Commentary: U.S. courts have been tough on terror

The political attacks over the Obama administration's handling of terrorism cases owe their persistence to the enduring power of myth over reality. The record clearly shows that civilian courts have been the most effective venue for dealing with these criminals. Almost 200 terrorists have been convicted in federal courts since 9/11, as opposed to only three under military commissions. | 02/16/10 11:59:27 By -

Commentary: Tea Party attracts profit-seekers and politicians

No matter the cause, politics is a mix of believers, opportunists and entrepreneurs. The tea party is no different. Exactly what the partiers stand for depends on your view. Here are the basics: They oppose big government and taxes, and fret about the economy. The movement also attracts birthers and people who advocate sealing America's borders. | 02/15/10 11:20:27 By - Dan Morain

Commentary: Assembly, Schwarzenegger battle over Maldonado is pointless

Californians are disgusted with the petty antics of the governor and the Legislature, polls tell us, and want them to balance the deficit-ridden state budget and otherwise do the public's business. However, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic leaders of the state Assembly are locked in a political, semantic and ultimately legal duel over something that should have taken about five minutes — confirming Republican Sen. Abel Maldonado to serve 10 months in the completely meaningless office of lieutenant governor. | 02/12/10 11:43:07 By - Dan Walters

Commentary: Arpaio's shameful example of law enforcement

At the risk of receiving a stinky pizza, we have to explore Kansas City's connection to the doings of the self-billed "America's toughest sheriff" down in Arizona. | 02/11/10 14:43:14 By - Mary Sanchez

Commentary: Dave Barry loves Miami and the Everglades' petite snakes

I want to start with a retraction and an apology. My previous Super Bowl column, which offered tips for visitors to Miami, deeply offended some readers, who informed me that: (a) I am hurting Miami's image; (b) I am an idiot racist piece of lowlife no-talent scum; and (c) they did not mean this in a good way. | 02/05/10 12:44:08 By - Dave Barry

Commentary: More hypocrisy from California politicians

Those outside the trade occasionally ask political journalists whether spending one's working life listening to the self-serving speeches of politicians and watching their antics becomes tiresome. Watching politics, like watching sausage-making, does tend to make one somewhat leery of the final product, to paraphrase an old saying. There is, however, another side to professional political voyeurism — being entertained as politicians preen and puff and then face the consequences when reality intrudes. That's why hypocrisy is a mainstay of political reporting, and why the public responds so readily to do-as-we-say-not-as-we-do stories. | 02/05/10 11:39:56 By - Dan Walters

Commentary: 'Don't ask, don't tell' is a byproduct of a different time

The federal policy that allows gays and lesbians to serve in the military until someone outs them is nearly 17 years old. It's high time that it grew up. America is a different place than it was in 1993 when Congress passed the law as a rebuke of President Bill Clinton. | 02/04/10 11:33:01 By -

Commentary: Obama, GOP need to face off more often

Friday's face-to-face confrontation between President Obama and Republican lawmakers gave viewers a taste of what it might be like if the United States had the equivalent of the British question-and-answer sessions between the prime minister and the House of Commons. | 02/03/10 13:43:03 By -

Commentary: What do Haiti, the Super Bowl and Iwo Jima have in common?

On Iwo Jima 65 years ago, the battle for that Japanese-held island began with Marines landing and U.S. Navy ships supporting them with a lifeline of supplies from the sea. There is a link between those events in February 1945 and the suffering, loss and relief efforts that are under way in the island nation of Haiti today. | 02/03/10 04:23:47 By - Colonel Bryan Salas

Commentary: Florida's archaic gay adoptions ban

If you read my column regularly, you probably know my values. I am someone who tries to put into practice the most important tenet of the sacred scriptures: loving one's fellow man. To give meaning to my life, I help others. I have never had a run-in with the law. I pay my taxes. I have never even gotten a traffic ticket for a moving violation. Taking all this into account, you could make the argument that I would be a good father. In any state, except Florida, this would be possible. But here I am forbidden by law only because I am a gay man. | 02/02/10 12:01:35 By - Daniel Shoer-Roth

Commentary: Tebow's Super Bowl ad illustrates silly importance we place on athletes

It's not that I want to dismiss Tim Tebow altogether in his off-the-field pursuits. I'm actually quite envious. It takes more gumption to put your personal views on display for the world to analyze than it does to, say, scramble for 5 yards and take a big hit. While I admire Tebow's gusto for his beliefs, the venue for his views just feels misplaced. It doesn't feel like an issue and a moment that so transcends sports. It reaffirms a stand that cannot be disputed: We give athletes way too much credit. | 01/28/10 12:05:35 By - Matt James

Commentary: Fun with filibusters

With the election of Scott Brown as the new senator from Massachusetts, bringing GOP ranks to 41, Republicans are acting as if they have retaken control of the Senate. And, in a practical sense, they have.

Thank the filibuster, the tactic that is either hailed or reviled depending on which legislation it is blocking. And, unless one party decides to change the Senate rules, the filibuster is here to stay. | 01/28/10 09:05:19 By - James Werrell

Commentary: No time to throw in the towel, Mr. President

Dear President Obama,

I will be watching your State of the Union address tonight with an increased intensity. You were elected for times such as these, when the upheaval is real and the rhetoric ripe. You proved you were up to the task by signing a $787 billion stimulus plan that has already produced between 1 million and 2 million jobs. It was the reason the economy began growing earlier than most thought possible and why we avoided another Depression. Bill Gates and Warren Buffett have acknowledged as much. | 01/27/10 14:37:38 By - Isaac Bailey

Commentary: A wave of secret campaign donations is on its way

As high-powered consultants plot strategy in the race for U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer's seat, they should factor in Sandy Greiner, a 64-year-old grandmother six times over from Keota, Iowa. Greiner and people like her suddenly became more important to American politics last week because of a landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling and the stunning vote in Massachusetts. Sandra H. Greiner is president of American Future Fund, a nonprofit corporation that espouses limited taxes and opposes President Barack Obama's economic policies and health care proposals. Entities like Greiner's operate in the shadows. Their donors are anonymous. The power behind them is rarely apparent. It's impossible to track the exact amounts they spend on campaigns in any timely fashion. | 01/27/10 12:50:59 By - Dan Morain

Commentary: Plenty of red ink in Gov. Schwarzenegger's legacy

Arnold Schwarzenegger, with 11 months remaining in his star-crossed governorship, says it's "a little bit too early to reflect" on his legacy — but California voters appear to be rendering their verdict already, and it's not a positive one. | 01/26/10 12:08:59 By - Dan Walters

Commentary: Legalizing marijuana has California dazed and confused

When California voters were asked to legalize medical marijuana in 1996, I believed that Proposition 215 was about relieving the suffering of sick people. I thought voting for that initiative — the Compassionate Use Act — was about exercising the "will of the people." We were conned. | 01/25/10 12:55:46 By - Marcos Breton

Commentary: Will Florida follow Massachusetts in Senate upsets?

As goes Massachusetts, so goes Florida? Former House Speaker Marco Rubio is salivating at Scott Brown's U.S. Senate victory in Massachusetts, as he should. Rubio is young and attractive and a powerful speaker, even if you disagree with him as he stumps to be the next GOP senator from Florida. Rubio hasn't posed in the buff for Cosmopolitan, which didn't seem to hurt Brown the hottie. | 01/25/10 12:14:25 By - Myriam Marquez

Commentary: Handshakes to success

As two Marine Expeditionary Units sortie to the calamity in Haiti, another unit departs Iraq without great fanfare. The Marines are leaving Iraq with neither parade nor pageant; this is what victory looks like in a counterinsurgency. | 01/22/10 14:46:14 By - Colonel Bryan Salas

Commentary: John Edwards finally confesses; big deal

After more than two years of spin, half-truths and outright lies, John Edwards came clean. He admitted to fathering a child out of wedlock, the result of a campaign-trail affair with Rielle Hunter, a videographer, while Elizabeth Edwards was back home battling cancer. Edwards has been in a free fall so long that it's hard to remember that just three years ago many people believed he had a decent chance of sitting in the White House today. | 01/22/10 11:35:36 By - Rob Christensen

Commentary: MLK's dream

Editor's note: Martin Luther King Jr. made hundreds of speeches, but the one he made Aug. 28, 1963, from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to a crowd of nearly 300,000 civil rights demonstrators is his best known. The "I Have a Dream'' address — partially reprinted here in recognition of Martin Luther King Jr. Day — became a rallying cry for black Americans and a classic of world oratory. | 01/18/10 10:40:48 By -

Commentary: Are China's demands for Internet 'self-discipline' spreading to the West?

In the Western democratic world, the idea of strengthening intermediary liability — making a company liable or legally responsible for everything its users do — is becoming increasingly popular in government agencies and parliaments. From France to Italy to the United Kingdom, the idea of holding online carriers and services liable for what their customers do is seen as the cheapest and easiest solution to the law enforcement and social problems that have gotten tougher in the digital age — from child porn to copyright protection to cyber-bullying and libel. | 01/18/10 06:16:32 By - Rebecca MacKinnon

Commentary: Limbaugh, Robertson offer scorn to suffering Haiti

If Pat Robertson and Rush Limbaugh had just kept their mouths shut, Harry Reid's comments in 2008 might still be scaling this week's meter for eyebrow-raising, racially tinged comments from public figures. But it only took a devastating tragedy of epic proportions for Rush and the Rev. Pat to knock him off.

Who knew that untold thousands of deaths from a massive 7.0-magnitude earthquake in Haiti, a poor country already wracked with misery, would spawn scorn and outlandish claims of God's retribution instead of compassion and concern? But in Limbaugh's and Robertson's worlds that's apparently what it should do. | 01/16/10 07:10:31 By - Fannie Flono

Commentary: Perfection is the new, unrealistic standard on terrorism

By the standard that is emerging, every president since I was born has failed the country in the fight against terrorism. The new standard seems to be perfection — every terrorist attack foiled and zero American lives lost — and by that President Obama is deemed soft on terrorism and incapable of keeping America safe. The new standard is coming from political opponents of Obama, which is somewhat expected though disheartening, given the seriousness of this issue. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani is leading the chorus. | 01/15/10 14:14:16 By - Isaac Bailey

Commentary: Nature can be cruel but we still keep going

Sometimes, the earth is cruel.

That is ultimately the fundamental lesson here, as children wail, families sleep out of doors, and the dead lie unclaimed in the rubble that once was Port-au-Prince. | 01/15/10 13:40:08 By - Leonard Pitts Jr.

