Editorial Roundup
Excerpts from recent editorials in newspapers in the United States and abroad:
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March 11
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on why Florida Democratic voters should focus on November elections and forget about a primary do-over:
The latest iteration to resolve an irresolvable disaster is a do-over Florida Democratic primary via the postal system. Democratic voters would be asked to mail their ballots by a deadline date this spring.
Sounds good, except someone still has to figure out how to pay for it. Using Florida tax money is out of the question. ...
The only fair, face-saving way out of this mess is for Florida Democrats to accede to the delegate ban until a nominee is chosen. Once that's done, the nominee should invite the Florida delegation to be seated at the national convention, and to cast their votes in the name of party unity.
It should be embarrassing to Florida Democrats that, having railed about being disenfranchised in the 2000 presidential election, they've now been disenfranchised by their own party. However, there's not a solution to their plight, and it's best they focus their time, energy and money on the November general election.
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March 12
Times Union, Albany, N.Y., on primaries in Florida and Michigan:
It's been weeks since it made any sense at all for Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean and other party leaders to try to impose some discipline on the unwieldy process of trying to choose a presidential nominee. Two huge and critically important states wanted to hold their primaries in January, before almost everyone else?
Sure, don't seat their delegates. Send 'em a message. ...
But the campaign of 2008 is an extraordinary one, so brutally competitive and so tantalizingly close that literally every state will need to have its say before it's even remotely clear whether Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton or Sen. Barack Obama has a more legitimate claim on the 2,025 delegates required to win the nomination.
A party convention without Florida's 210 delegates or Michigan's 156 delegates would be worse than a farce. ...
It's encouraging, then, to see Democrats are swallowing hard and accepting the reality of having both Florida and Michigan vote again. Oh, the weekend was full of mild bickering, with various Democrats offering contrary opinions over how to proceed.
A primary by mail?
An election of such huge potential consequence probably isn't the time for the state to try what it hasn't tried before, argues Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida. She could make the same point about Michigan.
So, more traditional voting, then? And who'll pay for all this? ...
"The only thing I know to do is to do it over," says Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida.
Not exactly words of eloquence. But sage words nonetheless. ...
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March 11
Rocky Mountain News, Denver, on the need for the U.S. to pass the Colombian trade treaty:
The United States and Colombia, its beleaguered ally in a region where lately we seem to have fewer of them, concluded a free-trade agreement in February 2006. It has been pending in Congress ever since, and the Democratic leadership shows no signs of bestirring itself to get it passed. Recent events in South America suggest that it is in the United States' interest, and certainly in Colombia's interest, to pass the agreement, and soon.
On March 2, Colombian forces bombed a rebel encampment just inside Ecuador, killing, among others, Paul Reyes, the second in command of FARC, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. Whatever its one-time political goals, FARC now exists largely for the sake of terrorism, drug trafficking and kidnappings for ransom or use as hostages. ...
Since taking office in 2002, Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has made great strides against the guerrillas, restrained the violent private militias that arose in reaction to them and done so without resorting to the excesses of previous governments. And he is reliably pro-Washington.
We don't want to be an unreliable friend. Passing the free-trade agreement would shore up a friendly government and help Colombia's economy and ours, too. Two years is long enough for any serious objections to the treaty to have arisen. The Democrats should say no to the protectionist wing of their party.
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March 10
Vindicator, Youngstown, Ohio, on national security and personal privacy:
In the immediate aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001, very few politicians were willing to challenge the administration's demand for new surveillance powers contained in what was cleverly dubbed the USA Patriot Act. ...
Today, there is a different climate in Washington and national politics.
It is not that Americans are any more willing to be attacked by terrorists than they were in 2002 or 2004, but they have reason to be more suspicious of whether the government is using its expanded powers responsibly.
They've come to realize that when government officials are given the authority to snoop into what American citizens are doing, snoop they will.
And last week, FBI Director Robert Mueller acknowledged that his agency improperly used national security letters in 2006 to obtain personal data on Americans during investigations. ...
So the FBI's acknowledgment that it underreported the number of national-security letters it issued by 4,600 in 2006 is unsettling.
Congress should renew its efforts to establish some type of independent oversight of national security letters. That would provide Congress with the ability to determine whether the extraordinary power the administration has been given is not being abused and whether the letters are as effective an anti-terrorism tool as the administration claims them to be. ...
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March 8
Journal Star, Peoria, Ill., on the presidential election:
... Consider it advantage, McCain.
First, McCain gets to save his energy and resources for the final round in November, while Obama and Clinton spend theirs doing McCain's work for him -- beating each other up, finding and exploiting the other's weaknesses.
