Attorney General Alberto Gonzales didn’t win over lawmakers with his testimony Thursday before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Most committee members, including most of the Republicans, remained skeptical of Gonzales’ claims that he couldn’t remember key details about the firing of eight U.S. attorneys and that his previous misstatements weren’t intended to mislead Congress and the public. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., told Gonzales: "The best way to put this behind us is your resignation." Gonzales disagreed. But how long can he stay on when he has lost so much credibility?
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
Some families of victims of the Virginia Tech rampage are expressing disgust and outrage at NBC News’ decision to air the photos and videotape that the troubled killer sent to the network.
The images and angry rants are riveting, to be sure, but is showing them responsible? It’s a tough editorial decision, but I think NBC could have shown more restraint and more respect for the grieving community by at least delaying the release of some of the more disturbing images and content and not giving Cho Seung-Hui what he so desperately wanted — an immediate platform for his sick views as well as a way to taunt his victims.
This reinforces people’s negative perception of the media as an unfeeling exploiter of tragedy.
Or is this simply news that people want to see and hear? And what about The Eagle’s decision to publish photos from the video? What do you think?
Posted by Randy Scholfield
It may seem counterintuitive, but John McCardell, president emeritus of Middlebury College in Vermont, might be on to something about why to lower the drinking age, as George Will discussed in his recent Washington Post column.
The usual argument for lowering the legal drinking age to 18 is: "I can vote, go to war, adopt a child — why can’t I buy a beer?" McCardell’s argument, which stems from years of observing students on a college campus, is that underage drinking is happening, has always happened and will continue to happen. So why not lower the legal drinking age to 18, when most students are still under parental influence and supervision, and the issue can be addressed, much like driving, as a privilege that must be used responsibly?
Parents who fool themselves into thinking that their children will not drink alcohol until they are 21 are doing their children a disservice. It is the parents’ duty to prepare their children to become informed, responsible adults.
Posted by Patrice Hein
The Eagle editorial board supported the federal ban on partial-birth abortion for the same reason the U.S. Supreme Court upheld its constitutionality Wednesday — there are abortion methods other than this gruesome procedure that doctors can use. That said, dissenting Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was justifiably concerned about federal intervention in medical decisions. And the ruling will likely inspire pro-life lawmakers to try to ban other procedures as a way to restrict abortions.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
New research shows shows that President Bush’s abstinence-only sexual education programs haven’t changed behaviors. In a survey of 2,000 teens by Mathematica Policy Research conducted at Congress’ request, children who were in an abstinence-only program were just as likely to have sex as children also taught about contraception. Those in both groups had their first sexual experience at the same average age — 14.9 years.
It seems sheltering children from the real world does not impede their eventual arrival there.
Posted by Ross Stewart
A bird flu vaccine, the first of its kind, recently was approved by the Food and Drug Administration, whose representatives said it was better than nothing. According to the Associated Press, 20 million doses are expected to be purchased and stockpiled by the government, to be administered to health care and emergency workers should an outbreak erupt. Clinical trials have shown an efficacy rate of only about 45 percent.
This is not the least bit reassuring in light of FDA Commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach’s statement that “the threat of an influenza pandemic is, at present, one of the most significant public health issues our nation and world faces.”
Posted by Patrice Hein
The National Taxpayers Union, an advocacy group, estimates American taxpayers spend 3.18 billion hours computing and filing their taxes. That includes record keeping, figuring out the new tax laws, completing forms and filing their tax returns, averaging 24.2 hours per taxpayer.
This year, corporate taxpayers spent an estimated $156.5 billion on tax preparation — almost half of the $354 billion in corporate income tax they paid last year.
Wouldn’t you think all those bean counters could put their calculators together and come up with an easier, more efficient way for Americans to finance our government? What about the flat tax promoted by Sen. Sam Brownback and others?
Posted by Patrice Hein