Commentary: MLK day is a time for service to others

Monday, the official observance of Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday, is an unusual holiday. If you're among the Americans lucky enough to get the day off, you are asked to make it a day "on," by volunteering to do some good work in your community. This call to service, officially endorsed by Congress in 1994, is a great way to honor the values and vision that The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. offered the nation. | 01/15/10 12:04:27 By -

Commentary: Let's not become our own worst enemy

Everyone should take a deep breath and stop flapping about the "failure" to identify Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab as a likely terrorist. What went wrong — and what's gone right? Intelligence analysis is more than putting the pieces together in one puzzle. It's more like working on many puzzles simultaneously, and then deciding which puzzle and which piece of that puzzle should take precedence. | 01/14/10 02:36:48 By - Mark M. Lowenthal

Commentary: Roeder trial judge is being commendably cautious

Over the weekend I was tempted to pop off about what seemed like a bone-headed decision in the Scott Roeder murder case. How could Sedgwick County District Judge Warren Wilbert even consider allowing a jury to find George Tiller's confessed killer guilty of voluntary manslaughter instead of first-degree murder? | 01/13/10 14:12:42 By - Mike Hendricks

Commentary: Behind John, Elizabeth Edwards' public personas

In the case of John and Elizabeth Edwards, a new book's details on the 2008 presidential race reinforce the truism about the corrupting influence of power. Excerpts from the book, "Game Change," highlight the unflattering devolution of North Carolina's once rising star senator who came uncomfortably close to occupying the White House. | 01/13/10 12:50:13 By -

Commentary: Mark McGwire's convenient confession

Confession is good. It is good for the soul. It is good for future book sales. It is good for any number of things. It is good for helping alleviate the distraction if, just to use a totally random example, you are about to start your new job as, say, hitting coach of the St. Louis Cardinals. | 01/12/10 11:29:07 By - Greg Cote

Commentary: The crippling ideology of Jim DeMint

Hell for Jim DeMint would be being stuck in an almost-empty bar during a 12-foot snowstorm, with a gay bartender on duty, the heating system giving out and the keys to the locked door in the pocket of a union leader. At a lone table, an Islamic man begins reading aloud from the Quran. | 01/11/10 14:30:32 By - Isaac Bailey

Commentary: Nature's lessons for adapting to the terrorist threat

As we breathe a collective sigh of relief that Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab's recent alleged attempt to blow up an airliner failed, we also must come to grips with the critical fact that our enemies have been adapting to our security measures faster than we're able to change them. | 01/08/10 06:16:32 By - Rafe Sagarin

Commentary: A 'when pigs fly' feel to Schwarzenegger's reform plans

Arnold Schwarzenegger began his last State of the State address Wednesday by describing how two pets, a pony and a pig, jointly filch dog food from a sealed container. Schwarzenegger quickly followed that upbeat metaphor, however, with a litany of California's ills, ranging from a recession-wracked economy to continuing budget deficits, and laid out an agenda of reforms whose enactment is about as likely as his pet porker's taking wing. | 01/07/10 12:17:16 By - Dan Walters

Commentary: Blackwater, Nisoor Square and the U.S. justice system

As 2010 opens, ricochets from the shooting deaths of 17 Iraqis in 2007 are again bouncing between Baghdad and Washington, following the abrupt halt to the U.S. criminal case against five Blackwater USA security guards accused of manslaughter in the shootings. In Iraq, calls for punishment of the Americans are coming from Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and from ordinary citizens. Most of all, they come from relatives of the 17 dead and the many wounded — none of whom, it appears, posed an armed threat on that tense September day in Baghdad's Nisoor Square. | 01/05/10 12:32:23 By -

Commentary: The success of AmericCorp

When the national service program AmeriCorps was established in 1993, it had its share of harsh critics. There were those who felt it was simply a feel-good move by the Clinton administration. Sixteen years later, AmeriCorps is regarded as a huge success and is heralded by many nonprofit, city and state agencies as a crucial supplement to their usually underfunded and understaffed programs. | 01/05/10 11:30:16 By -

Commentary: Some old memories add spice to new year

As the city slid into its darkest days over the last few weeks, I got a craving for something I haven't had since the holidays of my childhood: biscotti. Buttery, thin and warmed with anise, they always appeared around this time of year, carrying a flavor brought from Italy, the mysterious country my Nonna left behind when she came to America, the bride of a G.I. after the war. These biscotti were a New Year's party food, and my grandparents were New Year's party people. | 12/31/09 11:55:22 By - Julia O'Malley

Commentary: Solving the federal judicial selection problem

Writers have steadily criticized President Barack Obama's lower court nomination process for two months. These reports are strikingly similar. They express chagrin that the White House has nominated too slowly, draw facile comparisons with how many nominees President George W. Bush had submitted by this juncture, quote a source who laments Obama's lost opportunity to pack the courts with the kind of judges whom the source favors or simply claim that this has occurred without attribution and conclude by criticizing Obama. Based on the spate of recent, analogous stories, authors must believe that these accounts make good copy. One problem attends this reporting: It lacks substantiation. | 12/31/09 11:02:03 By - Carl Tobias

Commentary: A visit from St. Furlough

Twas the week after Christmas, And all through the town, A city or county official, Could hardly be found. The "closed" sign was hung, On Tenth Street with care, In hopes the next budget, Would be easier to bear. The employees were furloughed, To help with expenses, But visions of more layoffs, Wreaked havoc with their senses. | 12/30/09 16:03:40 By -

Commentary: Alaska's war on science embarrassing

Alaska's escalating war on science should be a grave concern to us all. On climate change, endangered species, predator control, and environmental impacts of industrial development, Alaska now has arguably the most anti-science government anywhere in the nation. | 12/30/09 16:14:21 By - Rick Steiner

Commentary: Kansas sexual predator law came with price

Kansas lawmakers have shown no enthusiasm for building a proposed $42.5 million, 90-bed expansion of the state's Sexual Predator Treatment Program at Larned State Hospital. And no wonder — with a $300 million-plus hole in the next state budget, spending even a dollar more on sex offenders seems like a really bad idea. In an election year, it also would be politically awkward to slash state funding for public schools, social services and prisons yet build nice new digs for sexual predators. | 12/30/09 16:32:06 By -

Commentary: Texting drivers more deadly than drunks

These days, our legal system takes drunken driving seriously. Get busted driving under the influence and you can expect a stiff fine, a suspended license and even some jail time. If driving while texting is twice as dangerous as driving under the influence, shouldn't our legal system start taking that risky habit seriously, too? | 12/29/09 17:19:36 By -

Commentary: Hold the claptrap on Tiger Woods and President Obama

If any voter truly believed Obama could banish racism, end two wars, pull the economy from recession, find every under- and unemployed person a job, solve global warming, calm Iran and arrange a romantic date with the wife every Friday night — will that Pollyanna voter please stand up? Science might develop a vaccine for your unstable condition. | 12/29/09 16:56:43 By - Mary Sanchez

Commentary: Airline security still has too many holes

Thanks to the courage and quick thinking of a few passengers, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab's attempt to bring down a U.S.-bound jetliner on Christmas Day failed. So did the security system that is supposed to protect the flying public. | 12/29/09 16:43:57 By -

Commentary: 'Defense' of Christmas isn't necessary

Politicians can do some pretty useless things, sometimes because they are clueless, sometimes because they are sincere but misguided, sometimes because the reality is that they have to play the game of politics or risk becoming irrelevant. I can't tell you in which of the categories above Rep. Henry Brown's House Resolution 951 to "recognize the importance of Christmas" falls. It has 72 Republican co-sponsors and one Democrat. I'll be generous and say Brown's move is a sincere but misguided attempt to ... to fix something that's not broken. | 12/21/09 14:41:13 By - Isaac Bailey

Commentary: Alaska is no place for Pacific chorus frogs

We don't care if they can do "Carol of the Bells." They don't belong here. Alaska's Department of Fish and Game has issued a severe order against the Pacific chorus frog, a little amphibian that apparently was tucked away in the branches of Christmas trees imported from Washington state. | 12/21/09 11:21:36 By -

Commentary: Time to pull the plug on health care 'reform'

Health care reform is on life support now, and it's time to consider pulling the plug and letting it die peacefully. It was a great idea, and there was and will remain a great need for the kind of radical reform that will pry the cold hands of Wall Street and the corporate boards from around the neck of medical care in our country. | 12/18/09 08:24:06 By - Joseph L. Galloway

Commentary: Diaz and Wynn should be confirmed for Fourth Circuit

When President Barack Obama assumed office, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit experienced openings in four of the tribunal's 15 judgeships. Thus, it was crucial that the administration promptly fill these vacancies. It is now vital that nominees for two of these vacancies — Judge Albert Diaz and Judge James Wynn — are approved promptly. | 12/17/09 14:07:44 By - Carl Tobias

Commentary: The war of xmas

This was going to be the year I officially declared myself a noncombatant in the Christmas war. Season of joy, goodwill toward men and all that. It's almost scary how many Christmases I've enjoyed in happy and naive complacency, blissfully unaware that familiar salutations like "Season's Greetings" and "Happy Holidays" — which, contrary to lamentations of recent years, have actually been around for a couple of centuries — were an insidious assault on my belief system. I suppose I am now morally obligated to make sure such phrases offend me profoundly. | 12/17/09 13:51:21 By - Dusty Nix

Commentary: Alberto Gonzales and those U.S. Attorney firings

A new interview in Esquire magazine with former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales makes a reader want to know what else he said. Titled "What I"ve Learned," the piece is presented strictly as quotes from Gonzales on controversies during his 31-month tenure as the nation's top lawyer, from the Geneva Conventions and Abu Ghraib photos to Washington politics and the removal of nine U.S. attorneys in 2006. | 12/15/09 14:49:50 By -

Commentary: In modern warfare, some old rules still apply

Has war been reinvented in Iraq and Afghanistan? Sometimes it seems so, with the confusion that has come with the instant communication offered by the Internet, YouTube and satellite television — along with the new arts of precision destruction via high-tech weapons like drones and GPS-guided weapons. | 12/15/09 12:48:25 By - Victor Davis Hanson

Commentary: 'Climategate' is a lesson in the politics of science

This just in — scientists are human too. Hacked e-mail correspondence among a small group of climate researchers demonstrates all the foibles and petty failings of the rest of us. The e-mails reflect poorly on those who wrote them. The scientists showed contempt for and antipathy toward global warming skeptics. Their zeal for their own research and belief in their own conclusions prompted them to discuss hiding data. However, an exhaustive review of the 1,073 e-mails by The Associated Press found no evidence of falsified data. | 12/15/09 11:28:25 By -

Commentary: in Nobel speech, Obama displays idealism with a hard edge

When President Obama rose to the podium to accept the Nobel Peace Prize, he took a decisive step away from pacifism and traveled a considerable distance to convince skeptics that he is not a naive idealist. Obama's speech, which is known as the Nobel Lecture, showed the evolution of a man tasked with leading the most powerful nation on Earth. | 12/13/09 06:09:33 By - Frida Ghitis

Commentary: Obama in Oslo

Just when it looks like Barack Obama is getting dragged under for the third time by angry domestic politics, he bounces back up — in Norway, of all places — and reminds us why Americans elected him in the first place. The president's remarks while accepting the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo on Thursday strengthened the case for giving it to him, though maybe not in ways expected by those who most applauded the decision. | 12/11/09 12:42:40 By -

Commentary: Elevating Judge Beverly Martin to the Eleventh Circuit

When President Barack Obama took the oath of office in January, the United States Courts of Appeals experienced vacancies in fourteen of their 179 judgeships. Therefore, it was critical that the new administration expeditiously fill these openings. One instructive example of these problems is the June 19 nomination of Georgia U.S. District Judge Beverly Martin to the Eleventh Circuit. It would be fitting for the Senate to approve Judge Martin this month because it marks the 6-month anniversary of her nomination. | 12/11/09 11:11:12 By - Carl Tobias