Second, media attention now shifts to the Democrats, a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, Clinton/Obama remain on the front pages and on voters' minds. On the other, voters may get tired of them. McCain will take a back seat for a while, but he may also catch a break from coverage of the kind he received from the
Meanwhile, the scrutiny of Obama and Clinton and their respective spouses continues. That means Obama has to watch everything he wears -- no more traditional Kenyan garb, steer clear of head gear in general -- and says. Hillary has Bill. Good luck with that.
Both Democrats should heed history. A protracted primary fight always seems to spell disaster for the party involved. Sure, it's great election theater, but it also turned into November losses for the Democrats in 1968, 1980 and 1984, and for Republicans in 1976. The standard-bearers never recovered from the bruises they received along the way. ...
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March 12
The Beaver County Times, Beaver, Pa., on the rising price of oil:
When President George W. Bush took office in 2001, the price of a barrel of crude oil was around $31.
Before the U.S.-led invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003, oil cost less than $25 a barrel.
Today, oil has topped $100 a barrel, and the price is expected to continue climbing.
Last week, Bush told Americans that the United States has to "get off oil" to reduce dependence on foreign suppliers.
Breaking this nation's dependence on foreign suppliers is going to take a combination of pumped-up domestic production, increased energy conservation (especially in regard to fuel mileage for cars and trucks) and development of alternative energy sources.
But instead of using the White House as a bully pulpit to convince Americans, Congress and the corporate world of the importance of reducing our reliance of imported oil, Bush has done nothing of substance on this national security issue for seven years.
As a result, he wasted a resource that is just as valuable as oil -- time.
The next president must have a greater sense of urgency on this matter because time is running out, no thanks to Bush.
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March 11
Los Angeles Times, on President Bush and torture:
"We do not torture," President Bush insists, yet that assurance is accompanied by an unspoken "but." In vetoing legislation that would require CIA interrogators to abide by the same humanitarian standards imposed on their counterparts in the U.S. military, Bush again has drowned out his denials with an ominous silence about just what "enhanced" interrogation tactics he considers appropriate.
... Bush argued that CIA interrogators can't be confined to techniques allowed by the Army Field Manual "because the manual is publicly available and easily accessible on the Internet." So, of course, are the Geneva Convention and the Detainee Treatment Act, which prohibit "cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment." By the president's logic, acceptance of the humanitarian standards included in those documents also deprives the United States of the element of surprise.
... By reserving the right to use unspecified enhanced interrogation methods, the United States -- especially the United States under this president -- abandons the moral high ground. That is why, on balance, it serves America's interests for there to be a single standard for interrogation techniques.
The Army Field Manual provides such a single standard. And, yes, it tells America's enemies in specific terms what this country will not do. ... If the president has other, even harsher, tactics in mind, then the assurance that "we don't torture" rings even hollower. Congress should end his word games by voting to override his veto.
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On the Net:
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-ed-veto11mar11,0,3043365.story
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March 6
News and Record, Greensboro, N.C., on elder abuse:
Elder abuse is widespread, yet few resources are directed toward combatting it. One Senate committee, for example, found that less than 2 percent of federal money targeted for abuse prevention is spent to help elders.
But the Baby Boom generation, now heading into its senior years, is focusing attention on the issue. ...
... (T)he problem isn't just substandard care in nursing homes. It's also financial abuse. Studies show that the elderly are the ones most often falling victim to these scams. Aware that many older people have substantial savings, and aware that aging may have left the elderly isolated or diminished their faculties, scammers see them as prime targets.
... Advocates also say the federal government needs to provide leadership in this area. A bill in Congress -- The Elder Justice Act -- would do that. It has several components, among them data collection. Research indicates that elder abuse is woefully underreported. Collecting more information on scams and abuse, both in private homes and in long-term care facilities, is essential for determining further action. The act also would provide a reliable source of federal revenue for states' adult protective services divisions and establish programs to help train those in law enforcement or public health who deal with elder abuse. ...
Clearly, the nation must target the abuse and exploitation of elders or else the elderly will keep getting targeted. The elderly must not be preyed upon by anyone from family members to Internet scammers.
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March 12
Taipei Times, Taiwan, on democracy:
One of the greatest challenges of democracy is giving voice to those sections of society that are most disadvantaged. ...
For this reason, scrutinizing society's treatment of its most marginalized members is an excellent method of gauging progress in democratization. ...
Likewise, the government's treatment of another marginalized group of society, sex workers, reveals the chauvinism still ingrained in the system. Under Article 80 of the Social Order and Maintenance Act, it is illegal to sell sex services, but not illegal to pay for them.
