood tall, proud and unwavering, as the glorious sunshine from above made millions marvel at the beauty of our garden. The Brit press didn't like us at times, but who cares?
They can have Gibraltar. We're happy with Siwash.
On the Net:
http://www.theprovince.com
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Feb. 26
The Asahi Shimbun, Tokyo, on Toyota's recovery:
Consumer confidence in Toyota Motor Corp. will not immediately recover following President Akio Toyoda's testimony before the U.S. Congress. Toyoda has yet to face a real test of his sincerity and ability to deliver on his promises.
Testifying before the House of Representatives' Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Toyoda promised to lead efforts to regain public trust. While apologizing for the delayed recalls of Toyota's popular models over faulty gas pedals, Toyoda denied any link between reported sudden accelerations of Toyota vehicles and problems with the electronic engine control system. ...
Toyota needs to establish a mindset and a system that ensure its employees will ask "why" five times whenever a customer has trouble with a Toyota vehicle.
It is vital for other global companies and export-oriented businesses to ask themselves some fundamental questions about their relations with customers. It is crucial for these companies to come up with systems that make it easier to identify the causes of problems.
Kaizen is known worldwide as the word that symbolizes Toyota. It means an approach to improving product safety and quality and the operational efficiency that relies on effective use of wisdom and ingenuity at workplaces.
We hope Toyota will ride out the biggest crisis since its foundation. Toyota must clear up the causes of its delayed decisions on the recalls as well as the sudden accelerations. The company must apply its kaizen approach to swiftly improve its management structure so that it will pay more attention to the voices of outsiders.
On the Net:
http://www.asahi.com