Commentary: More war, more marble markers at West Point

Last week a new President, Number 44, came here to West Point and with the 4,000 cadets of this institution as his backdrop announced he was escalating the war in Afghanistan, adding another 30,000 American troops to the nearly 70,000 already there. Then he jetted off to collect the Nobel Peace Prize. | 12/10/09 17:18:49 By - Joseph L, Galloway

Commentary: The GOP's family feud and purity tests

Much of what Ronald Reagan said remains gospel in GOP-rich Kansas. But the scramble over the state’s four openings in Congress next year already has laid waste to Reagan's 11th Commandment: "Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican." | 12/07/09 13:04:09 By -

Commentary: A small few are making big wartime sacrifices

President Obama has made his decision: He will send another 30,000 troops to Afghanistan. That will bring the total to roughly 100,000. Once again, this tiny minority of Americans — the professional military and their families and friends — will be asked to make huge sacrifices on behalf of the entire nation. For the rest of us, life will go on as normal. We will attend our loved ones' birthday parties, school plays and sporting events. We will have holidays together. We'll go to sleep at night without wondering whether we have talked to a husband or a wife, a father or a sister, for the last time. We'll be free to blissfully ignore the hardships our military and their families endure in our name. | 12/07/09 11:39:00 By -

Commentary: Lindsey Graham needs to stop flirting with bipartisanship

We archconservatives thought he was "one of ours." Yessir, ol' Lindsey Graham, who succeeded ol' Strom Thurmond in the United States Senate, seemed to have all the credentials: high ratings from the American Conservative Union (90 out of 100, a solid "A" most places) and to boot, he was one of the lead guys, when he was a House member, in trying to run Bill Clinton out of the White House with all that impeachment stuff. Big backer of John McCain for president. | 12/07/09 12:11:10 By - Jim Jenkins

Commentary: U.S., Brazil and OAS get failing grades for Honduras test

Brazil, the United States and the Organization of American States deserve a gold medal each for their awful handling of last Sunday's presidential elections in Honduras. | 12/07/09 12:10:50 By - Andres Oppenheimer

Commentary: 'Climategate' emails don't prove Earth isn't warming

Sorry to burst the balloons of global warming skeptics out there: Climategate is a dud. Sure, it's a catchy title, implying that a huge conspiracy surrounds the hundreds upon hundreds of e-mails that were reportedly hacked and recently released from the Climatic Research Unit of the University of East Anglia in England. But in reacting to the e-mails, some people have leaped to absurd conclusions. The first is that this incident "proves" climate change is not occurring. | 12/04/09 10:20:32 By -

Commentary: Palin just wants to be a star

Every one of us knows someone like this: They always find someone else to blame for their own mistakes or shortcomings and never take responsibility for their own actions. Sarah Palin's new book is a classic study in this form of self-delusion. It is never attractive when we see it in co-workers, for instance. It is even more distasteful when we see it in public figures. | 12/04/09 12:01:58 By - Paul Fuhs

Commentary: Obama's ambitious goals for Afghanistan

Saying that fighting extremism in Afghanistan is vital to American national security, President Barack Obama on Tuesday announced the rapid deployment of 30,000 additional U.S. troops. But what mattered most in the president's nationally televised speech from West Point was that he clearly defined the mission and the exit strategy for a conflict that he rightly described as having drifted for the past several years. | 12/02/09 14:13:54 By -

Commentary: Is black America's honeymoon with the Castros over?

In a landmark "Statement of Conscience by African Americans," 60 prominent black American scholars, artists and professionals have condemned the Cuban regime's apparent crackdown on the country's budding civil rights movement. Traditionally, African-Americans have sided with the Castro regime and unilaterally condemned the U.S. which, in the past, explicitly sought to topple the Cuban government. But this first public rebuke of Castro's racial policies may very well indicate a tide change and a more balanced attitude. | 12/02/09 01:24:12 By - Carlos Moore

Commentary: Playing politics with terrorism makes us all losers

Dana Perino, who served as White House press secretary for President George W. Bush and has been nominated by President Obama to serve on the Broadcasting Board of Governors, said something on Fox News recently that perked up the ears of those on the left. "We did not have a terrorist attack on our country during President Bush's term," she said while asking why the Obama administration won't call the Fort Hood massacre terrorism. Perino said she wasn't playing politics, which is good, because it would be easy for Bush critics to do the same thing. | 12/01/09 06:12:46 By - Isaac Bailey

Commentary: Filling lower federal court openings

On Monday, when United States District Judge Dale Kimball of Utah assumes senior status, a form of semi-retirement, the federal judiciary will pass a critical milestone. Judge Kimball's assumption of senior status will mean that the federal courts presently experience 98 vacancies out of the 858 appellate and district court judgeships. President Barack Obama must swiftly nominate, and the Senate must promptly confirm, appeals and district court judges, so that the federal judiciary will be at full capacity. | 11/30/09 06:01:42 By - Carl Tobias

Commentary: It’s hard to get into the holiday spirit

It's traditional to count our blessings at this time of year, but given the general state of affairs and Washington's whole lot of talk and no action, it's hard to get into the holiday spirit. | 11/25/09 18:17:33 By - Joseph L. Galloway

Commentary: Media climate made Sparkman's hoax easy

In a media environment where the public seems to prefer ideology, opinion, speculation and outrage over fact and reason, Bill Sparkman seemed to think he could find plenty of suckers. He was right. Authorities said Tuesday that their investigations had determined the part-time Clay County census worker committed suicide in an elaborate ruse to cash in two life insurance policies worth $600,000. | 11/25/09 13:10:36 By - Tom Eblen

Commentary: Thought police aren't needed in climate change efforts

A formidable majority of atmospheric scientists believe that planet Earth is slowly heating up and that human industry bears much of the blame. That's good reason to worry about global warming and do something to stop it. | 11/25/09 11:26:14 By -

Commentary: America deserves a better debate about overhauling health care

Some Republicans in Congress have characterized health care reform proposals put forward by Democrats as everything from socialized medicine to a budget back-breaker to the end of the Republic. Go back 40-plus years, and one can read these same arguments. There was under President Lyndon Johnson a proposal to provide a health-insurance safety net for older Americans, so they would not die from lack of care or an inability to pay for what they needed to keep them alive. | 11/24/09 13:39:42 By -

Commentary: So much for drug companies' promises

Is the support of the pharmaceutical industry needed for Congress to pass health care reform? Or is the price of that support too high for the people the reform package is trying to help? Those questions took on new urgency with the release of an AARP study finding that drug makers had raised the wholesale price of brand-name drugs by 9%, or $10 billion, in the past year. That's the biggest price increase in 17 years. | 11/24/09 11:25:25 By -

Commentary: Bush library aims to be 'a vital hub of critical thought'

The country's 13th presidential library operated by the National Archives and Records Administration is expected to be completed in 2013, and it will be in Texas — home to more such libraries than any other state. Plans for the George W. Bush Presidential Center, to be located on the Southern Methodist University campus, were unveiled in ceremonies last week. | 11/23/09 14:07:39 By -

Commentary: Why not throw the whole Constitution out while we're at it?

I didn't know we had so many scared conservative leaders. There are a fair number of scared liberal ones as well, given the rhetoric from Washington, Columbia and New York. But I thought conservative leaders and pundits were the "Bring it on!" types who crave confrontations with terrorists. | 11/23/09 06:16:50 By - Issac Bailey

Commentary: Palin is a bellwether for celebrity culture

Sarah Palin, a one-time beauty queen, a mother of five, the Republican candidate for vice president in 2008, and the former governor of Alaska, has a new incarnation: author. But, as the country continues to be fascinated with Ms. Palin, here is what continues to fascinate Alaskans: how a woman who takes pride in calling herself a homemaker from Wasilla brought celebrity culture to the Last Frontier. Ms. Palin exposed Alaskans to a larger universe. We learned how celebrity is created through images, words, legends and, in a few cases, outright fabrication. | 11/19/09 11:55:27 By - Michael Carey

Commentary: Hutchison needs to pick her fight

Based on the rhetoric coming from the senior senator from Texas over the past couple of weeks, you might think she was preparing to defend the Alamo itself. U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, in deciding to remain in the upper house of Congress while she runs for governor, has said she has to do what is best for Texas by fighting to the last stand against some pretty evil forces. The truth is Hutchison is in a high-stakes political game and is hedging her bets. | 11/18/09 14:02:56 By - Bob Ray Sanders

Commentary: 'Big Mac' is another hero in Fort Hood assault

For a bunch of people at Fort Hood, being shielded by Big Mac — U.S. Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Alonzo Lunsford — was almost their last memory. Period. Lunsford shielded some fellow soldiers from one of their co-workers who turned on his own in a deadly massacre. | 11/17/09 13:44:38 By - Barry Saunders

Commentary: Confirming Judge Hamilton for the Seventh Circuit

When Barack Obama became President in January, the United States Courts of Appeals experienced openings in fourteen of their 179 judgeships. The new administration realized that swiftly filling these openings was critical and applied specific measures to facilitate appointments, vowing to end the "confirmation wars" that have plagued selection. Thus, President Obama exercised special care to insure that his first nominee, U.S. District Judge David Hamilton of Indiana, was extremely qualified. Despite these efforts, numerous Senate Republicans have opposed Judge Hamilton. It is crucial that the Senate confirm Judge Hamilton on Tuesday, as this date is the eight-month anniversary of his nomination. | 11/16/09 14:13:06 By - Carl Tobias

Commentary: U.S. legal system is capable of trying 9-11 suspects

The American system of justice has won an important vote of confidence from the Obama administration, signaling an overdue return to due process and the rule of law. By deciding to move the trials of five Guantanamo detainees accused of orchestrating the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to New York City for trial in a civilian court, the administration reaffirmed confidence in a system of justice that has repeatedly shown itself capable of handling terrorism cases. | 11/16/09 12:57:56 By -

Commentary: Here's how the GOP plans to defeat health care reform

Something as sweeping as health care reform, we're being told, should have bipartisan support. Well, no kidding. Of course health care reform should have bipartisan support — just as so many of our Republican congressmen are insisting. As they work feverishly to keep any trace of bipartisanship from seeping into the vote counts. | 11/16/09 06:13:35 By - Barbara Shelly

Commentary: Mr. President, take your time on Afghanistan

President Barack Obama has yet to decide where we're going and what we're doing in Afghanistan, but if the flood of leaks this week is any indicator, he at least has decided what he isn't going to do. | 11/13/09 18:44:46 By - Joseph L. Galloway

Commentary: Seniors should question ads warning of Medicare 'cuts'

The word "cut" is one of the most slippery and often-abused words in American political discourse. When there's talk about government budgets, "cut" is used to mean "any change that stops the rate of growth in whatever program we're talking about." So when the right-wing advocacy group The 60-Plus Association attacks the pending health reform by saying it will "cut" Medicare, it's not a blatant lie. Their attack ad, airing in Alaska and other states, is just a slippery propaganda tactic to scare seniors and get them to oppose health care reform. | 11/13/09 13:32:00 By -

Commentary: Some myths about Afghanistan

As President Obama decides whether to send more troops to Afghanistan, we should remember that most of the conventional pessimism about Afghanistan is only half-truth. | 11/11/09 11:51:53 By - Victor Davis Hanson

Commentary: Sen. Coburn single-handedly stops bill to help veterans

Alaska Sen. Mark Begich and two of his colleagues on Monday called on "Dr. No" to allow a Senate vote to help some of our seriously wounded veterans and their families. "Dr. No" is Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., a budget hawk who has exercised his senator's prerogative to place a hold on the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2009. | 11/11/09 11:25:47 By -

Commentary: Fall of Berlin Wall lead to more complexities

When the Berlin Wall fell, it brought an end to a titanic struggle, one that terrified but also defined and shaped us. The Soviet Union and the United States were the ultimate hero/villain. On one of the most significant anniversaries of the last half century, it's worth celebrating the freedoms that opened to millions of East Germans. The fall of the wall led to once-unimaginable opportunities throughout the old Soviet world.