Prostitutes themselves say the criminalization of sex work has left them in the hands of organized crime and robbed them of legal recourse against physical abuse and of the option of turning down customers who refuse to wear a condom. ...
That is the message that hundreds of sex workers and supporters took to the streets ... in a call to the presidential candidates.
Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Frank Hsieh responded by signing an agreement to decriminalize prostitution within two years of being elected, an act the protesters welcomed and hoped was not an election ploy.
His Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) rival, Ma Ying-jeou, responded by declining to take a stance without first gauging public opinion. ...
This was also Ma's response to a question on legalizing gay marriage in last month's debate, when he dodged taking a position for or against gay unions by saying public consensus must decide.
Ma seems to have missed the second challenge of democracy. ...
A presidential candidate who believes that promoting social progress entails nothing more than gauging public opinion is not fit to take on the burdens of leadership.
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On the Net:
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2008/03/12/2003405188
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March 7
Eesti Paevaleht, Tallinn, Estonia, on the aftereffects of Kosovo's independence:
Kosovo's independence declaration has brought out the issue that had been widely predicted: support for the interests of one nationality elicits calls for the support of independence movements elsewhere.
The rebel Georgian province of South Ossetia and the Russian-backed Black Sea region Abkhazia are calling on the world to recognize their independence, and the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabach and (Russian-backed) Transnistria are following suit.
Furthermore, Bosnian and Kosovan Serbs are looking to reunite with their motherland. So it is only natural that the Basques (of Spain) are following this trend.
The view of the United States and the European Union that Kosovo is a unique case does not convince many countries. For example, some Czech politicians see the nature of the events in parallel with the appeasement of the 1938 Munich Agreement.
While one can openly say the world order has truly changed, it is, indeed, necessary that the creators of Kosovo's independence come up with better and more convincing explanations.
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March 10
Jerusalem Post, on Iran:
Following the style, if not the conclusions, of the infamous US National Intelligence Estimate on Iran, Israel's intelligence community gave its assessment ... for the coming year. Like the NIE, the Israeli version was couched in probabilities, which allows intelligence agencies to cover nearly every eventuality and claim they had it right no matter what happens. Unlike the NIE, the Israeli version, at least, does not attempt to obscure the obvious: that Iran is desperately seeking nuclear weapons.
It is this conclusion, rather than correct but somewhat fatuous assessments -- such as the "low probability" of a general regional war -- that matters. What would have been even more helpful would be to spell out the policy implications for Israeli and Western decision-makers of this conclusion on the strategic level. ...
If there is an apt historical analogy to the Iranian situation, it is not the Cold War, but the period that Winston Churchill dubbed "The Gathering Storm" before World War II, during which the Nazis were still weak but gaining power. This analogy holds because the Iranian regime will seek to expand totalitarian Islamism as far and as fast as it can until it is stopped. ...
Israel needs to be at the forefront of explaining the international implications of a nuclear Iran. We have not done this urgently or clearly enough. Now we have the worst of both worlds -- Iran is thought of as mainly a threat to Israel, but Israel does not seem especially alarmed, so, by this measure, there is no reason for other nations to be.
While we are right to treat the Iranian threat as an international problem, there is no escaping our own role in puncturing the delusions that are lulling the West into collective inaction. Our message should be, and not just in private meetings between heads of state, that the US and Europe together still can and still must prevent Iran from becoming the first nuclear-armed terrorist regime.
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March 12
Daily Telegraph, on the Federal Reserve and the sub-prime crisis:
When the Federal Reserve joined forces with four other central banks to inject liquidity into the international finance system in December, we wondered whether that unprecedented intervention would be enough. Now we have our answer.
Yesterday's second "shock and awe" rescue of the US mortgage industry dwarfs the first and confirms just how much pain the sub-prime crisis is causing.
The Fed's move, acting once again in harness with other leading central banks, in effect confirms that the first intervention has not worked. Nor, yet, have the Fed's dramatic cuts in interest rates, down 2.25 percentage points to three per cent since the credit crisis broke late last summer, or the emergency tax-cut package agreed by Congress. ...
This coordinated activity by the central banks is commendable. They might have been asleep at the switch when the sub-prime crisis was developing, but their response since it broke has been timely and responsible. But it is evident that the credit crisis is continuing to paralyze the banking system by making interbank loans too expensive. ...
It is now eight months since this crisis began. We have had deep cuts in the cost of borrowing and two large-scale international operations to inject liquidity. Yet the situation remains precarious. There is a nagging worry that we have yet to see the full picture of the sub-prime collapse. If there are more horrors to come, the Fed and the other central banks cannot have many more shots left in their locker.
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