But it's also worth listening to how the end of one threat brought an unexpected new one to some. | 11/09/09 13:32:28 By -

Commentary: We must not jump to conclusions in Fort Hood tragedy

A tragedy as stunning as Thursday’s mass killings at Fort Hood evokes extreme emotions. Perspective is difficult — but absolutely necessary to understanding what happened and its implications. The rush of information after 13 people were shot to death at the U.S. Army base was at once extensive, incomplete and occasionally wrong. | 11/09/09 11:14:27 By -

Commentary: Fort Hood policewoman 'erased a lot of prejudice'

Fort Hood police Sgt. Kimberly Munley has kicked open a new door. At 5-foot-2, Munley is now a heroic giant, one of the officers who confronted an Army psychiatrist Thursday, ending a bloodbath at Fort Hood. In doing so, Munley has 'erased a lot of prejudice' toward female officers. | 11/09/09 11:00:49 By - Bud Kennedy

Commentary: It’s time again to count the cost of freedom

Today in this nation of 300 million, fewer than 1 percent wear the uniform, and, with their families, bear all the burdens and sacrifice of protecting and defending the rest of us who give little thought to those who pay the price for our freedom. | 11/06/09 16:26:51 By - Joe Galloway

Commentary: Goldman Sachs saga shows unregulated market is a jungle

So-called sophisticated investors. Purchase of favorable ratings on investments. Cayman Islands for escape from federal regulation. Bets on a housing collapse. Trolling for suckers. If anyone thinks our financial industry doesn't need tougher regulation, just check out the McClatchy newspaper series on the Goldman Sachs Group, a bank holding company. Here was an iconic Wall Street investment house, a heavyweight player with a history of Washington connections, misleading investors here and abroad, leaving ruin in its wake and tarnishing its own name. | 11/04/09 09:31:47 By -

Commentary: Allen ran roughshod over Alaska politics

Bill Allen said what you expect from a man standing before a judge at sentencing. I made mistakes, I'm sorry, I know I will be punished. Remember the good I did. I followed Allen's public career for more than 20 years. He was driven by his appetite for money and power and played by his own rules, indifferent to public opinion. Hypocrisy was foreign to him; he was a man who never learned pretense. | 11/03/09 11:00:04 By - Michael Carey

Commentary: Schwarzenegger's legacy may be determined in last months in office

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of the least popular governors in California history. His relationships with the Democrats who control the Legislature are lousy, and his rapport with his fellow Republicans is probably worse. He is under constant attack from interest groups on the left and the right, and his policy agenda has been skunked in two special elections in the past four years. | 10/30/09 13:30:10 By - Daniel Weintraub

Commentary: Life's good things were free for Easley

Free stuff. Lots of free stuff. North Carolina's former Gov. Mike Easley lived like a sweepstakes winner during his eight-year term, according to testimony in a hearing this week in Raleigh. He got all these freebies: plane trips, home repairs, a fishing trip to Florida. | 10/29/09 14:09:59 By - Mark Washburn

Commentary: Military spending bill good for Alaska, U.S.

The defense funding bill President Obama just signed will do some helpful things for the country as a whole and Alaskans in particular. It fixes the snafu that left two dozen WWII-era veterans of the Alaska Territorial Guard with lower retirement payments than they deserved. It took a lot of work by Senators Mark Begich and Lisa Murkowski to overcome perplexing resistance from the Obama administration on that one. | 10/29/09 11:48:16 By -

Commentary: When pilots act unprofessionally

Maybe we should be glad they weren't texting while flying. But how comforting is it to learn that two Northwest Airlines pilots flew right by their destination last week because they were on their laptops messing with their schedules? Somehow, it seems this is not what flight attendants mean when they warn that electronic devices will interfere with communications. | 10/28/09 13:52:50 By -

Commentary: Abortion opponents must speak out against extremist fringe

The murder of George Tiller was appalling on its own. But now Dennis Roeder, the man accused of shooting the physician point-blank in his church, is being embraced by a phalanx of fellow extremists. | 10/28/09 11:19:10 By -

Commentary: Gays need protection through hate crime laws

Gay people are society's most rejected minority. The most convincing proof is that many parents are capable of abhorring and abusing their gay child simply because that child was born that way. Thus, it should come as no surprise that hate crimes against gays receive the least attention. We have always been the last ones to receive protection from the law — if ever. | 10/27/09 12:52:22 By - Daniel Shoer-Roth

Commentary: Sacramento sheriff has interesting take on immigration

Sacramento Police Chief Rick Braziel is not an immigration rights advocate. He supports maintaining strong borders. And he has no sympathy for undocumented felons. But based on nearly 30 years as a cop, Braziel believes that confusing immigration laws are hindering cops and helping criminals. | 10/26/09 11:59:48 By - Marcos Breton

Commentary: Hope gives way to 'No, We Can't'

You may remember all those Obama campaign cheerleaders for change chanting, "Yes we can!" during last year's campaign events. This year, in the 10th month of his presidency, it doesn't really seem that they can, or that he can. Nothing much has changed except the size of the federal budget deficit and the National Debt, both swelling and swollen by the humongous bailout of Wall Street and the big banking corporations. | 10/22/09 15:28:24 By - Joseph L. Galloway

Commentary: 'Don't ask, don't tell' must go

With the "don't ask, don't tell" law in place, forbidding homosexuals in the military from disclosing their sexual orientation, the U.S. has a national policy that codifies discrimination. It is a law that is out-of-step with the times and now with public opinion. | 10/22/09 13:59:07 By -

Commentary: The difference between just money and crazy money

There's just money, and then there's crazy money. Let's do crazy money first. Crazy money is what you get on a game show for knowing that mountain range in Bolivia. Crazy money is what goes to some NFL defensive ends. Crazy money is what happened in the final hours of the Merrill Lynch deal when Bank of America agreed to buy out the Wall Street brokerage. | 10/22/09 13:14:11 By - Mark Washburn

Commentary: Interracial marriage doesn't harm children

It has been a while since I last heard anyone use the future welfare of the progeny of mixed-race couples as an excuse to prohibit or block those couples' marriages. In fact, I thought having parents from different cultures or races had been proven to be no more an indicator of a child's success or failure than if those parents were Democrats or Republicans. But apparently, Keith Bardwell, justice of the peace in Tangipahoa Parish, La., knows something I don't know. | 10/22/09 11:48:44 By - Merlene Davis

Commentary: Sanford's car stop says a lot about S.C. law enforcement

The case of the governor's SLED agent/driver and the Highway Patrol trooper is worth lingering over, not because of what it tells us about Mark Sanford but because of what it tells us about law enforcement in South Carolina. | 10/21/09 14:11:26 By - Cindi Ross Scoppe

Commentary: Balloon boy's honesty deflates parents' tale

If Richard and Mayumi Heene wanted TV exposure, as authorities allege, they've certainly succeeded. But the family isn't experiencing the thrill of a reality show -- something the parents had reportedly been pursuing. | 10/21/09 05:03:28 By -

Commentary: Second Circuit Appeals Court openings need to be filled

The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals has vacancies in four of its thirteen authorized judgeships. Operating without nearly 25 percent of the tribunal's judicial complement frustrates expeditious, inexpensive and equitable disposition of appeals. Thus, President Obama should promptly nominate, and the Senate must swiftly confirm, outstanding judges to all four openings. | 10/20/09 11:35:35 By - Carl Tobias

Commentary: Close loopholes on ammo purchases

There have long been laws on the books that require identity checks and waiting periods for purchasers of guns, but virtually no restrictions govern purchases of ammunition. It's a regulatory oversight that makes our communities less safe. | 10/19/09 12:39:19 By -

Commentary: Snitching is doing the right thing

I don't know Michael Brewer, but I can tell you that he is an upstanding kid because even though fearful, he did the right thing. Brewer, 15, was doused in rubbing alcohol Monday afternoon near his Deerfield Beach neighborhood by one classmate and then set ablaze by another -- both miscreants part of a group of five who allegedly surrounded Brewer during the immolation so he couldn't escape. Police say the accused wanted to punish Brewer because one of them was arrested after Brewer reported the attempted theft of his father's bike. | 10/16/09 12:27:36 By - James Burnett

Commentary: Learning a lesson from Capt. Sully

Working in the news business, I must admit there are stories I get tired of. And then there are the stories I can't get enough of. One such story is that of Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenburger, the heroic pilot of US Airways flight 1549 who successfully landed on the Hudson River on Jan. 15 after a flock of geese caused both engines to fail. | 10/16/09 11:56:40 By - Harold Goodridge

Commentary: The Southern politeness facade

Bless their hearts.

That's about all I can say to whoever came up with the idea in the new book "Miracle on the Hudson" -- the idea being that the passengers handled the crash with grace because most of them are Southerners. | 10/15/09 13:39:06 By - Tommy Tomlinson

Commentary: Obama critics try scoring cheap political points with Nobel Peace Prize

We'd rather have the world hating and despising us instead of extending olive branches. One week, critics of President Obama cheered and gloated that "the world rejected Obama" when we missed out on the 2016 summer Olympics. The next, the president is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, and the people who cheered "the world rejected Obama" are offended a prominent world body embraced him. | 10/13/09 14:19:54 By - Isaac Bailey

Commentary: Congress must quickly address ethics complaints

Reports that House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel of New York leases four rent-controlled apartments in his district and uses one of those units as a campaign office space first surfaced in July of last year. It was news because this is a possible violation of local housing rules. | 10/13/09 12:48:06 By -

Commentary: I'll take your H1N1 shot

I'm not going to question the decisions being made by some parents and health care workers to forgo swine flu vaccinations. All I'd like to ask these Opt-Out Americans is this: Can I have your place in line? Being a baby boomer, I grew up loving immunizations. I was happy –- proud even –- to be a little soldier in the war on communicable disease. I helped take on polio one sugar cube at a time. | 10/12/09 10:28:43 By - Peter Callaghan

Commentary: Health care as a moral issue --Calling Dr. Salk

The next time you see an expensive ad for the latest pharmaceutical innovation, think of this conversation between famed broadcaster, Edward R. Murrow and Dr. Jonas Salk, inventor of the polio vaccine. Murrow asked, ‘"Who owns the patent on this vaccine?’" Salk answered, "Well, the people, I would say. There is no patent. Could you patent the sun?"

What? No considerations about market shares, billion dollar profits, high-profile media blitzes? Such naivete. | 10/12/09 06:15:51 By - William S. Meyer, MSW

Commentary: Fresno, don't believe the Daily Beast's hype

Hello, idiots of Fresno. As you've probably heard by now, our fair city finished dead last on a list ranking the smartest cities in America released this week by The Daily Beast. For those who missed it, The Daily Beast ranked the 55 most populated cities in the country, by their collective brainpower. Fresno and its metro area finished at 55 with a collective IQ of 3. By contrast, smarty-pants winners Raleigh-Durham had a 170 IQ. | 10/09/09 11:25:05 By - Mike Osegueda

Commentary: Medicare Advantage provide no advantages to Alaskans

The dark side of Medicare Advantage is that the government spends about 14 percent more per senior citizen than for those enrolled in traditional Medicare, which is run directly by the federal government. That's a fairly recent development that should be reversed. A GAO study of 2007 Medicare Advantage plans found that most of the plans allocate less than 85 percent of revenues to medical expenses, with the rest going to administration, marketing, sales and profit. Shifting money out of Medicare Advantage is a nearly painless way to help pay for health care reform. For Alaskans it won't hurt a bit. | 10/09/09 11:15:02 By -

Commentary: Medicare subsidy costs are indefensible

How to pay for it all? That remains a vexing challenge for Congress in expanding health care coverage to all Americans. A large part of the solution must involve wringing savings from within the existing system. And some cost savings can come from Medicare, the public insurance program for those over age 65. One fruitful area is to provide a level playing field between traditional Medicare and private plans that have participated in Medicare since 1985. | 10/08/09 11:31:44 By -

Commentary: Obama disappoints on media shield law

The Obama administration's efforts to impede Senate approval of a law designed to protect reporters from punishment if they refuse to divulge confidential sources are both surprising and utterly disappointing. Now that he's the decider, Mr. Obama has developed cold feet. Last week, he let lawmakers know that he wanted the bill changed in a way that would cripple key provisions on when and how to invoke protections for reporters and their sources. This would gut the essential provisions of the proposed law. | 10/06/09 11:33:59 By -

Commentary: Medical marijuana — Still hazy after all these years

Thirteen years after California voters approved medical marijuana, we seem to be increasingly confused over how it should be sold — or if it is even legal. Until recently, medical marijuana dispensaries were rare. But two events triggered an explosion of outlets: state Attorney General Jerry Brown issued guidelines for sales of the drug last year, and the Obama administration said it wouldn't prosecute individuals complying with state medical marijuana laws. | 10/05/09 12:47:13 By - Bill McEwen

Commentary: ESPN and exploitation under those Friday night lights

You might think of them as quaint symbols of traditional Americana: kids playing the game of football for their high school, classmates, parents, coaches, their town, even for the old codgers who misremember their own exploits on those playing fields.

You might think of them that way. ESPN thinks of them as cheap programming. | 10/02/09 13:59:25 By - Fred Grimm

Commentary: Nothing funny about Obama poll on Facebook

Forgive me if I don't think talk of presidential assassinations is funny. Not even on Facebook. So I'm glad the U.S. Secret Service investigated the online survey that asked whether people thought President Obama should be assassinated. They've determined it was a juvenile mistake. But assassination threats against a president are serious business. Even those who promote it in jest need to learn that lesson. | 10/02/09 13:42:17 By - Fannie Flono

Commentary: Too much fuss made over Obama's Olympic assistance

Critics are carping that President Barack Obama's brief trip to Denmark to bolster Chicago's bid for the 2016 Olympic Games will detract from his abilities to deal with health care reform, wage war in Afghanistan and handle other crises. Much of this criticism comes from GOP leaders who, last time we checked, hate Obama's proposed health care changes. | 10/01/09 14:22:00 By -

Commentary: More hypocrisy from Sanford

Being a hypocrite is not (or at least should not be) an impeachable offense. And it almost seems like piling on to note that Gov. Mark Sanford has demonstrated himself to be a first-rate hypocrite. | 10/01/09 06:13:04 By -

Commentary: McConnell jumps to Humana's defense

The health care debate sparked an uncharacteristic display of passion by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell last week, according to national news accounts. Was the normally unruffled McConnell upset because 205,000 more Kentuckians lack health insurance now than in 1999? No. McConnell was steamed (to use the New York Times' phrase) because his hometown insurance giant, Humana, was ordered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to cease sending mailers to its Medicare customers warning of benefit cuts if Congress enacts proposed health care reforms. | 09/30/09 13:27:33 By -

Commentary: California, Congress and comprehensive judgeship legislation

This week, the United States Senate Judiciary Committee has scheduled a hearing on Senate Bill 1653 to authorize the establishment of 63 new appeals and trial court judgeships. Congress last enacted a thorough judgeships statute in 1990, and federal court dockets — especially in California — have dramatically increased since then. Thus, legislators must expeditiously pass the measure, so that the federal courts may promptly, economically and fairly resolve mounting caseloads. | 09/30/09 11:46:22 By - Carl Tobias

Commentary: Web would benefit from less anonymity among users

Anonymous speech has a revered place in U.S. traditions. Among the most enduring documents of American political thought are the 1787 Federalist Papers urging ratification of the Constitution, which were written by luminaries using pseudonyms. News organizations will sometimes use anonymous sources that provide valuable information that they might never furnish unless they knew they'd be safe from reprisal. However, anonymous posters on Web sites are nothing like confidential sources and shouldn't be afford the same levels of protection. | 09/29/09 13:38:50 By - Edward Wasserman

Commentary: Afghanistan: Heads I win; tails you lose, Mr. President

Suddenly the heat is on President Barack Obama to decide, right now, whether to heed his military commanders' appeal for another big surge of American troops or deal with the possibility of defeat within a year in Afghanistan. | 09/25/09 11:52:22 By - Joseph L. Galloway

Commentary: GOP Rep. Myrick must stop false comments on health care

When Rep. Sue Myrick, R-N.C., went on the radio Saturday to warn listeners against health care proposals before Congress, she referred to her own breast cancer experience. She surely left many listeners believing government-run health care was being proposed. That was deliberately misleading — or shamefully misinformed. | 09/25/09 06:10:07 By -

Commentary: Hannity gets it wrong on California water woes

Sean Hannity came to the San Joaquin Valley a few days ago and did what he does best. He exaggerated, distorted and turned a complex situation into a hysterical rant.

But I'll give the Fox News right-wing shouter this: citing all the wrong reasons, he unintentionally fingered the right culprit for the economic disaster unfolding on the Valley's west side and in Northern California. | 09/21/09 12:40:54 By - Bill McEwan

Commentary: System fails a wounded warrior

Soldier John Mayo came home from the war in Iraq mentally ill with post-traumatic stress disorder, and was heavily medicated with sleeping pills, anti-anxiety drugs and antidepressants. In that terribly mixed-up mental state, he got caught shoplifting from the Elmendorf Base Exchange. But he took a plea bargain, got a less-than-honorable discharge and lost his military medical benefits. He has been dumped onto the street, with no treatment for the mental wounds he suffered while serving in Iraq. That's not right. | 09/21/09 11:53:50 By -

Commentary: Congress is wasting time on Constitution amendment

There they go again, those federal government big-footers, dictating what America's children will be indoctrinated with as a price of attending public school. This time, they want every high school senior to be taught the U.S. Constitution. Are they kidding? | 09/17/09 14:49:08 By -

Commentary: Five Fourth Circuit Court openings need to be filled

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit Chief Judge Karen Williams recently retired, citing serious illness. The Fourth Circuit, long considered the nation's most ideologically conservative appeals court, will keenly feel the loss of the experienced, respected jurist, who was the tribunal's first female judge, was serving as its chief judge and was often mentioned as a Supreme Court nominee. | 09/15/09 06:09:12 By - Carl Tobias

Commentary: Family recalls their N.Y. firefighter son's death on 9-11

A son dies, pictures stay up on his parents' walls. A son dies in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, more pictures go up.

The pictures are up in a Rock Hill living room, hundreds of miles from where the Marriott Hotel stood next to the World Trade Center. The place where Peter Vega — "Petie" to everybody on his block in Brooklyn, and "Big Head" to his buddies because he sure had a dome so large he needed a special helmet — died. | 09/11/09 14:09:37 By - Andrew Dys

Commentary: Personal responsibility is a good message for adults too

With all of the public attention focused on President Barack Obama's speech to the nation's schoolchildren, I had to wonder: Did the adults learn anything?

Obama urged kids to study hard and not give up, even if they don't like some classes or things are tough at home. He reminded students that each of them has special abilities and that it's their responsibility to develop them. | 09/11/09 01:05:18 By - Tom Eblen

Commentary: Obama faces decision time in Afghanistan

During the presidential campaign, Barack Obama called Afghanistan a "war of necessity." Now we'll see if he means it.

He faces a pivotal decision. Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, has turned in a report calling for a shift in strategy, one that implicitly requires significantly more troops. The mission, says McChrystal, is protecting the population; the war can’t be won solely by offensive operations against the enemy. | 09/11/09 06:05:48 By - E. Thomas McClanahan

Commentary: There's too much at stake in Afghanistan

Eight years ago today, the United States was at peace. The next day that all changed, when hijackers with box cutters and an extremist Islamic agenda caused the crashes of four airliners and the deaths of nearly 3,000. For those who lost loved ones because of that day, including survivors of the 33 responders to the World Trade Center who have since committed suicide, the pain is now familiar but no less potent. | 09/10/09 12:53:22 By -

Commentary: Getting 'off the grid' isn't easy to do

Back in May, I flew to Los Angeles. My cellphone did not.

I left it in the car, a fact I only discovered as I was lining up at security. Had I found myself standing there in my underdrawers, I don't think I'd have felt more naked. There was this panicky sense of isolation, this disconcerting feeling of being cut off. Whenever I confessed my plight, I got looks of stark pity like you'd give someone with a terminal disease. It was a very long five days. | 09/08/09 14:08:12 By - Leonard Pitts Jr.

Commentary: Boycotting Obama's message teaches a bad lesson

It used to be that Americans would crowd around their radios and TVs to hear "their" president. It wasn't so long ago that the first President Bush or President Ronald Reagan addressed American school kids. Even if you didn't vote for the man — or you disagree with his policies — he is a symbol of our enduring democracy. The seal of the United States reads: "E pluribus unum," Latin for "Out of many, one." | 09/08/09 13:00:26 By - Marcos Breton

Commentary: Time for Congress to get to work

As Congress reconvenes today and begins again to consider health care reform, its members, including several leaders from California, must get back to basics. From Rep. Dennis Cardoza, of Merced, to Rep. George Radanovich, of Mariposa, and even House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, of San Francisco — they need to tune out the rhetoric and tune in to the real problems of the American people. | 09/08/09 12:27:29 By -

Commentary: Over-reacting to Obama's address is uncalled for

President Barack Obama will speak from a Virginia high school on Tuesday. He will urge American kids across the nation to stay in school. Learn, strive, be better citizens. Make better lives for yourselves, families and neighbors. Well, sound the alarm! Obama is going to invade our schools! Like Hitler! Or is it Stalin? Che? The devil? | 09/08/09 12:11:54 By -

Commentary: Nothing sinister about Obama's message to kids

The president of the United States will urge the nation's youth to work hard in school, set educational goals and take responsibility for their learning. Unless you're getting a paycheck from the Republican Party or for trashing Barack Obama, there's no reason to see anything sinister about this. | 09/04/09 13:53:58 By -

Commentary: Another Texas secessionist is getting GOP votes

If any Texas Republicans had never heard of Larry Kilgore, they probably have now. Kilgore, 44, of Mansfield, is an anti-abortion activist and perennial Republican candidate. Until Gov. Rick Perry piped up, he was the only candidate talking about Texas seceding from the United States. | 09/03/09 11:59:19 By - Bud Kennedy

Commentary: Cheney needs to get off the warpath

It is, to put it mildly, disturbing that former Vice President Dick Cheney has continued his attacks on the Obama administration and has invoked national security as the reason. Does Cheney actually believe that Obama does not care as much about the security of this country as did he and President George W. Bush? Does he think the president would put Americans in danger intentionally? | 09/02/09 06:17:50 By -

Commentary: America's short attention span

Saturday was an anniversary of sorts. It was four years ago that Hurricane Katrina, the feared monster of lore and accurate prediction, roared as a Category 3 storm from the Gulf of Mexico into the heart of New Orleans, La. The rest is history, and that's the way Americans like it. | 08/31/09 13:21:10 By - Charles E. Richardson

Commentary: Health care debate shows Democrats can't lead

The sad truth is that the Democrats can't govern even when they have all the marbles in their pockets. It doesn't appear that they even know how to fight back when the stakes were never higher. | 08/21/09 17:38:04 By - Joseph L. Galloway

Commentary: A Republican about face on end-of-life counseling

"Death panel" fear-mongers are too late. The much-maligned end-of-life counseling to encourage advance directives has been paid for by Medicare since 2005. The end-of-life discussion, previously optional, became mandatory Jan. 1. Among the mandate's biggest champions were Republicans who now disavow their involvement. | 08/21/09 14:12:14 By -

Commentary: A look at universal health care

We need health care reform. Period.

Any time working American citizens cannot afford insurance, any time providing insurance can eat up the profits of small businesses and any time pre-existing medical conditions can send insurance premiums into the stratosphere, we need to take a closer look at our health care system. | 08/21/09 08:45:12 By - Merlene Davis

Commentary: Afraid of 'socialized' medicine? We've had it for decades

There's a fascinating audio clip on YouTube. It's from a 1961 phonograph record in which a politically ambitious entertainer named Ronald Reagan tries his best to scare people about "socialized medicine." | 08/21/09 07:49:36 By - Tom Eblen

Commentary: A pollster's view of Obama's health care reform missteps

The once invincible Barack Obama finds himself on the defensive — facing waning support for health care reform. So what happened? Obama misread the lesson from Bill Clinton's failed reform effort. The problem for health care reform has never been political, it's about how to effectively communicate the benefits of reform to the American public. Neither Clinton nor Obama did that. | 08/21/09 06:11:19 By - Clifford Young and Mark Burles

Commentary: 'Death panels' hoax shouldn't block a sensible reform provision

There are no "death panels" in the proposed legislation to overhaul the healthcare system. HR 3200, the main proposal in the U.S. House, makes periodic, voluntary end-of-life discussions with your doctor a covered expense under Medicare (Sec. 1233). In truth, Republicans supported such discussions in Medicare proposals when George W. Bush was president. | 08/20/09 12:13:19 By -

Commentary: Anchorage gay-rights fight reveals a generational divide

The Assembly's trepidation, the mayor's wrong-headed veto, and even the cultural split over extending equal rights protections to gay and lesbian people can be seen as much about generational differences as it is about ideology. | 08/19/09 19:54:12 By - Julia O'Malley

Commentary: Sanford has a long way to go to make amends

No one should be surprised that practically every move Gov. Mark Sanford ever made — or will make — in administering the duties of his office is being probed and prodded. For better or worse, that's what happens when trust is broken. | 08/17/09 13:52:47 By - Warren Bolton

Commentary: Ignore the vitriol in health care reform debate

What's happened to the debate over health care reform? Why are some people so angry? Do they actually believe that health care reform will include "death panels" to refuse care to the elderly and disabled? Do people who rail against "socialized" medicine realize that we already have government-run programs, most notably in the form of Medicare? How many seniors — despite the problems we have in Alaska — want to give up Medicare because it's "socialist"? Are people really happy with the status quo: the escalating costs and a system that rations care depending on the quality of the coverage you, or your employer, can afford, the fine print in your policy and the availability of doctors and nurses? | 08/17/09 11:19:29 By - The Anchorage Daily News

Commentary: Factoring in Rove

President Bush's political advisor appears to have had excessive influence on the infamous dismissal of U.S. attorneys. What's filtering out from congressional investigations into the firing of several United States attorneys in 2006 by the Bush administration isn't exactly supporting the long-held contention of administration officials that the firings were not political. | 08/14/09 11:44:00 By - The (Raleigh) News & Observer

Commentary: Woodstock gave peace a chance

On Saturday, it will be 40 years since 400,000 hippies descended on Max Yasgur's dairy farm for a concert. Forty years later, a faint patina of absurdity attaches to those days. One watches archival footage of young people groping and grooving and getting stoned in the mud with the same faintly horrified fascination one watches young people of earlier years dancing the jitterbug or swallowing goldfish. It seems quaint — something foolish and long ago. | 08/14/09 06:18:13 By - Leonard Pitts, Jr.

Commentary: California's mountain of debt

What, one might ask, is the appropriate metaphor for California's convoluted budgetary situation? Would be it be Enron, which cooked its books to fool investors and lenders? Perhaps a Third World country whose rulers run up a mountain of debt while squandering revenues? Or both? | 08/13/09 11:55:12 By - Dan Walters

Commentary: Uproar over U.S. 'bases' in Colombia is phony

Venezuela's Hugo Chávez, never one to let facts get in his way, is stoking another anti-American controversy among his neighbors. This one involves non-existent U.S. military "bases" in Colombia. | 08/13/09 00:06:00 By - Miami Herald

Commentary: Shriver leaves a great Kennedy legacy

In a family that has included a president, three senators and untold numbers of political movers and shakers, Eunice Kennedy Shriver may well be remembered as the most consequential of Joseph P. Kennedy and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy's nine children. | 08/12/09 11:22:46 By - Sacramento Bee

Commentary: Sen. Martinez's resignation disappointing

By the time Sen. Mel Martinez announced late last year that he would not stand for reelection, it was clear that he had lost his appetite for the job. There is no shame in that — juggling responsibilities to his party, his constituents and his family obviously took a toll. But calling it quits after one term is a far cry from calling it quits before the term is over. | 08/12/09 00:06:00 By - Miami Herald

Commentary: A call for cooler heads in health care debate

It happens sometimes at sporting events. You come to watch the action on the field and end up gaping as a melee breaks out in the stands. Unfortunately, that’s the scenario threatening to take over what should be a serious debate over how to reform the U.S. health care system. | 08/12/09 00:06:00 By - Kansas City Star

Commentary: Boxer could get knocked off in next campaign

California's U.S. senators tend to fall into two categories — headline-grabbers and dependable workhorses for the state's interests. For the past 17 years, the state's two senators have been Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer. Both elected during the much-heralded "year of the woman," they have followed the state's time-honored pattern. | 08/11/09 00:06:00 By - Dan Walters

Commentary: As school starts, watch for swine flu

Parents, be alert to sniffles, sneezes and coughs. You’re a major line of defense in the battle against swine flu. Parents know first when children start showing symptoms. Ailing kids must be kept home, for everyone’s health. This year will be far different from past years as school districts and health departments around the county prepare for an expected onslaught of the fast-spreading swine flu. | 08/11/09 00:06:00 By - Bradenton Herald

Commentary: Ban texting-while-driving? Duh.

The amazing thing about the debate over the need for laws to ban texting while driving is that there is a debate over the need for laws to ban texting while driving. In the first place, you'd think you wouldn't need a law, that simple common sense would be enough to tell us it's unsafe to divert attention to a tiny keyboard and screen while simultaneously piloting two tons of metal, rubber, glass and, let us not forget, flesh, at freeway speeds — or even street speeds. In the second place, if common sense were insufficient, you'd think lawmakers would have rushed to back it up with tough laws. | 08/10/09 18:18:44 By - Leonard Pitts Jr.

Commentary: White House done little on cyber security

Last month, a surge of cyber attacks temporarily crashed more than two dozen government and commercial Web sites in the United States and South Korea. Experts described the attacks as minor, but they emphasized a growing threat and offered a reminder for the Obama administration that it should move more quickly on this front. With so much of our lives, histories and finances all online, this is a huge problem. | 08/10/09 11:44:19 By - Kansas City Star

Commentary: Even post-Palin, need for ethics reform

We support the right of citizens to file official complaints of misconduct against elected or appointed state officials. It's a good way to exercise our constitutionally guaranteed right for a redress of grievances and keep our public servants honest. But the complaint-a-week caseload that stacked up against Palin seemed out of hand — and raised questions about secrecy, liability, costs and accountability. | 08/10/09 11:39:49 By - Anchorage Daily News

Commentary: Want jobs? Encourage entrepreneurs

It's easy to focus too much on jobs in a down economy. In our society, a job can define you. It's how most of us earn our living, get our health insurance and save for retirement. The unemployment numbers are simple to understand. In theory, we could have a very healthy economy with no employees at all, if everyone were self-employed. But the opposite is not true. We cannot have enough jobs without a healthy economy. | 08/10/09 11:26:35 By - Sacramento Bee

Commentary: Keep food out of landfills

Composting leftover foods is a good way forward. Federal statistics indicate that excess food and yard waste account for about the same percentage of the overall waste stream (12.8 and 12.5, respectively). However, about 65 percent of yard waste is recycled, compared with just 3 percent of food waste. | 08/06/09 18:36:59 By - Kansas City Star

Commentary: Journalists' release good news for all

Welcome home, Laura Ling. Welcome home, Euna Lee. Sacramento has a special place in its heart for Ling, who grew up in Carmichael. But the pair's release ought to bring joy across the country and the world. It is always good news when someone who is being held unjustly against her will wins freedom. | 08/06/09 10:44:03 By - Sacramento Bee

Commentary: Beware dangers of government-sponsored gambling

There's no such thing as a good lottery. No circumstances under which it’s OK for a state government to entice its citizens to gamble. The very idea is anathema to what government is supposed to be all about. | 08/06/09 00:06:00 By - The State

Commentary: Time for universities to crack down on hazing

A lawsuit claiming that a 19-year-old sophomore at Lenoir-Rhyne University in Hickory died as a result of a violent hazing will again bring to the forefront the old and occasionally deadly initiation "custom" most often associated with college fraternities. | 08/06/09 00:06:00 By - News & Observer

Commentary: Journalists' safe return a diplomatic victory for North Korea, US

Don't be fooled by that photo of an unsmiling Bill Clinton sitting next to a dour Kim Jong Il. Both men wore grim expressions for the cameras, but they must have been smiling inwardly because both got what they wanted from the former president's visit to North Korea. | 08/06/09 10:38:07 By - Miami Herald

Commentary: It's okay to demand involuntary treatment for street drunks

At first blush, it may sound heavy-handed, and possibly even pointless: Anchorage will try to reduce the number of chronic street drunks by forcing them into detoxification and treatment. Skeptics will naturally wonder: Doesn't that infringe on their personal freedom? And what good is it to "force" someone into treatment for an addiction, anyway? | 08/06/09 00:05:59 By - Anchorage Daily News

Commentary: Some slurs shouldn't be played with

"You are such a racist nigger." — reader e-mail To answer your questions: yes, the e-mail is quoted in its entirety. Yes, it's authentic; I received it a year or so ago. And, no, it is not unique in its sentiment, its coarseness or its deafness to irony. That note has always struck me as a stark benchmark of our slide into racial incoherence.

Here's another: Last week on Fox & Friends, Glenn Beck, the Fox News host, declared President Obama a "racist" with "a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture." Bare seconds later, Beck turned around and said, "I'm not saying he doesn't like white people. . . " | 08/05/09 17:15:15 By - Leonard Pitts Jr.

Commentary: Immigrants face injustice at detention centers

Regardless of their legal status, immigrants deserve a fair shot at justice once they are in this country. That's especially true for the most vulnerable, those in detention and facing deportation. All too often, however, they are denied justice and basic due process. | 08/05/09 11:00:57 By - Miami Herald

Commentary: Some of Palin's fame helped Alaska

Every time I write or say anything publicly about Sarah Palin I receive a pile of mail. Hate mail from Palin fans who demand blind adoration of their conservative heroine. | 08/05/09 00:06:00 By - Michael Carey

Commentary: Obama: Born in the U.S.A

My daughter was born in Los Angeles County on Sept. 4, 1990. I know this because I was there. Should that not be proof enough, I also have her birth certificate. Barack Obama, you see, has a birth certificate much like my daughter's, documenting his birth in Hawaii on Aug. 4, 1961. | 08/04/09 16:31:48 By - Leonard Pitts Jr.

Commentary: Guantanamo testing U.S. courage

Throughout his presidential campaign, Barack Obama was an outspoken critic of the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and an advocate of relying on recognized constitutional values to deal with the detainees. Now that he is president, a young Afghan detainee named Mohammed Jawad is testing Mr. Obama's commitment. | 08/04/09 16:25:46 By - Miami Herald

Commentary: Foul-mouthed politicians missing the real obscenities

It wouldn't even make decent reality TV. But that's about the level of discourse from Kentucky's two leading candidates for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate. | 08/04/09 16:12:37 By - Lexington Herald-Ledger

Commentary: Leavenworth's the spot for Gitmo detainees

Despite the Kansas congressional contingent’s objections to a proposed terror prison/terror court in Leavenworth, the city is a good site to handle the vital national responsibility. | 08/04/09 10:28:31 By - Kansas City Star

Commentary: Environmental regulators' flights ethically uncertain

The officials directing California's historic effort to cut greenhouse gas emissions already face an extremely difficult task. They shouldn't be complicating the challenge by taking luxury trips abroad that are partially financed by the businesses they regulate. | 08/03/09 18:20:35 By - Sacramento Bee

Commentary: Video poker still a bad deal for North Carolina

Take an industry battling for acceptance, mix it with lawmakers hungry for cash, and you have a recipe for mischief and bad public policy. North Carolina's lawmakers have been through this once. They shouldn't test their luck again. | 08/01/09 00:06:00 By - Charlotte Observer

Commentary: No surprise, Illinois lacks transparency on stimulus funds

It was a small but reassuring condition of the $787 billion federal stimulus package: President Barack Obama promised "an unprecedented level of transparency and accountability" in tracking how the money is spent. Well, surprise, most states are being about as transparent as mud. And surprise again, Illinois is the worst in the nation, according to a ranking by the watchdog group Good Jobs First. | 08/01/09 00:06:00 By - Belleville News-Democrat

Commentary: History says Sen. Hutchison's replacement won't last long

If history is any judge, whomever Gov. Rick Perry names to be Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison’s temporary replacement shouldn’t count on the job long term. | 07/31/09 14:53:32 By - Mike Norman

Commentary: Chavez's temper tantrums aren't fooling anyone

Over the years, Venezuela's Hugo Chávez has displayed a predictable pattern of behavior whenever one of his hare-brained schemes goes awry: The clearer the evidence of wrongdoing, the more false indignation he exhibits and the louder he complains. | 07/31/09 00:06:00 By - Miami Herald

Commentary: For everyone's safety, Army needs to respect whistle-blowers

The Army must reassure the Blue Grass Army Depot's workers and neighbors that the atmosphere for employees who raise safety concerns is not as toxic as the stuff they're guarding. | 07/31/09 00:06:00 By - Lexington Herald-Ledger

Commentary: Minimum wage boost nice, but still too low

Workers on the lowest rung of the pay scale got a slight boost last week when the federal minimum wage was raised to $7.25 an hour. The third and final installment in the federal minimum wage is a good effort to put more money into the economy but a long way from giving the lowest-paid workers a living wage. | 07/29/09 16:24:13 By - Centre Daily Times

Commentary: Bunning's exit shows money drives politics

The money has spoken. Despite his earlier insistence that he would stay in the race for re-election, Sen. Jim Bunning has thrown in the towel. Not-so-subtle signs from Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell did the trick as Republican money migrated to Secretary of State Trey Grayson's exploratory committee. | 07/29/09 15:34:23 By - Lexington Herald-Leader

Commentary: 'Cash for clunkers,' now in effect, offers lots of benefits

It is easy to poke holes in the Congressionally approved definition of a "clunker" — since it includes some high-end cars with a heavy thirst for gasoline. No, it isn't perfect, and yes, this was a plan passed on the fly. But the cash for clunkers program is still a good idea. | 07/29/09 13:48:00 By - Idaho Statesman

Commentary: In-state tuition for undocumented kids? No clear answer

No in-state tuition qualifiers has gotten the attention that’s focused on students who were brought here illegally as children and want to seek the American dream of a college education. | 07/29/09 13:23:23 By - Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Commentary: Congress shouldn't join in 'birther' conspiracy theory

All of them know better, or should. But the issue fires up the base, and serves as a handy fundraising tool for right-wing organizations that might support them. | 07/29/09 12:24:45 By - Charlotte Observer

Commentary: Let's talk about race as a nation

This surely is a moment for people of good will to share their viewpoints about race, their personal experiences and their hopes for a new post-racial era. | 07/29/09 00:06:00 By - Miami Herald

Commentary: How I'm still fighting to end abortion

Every social revolution in American history — whether civil rights in the 1960s, woman’s voting rights in the 1880s, the abolitionists in the 1850s, or the anti-child labor movement of the 1900s — used incendiary rhetoric, offensive images and clamorous activism. | 07/29/09 00:06:00 By - Randall Terry, Operation Rescue

Commentary: Budget leaves California schools a mess

The latest budget dance reveals, once again, that California's education finance system is a mess. It needs an overhaul.

For more than two decades, after adjusting for California's high cost of living, the state has ranked in the bottom 10 in many school spending categories. Yet the state continues with the same convoluted, complicated formulas that fail to match needs and academic performance. | 07/28/09 18:21:31 By - Sacramento Bee

Commentary: Alaska should put stimulus money to work

Lawmakers should override stimulus money veto, and the Parnell administration should make sure that $28 million pays off. | 07/28/09 18:17:45 By - Anchorage Daily News

Commentary: With so many men out of work, expect social instability

In July, male unemployment hit 10.5 percent. Ten percent is the tripwire, a signal of a serious social problem.

Unemployment for women is just 8 percent. | 07/28/09 00:06:00 By - Judith Kleinfeld

Commentary: Enough whining, put economy in perspective

MODESTO, Calif — Right now, we're hearing a whole lot of whining about the sad state of our state. Well, we suggest it's time to say "enough." It's time to put a little perspective on the economy and to restrain ourselves in the use of hyperbole and crisis predictions. | 07/28/09 00:06:00 By - Modesto Bee

Commentary: Big government worse than Wall Street disease

The medicine of big government is even worse than the original disease on Wall Street, and the falling polls for the president's initiatives show the American people are catching on to this. | 07/28/09 00:06:00 By - Victor Davis Hanson

Commentary: California needs to reexamine its workforce

While inconvenient for the public — as anyone who's tried to get a driver's license renewed on a furlough Friday can attest — furloughs are the most equitable way to cut costs. | 07/27/09 18:30:50 By - Sacramento Bee

Commentary: Kenyan slum a 'humanitarian disgrace'

Before entering one of the world’s largest slums, a dozen American journalists are directed toward a row of knee-high rubber boots. The instruction is to swap your shoes for boots and keep your pants tucked inside the boot tops. One million people — one-third of Nairobi’s population — live here in Kibera, a tin-roof maze of living spaces that lack clean running water and basic sanitation. | 07/27/09 13:52:24 By - Miriam Pepper

Commentary: Congress should study up on immigration reform

Here's a homework assignment for members of Congress: During summer recess, take home the Council on Foreign Relations report on immigration reform. Read it carefully. It's a bipartisan blueprint for how to fix our broken immigration system. | 07/26/09 12:10:53 By - Miami Herald

Commentary: Preventing health problems is key to reform

How can America outspend every other nation in the world in health care and yet be ranked by the World Health Organization only 37th in health care quality? The answer is clear: For some reason, we have been willing to pay higher and higher medical costs rather than focus on preventing health problems before they occur. | 07/24/09 00:06:00 By - Rep. Doris O. Matsui and Dr. Harold Goldstein

Commentary: Let's hope government spending works

While the federal government’s economic stimulus package raises considerable consternation over the $787 billion debt load, the fact is that gravy train left the station and we’re along for the ride whether we like it or not. So we’ll grit our teeth while we spend the money and hope that the goal of a quicker economic recovery comes to fruition. | 07/24/09 00:06:00 By - Bradenton Herald

Commentary: Obama got one coal appointment right, one wrong

The appointment of Joseph G. Pizarchik, a strip-mine regulator in Pennsylvania, to head the Interior Department's Office of Surface Mining, is being viewed by many as a sop to the coal industry. Before confirming Pizarchik, the Senate should dig into his record, especially his support for allowing power-plant waste to be buried in unlined pits and old mines despite the threat to groundwater. | 07/23/09 15:20:03 By - Lexington Herald-Ledger

Commentary: Walter Cronkite's loyalty was, above all, to the truth

Here's the way it was: If Uncle Walter said it, that meant it was true. You could take it to the bank and pay bills with it. Uncle Walter's word was gold. | 07/23/09 15:05:11 By - Leonard Pitts Jr.

Commentary: It's time to close Miami sex offender shantytown

The state must take the lead to close shantytown under bridge. The causeway shantytown debacle should have taken three days — tops — to get state and local officials working together to find places for these felons, most of them on probation for sex crimes, to live without endangering children. | 07/23/09 12:19:57 By - Miami Herald

Commentary: Imagine reading a bill before passing it

In 1776, the rallying cry was, "No taxation without representation." Today, it could be, "No taxation without totally clueless representation." That's what Americans got on June 26, when the House voted 219-212 for the "cap-and-tax" energy bill, as the Republicans refer to it. | 07/23/09 06:00:00 By - Kevin Ferris

Commentary: Police officer, Gates expected deference, but neither got it

The charges have since been dropped, but the incident has fueled the undying assertions that, to some people, especially some in law enforcement, it doesn't matter how many degrees a black man earns or how successful he is, he will always be just a black man. | 07/22/09 17:25:51 By - Merlene Davis

Commentary: Only a matter of time for cell-phone driving bans

In the blink of an eye, I could become a killer. You could, too. Not intentionally, of course, but a killer just the same. In the back of our minds, we've always known it. But the news this week has focused attention on the dangers of talking, texting and e-mailing while driving. | 07/22/09 00:06:00 By - Tom Eblen

Commentary: Honduras should accept the Arias proposal

As Costa Rican President Oscar Arias attempts to find a solution to the Honduras crisis, the interim government of Roberto Micheletti faces the potential for growing violence by digging in its heels. Honduras's interim government should accept the deal from Costa Rican President Oscar Arias. | 07/22/09 00:06:00 By - Miami Herald

Commentary: Alaska, like other states, should invest in kids health

Alaska needs to get with it. Other states are showing us up with their commitment to paying for health insurance for children in working families even as the recession hurts state budgets. | 07/22/09 00:06:00 By - Anchorage Daily News

Commentary: Using local police for immigration enforcement a dangerous idea

Not only does police enforcement of immigration law divert scarce public safety resources from crime fighting, it undermines vital community policing opportunities. Victims and witnesses are unwilling to report crime if they know that they or their family members or neighbors may be turned over to immigration authorities. | 07/21/09 00:06:00 By - Julie Harumi Mass

Commentary: Vietnamese-American memorial on Kansas riverfront would show acceptance

If the Wichita City Council votes Tuesday to place a Vietnamese-American community memorial on riverfront land just beyond John S. Stevens Veterans Memorial Park, it will be a welcome end to a botched process that bruised feelings as it needlessly called into question love of country, respect for U.S. citizens of Vietnamese descent, and appreciation of the service and sacrifice of U.S. military veterans. | 07/21/09 00:06:00 By - Witchita Eagle

Commentary: Teens, learn the dangers of 'sexting'

Parents, be forewarned. And teach your children about the dangers of sexting — not just in school but in life. Boyfriends and girlfriends sharing explicit images via cell phone are courting major trouble. What kids today view as harmless fun is considered a crime in the adult world — indeed, a felony. | 07/21/09 00:06:00 By - Bradenton Herald

Commentary: Sanford: I'm sorry

I have struggled with how best to convey my regret in letting so many down, and in that regard I realize this column does not do justice to the process of saying “I am sorry.” A hand-written note or phone call would ultimately be more appropriate, but given the number of people I need to apologize to, I write this to begin the journey of trying to get things more right with you and others. | 07/20/09 16:53:59 By - Mark Sanford

Commentary: In 40 years, no giant leap past the "If we can..." cliche

Ever since Neil Armstrong took that giant leap for mankind, we’ve been posing this question: If we can land people on the moon, then how hard can it be to achieve just about anything? | 07/20/09 13:00:04 By - Mike Hendricks

Commentary: House Dem's health care 'fix' hurts small business

The proposal to impose a penalty of 8 percent of payroll on all but the smallest businesses is particularly onerous and unworkable — especially in South Florida where small businesses are the backbone of the area's economy. | 07/20/09 10:14:37 By - Miami Herald

Commentary: New bipartisan report a welcome take on legal immigration

The United States needs a new, comprehensive immigration policy. This is obvious. Recent attention on this issue has largely focused on illegal immigration. But a new, bipartisan report from the Council on Foreign Relations correctly notes that the primary immigration threat to America is welcoming too few talented immigrants. | 07/20/09 09:15:26 By - Kansas City Star

Commentary: Sotomayor biased? It's a bogus charge

Sotomayor's critics say her decision in the New Haven firefighters case proves she is biased and unfit for the highest court in the land. Nonsense. At its heart, the New Haven lawsuit was about the validity of a highly questionable written test. | 07/20/09 09:09:50 By - Sacramento Bee

Commentary: Sotomayor should be confirmed

Supreme Court Nominee Sonia Sotomayor has a sound judicial record and should be confirmed by the Senate Judiciary Committee. | 07/14/09 11:31:56 By - The Miami Herald

Commentary: A black athlete and racial hypocrisy

Dallas Cowboys backup tight end Martellus Bennett is doing everything he can possibly do to invite self-promotional controversy. In the past week, he debuted a video showcasing the "Black Olympics," a Kool-Aid-, fried chicken- and watermelon-eating contest between himself and his brother, a rookie free agent with the Seattle Seahawks. | 07/13/09 12:59:15 By - Jason Whitlock

Commentary: Palin leaves Parnell plenty to do

When he takes over for Gov. Sarah Palin, Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell faces a tough but manageable assignment. Tops on his to-do list: follow through on Gov. Palin's progress toward a natural gas pipeline, sharpen the focus of state energy policy, build a sustainable budget despite declining oil revenues and stake out some initiatives of his own in fields like domestic violence and health care. | 07/13/09 10:55:59 By - The Anchorage Daily News

Commentary: Rainbow Lounge investigation must be transparent

It's vital that Fort Worth know what really happened at the Rainbow Lounge on June 28, the night that officers from the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission and the Fort Worth Police Department came into the gay bar and arrested some of its patrons. In the process, Chad Gibson, 26, received head injuries that left him hospitalized for a week. | 07/09/09 12:17:48 By - The Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Commentary: It's not the end of the world as we know it

We should have known the apocalypse was near when 20,000 people showed up to see the Monkees' Micky Dolenz at a political "tea party." Or when Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin parked her political roller coaster. Or when Johnson County had microquakes.

Now, we learn that some are predicting an apocalypse today. Around midday, we'll hit 12:34:56 p.m. on 7/8/09. | 07/08/09 13:50:25 By - Bud Kennedy

Commentary: 100,000 reasons to shed no tears for McNamara

Beginning in 1965 and for nearly three years McNamara each year drafted into the military 100,000 young boys whose scores in the mental qualification and aptitude tests were in the lowest quarter — so-called Category IV's. Men with IQ's of 65 or even lower. The cold, hard statistics say that these almost helpless young men died in action in the jungles at a rate three times higher than the average draftee. | 07/08/09 01:01:47 By - Joseph L. Galloway

Commentary: Honduran crisis should serve as hemispheric wake-up call

I wouldn't be surprised if the political crisis in Honduras is resolved within the next three months. But the Honduran military coup should serve as a wake-up call for all nations in the hemisphere to react more swiftly to the constant violations of the rule of law in countries like Venezuela, Bolivia, and Ecuador, and not wait for the situations to blow up, like in Honduras. | 07/07/09 16:17:37 By - Andres Oppenheimer

Commentary: Plenty of strange governors' tales to go around

Remember the '60s-era Summer of Love? Looks as if 2009 is turning out to be the Summer of Gov. First Mark Sanford. Now Sarah Palin. Just as South Carolina's Sanford relinquished his tawdry hold on the headlines last week, Alaska's Sarah Palin on Friday shocked politics-watchers by announcing she won't run again and is quitting. | 07/07/09 13:37:46 By - The Charlotte Observer

Commentary: Galloway on McNamara: Reading an obit with great pleasure

Back in 1990 I had a series of strange phone conversations with McMamara while doing research for my book We Were Soldiers Once And Young. McNamara prefaced every conversation with this: "I do not want to comment on the record for fear that I might distort history in the process." Then he would proceed to talk for an hour, doing precisely that with answers that were disingenuous in the extreme — when they were not bald-faced lies. | 07/07/09 11:20:50 By - Joseph L. Galloway

Commentary: Palin's resignation doesn't make sense

Shock was the order of the day Friday when Gov. Sarah Palin announced her resignation. Many Alaskans had speculated that she wouldn't seek a second term as governor to clear the decks for a presidential run in 2012, but no one expected her to walk away from the job with a year and a half to go. After the shock, confusion. | 07/06/09 11:34:23 By - The Anchorage Daily News

Commentary: Obesity plagues America

From the no-duh files comes the latest study on Americans' waistlines, which concludes that the country is getting fatter. The Trust for America's Health report, while largely a confirmation of what any sighted person already knows, also provides a timely reminder of a big factor driving up the cost of overhauling the nation's health care system. | 07/06/09 11:26:24 By - The (Tacoma) News Tribune

Commentary: As U.S. troops pull back in Iraq, wars' toll falls now on Obama

The American military withdrew to their bases outside the cities in Iraq this past week to thunderous cheers, marching bands and fireworks from the ever-grateful and always xenophobic Iraqi citizenry. | 07/03/09 16:55:08 By - Joseph L. Galloway

Commentary: Bud Selig gets Lou Gehrig tribute right

This Saturday, the 70th anniversary of Lou Gehrig's "Luckiest Man On the Face of the Earth" address will be commemorated with a reading of the 277-word speech during the seventh-inning stretch at every home ballpark in Major League Baseball. | 07/02/09 11:31:19 By - John McGrath

Commentary: Sanford saga is too much ado about nothing

South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford deserves every bit of the public shellacking he’s getting for leaving the country for several days without telling anyone. But are calls for his impeachment or resignation warranted? After all, nothing happened. | 07/01/09 12:33:55 By - Warren Bolton

Commentary: Sanford should stay in office

The people calling for Gov. Mark Sanford's resignation — from The New York Times to state Sen. Jake Knotts — either want to ensure that Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer wins the 2010 gubernatorial election or else haven't thought through the effect this could have on the outcome of that crucial race. | 06/30/09 11:59:52 By - The State (Columbia, S.C.)

Commentary: Zelaya's naked power grab led to Honduras coup

Here's a question for all of the new-found defenders of Honduran democracy, which include Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Argentina's president Cristina Fernandez: Where were you last week? Perhaps if some of these warnings about sticking to the constitution had been addressed to President Mel Zelaya, the Honduran army would still be in the barracks where it belongs. | 06/30/09 12:19:10 By - Glenn Garvin

Commentary: Prisons are a good place for budget overhaul

California's cost of guarding, feeding, clothing, medicating and supposedly educating its nearly 170,000 prison inmates and supervising 110,000 parolees is about $10 billion a year. And it's very easily the fastest-growing segment of the deficit-ridden state budget over the past decade. | 06/29/09 12:03:04 By - Dan Walters

Commentary: Sanford has plenty of amends to make

Gov. Mark Sanford's revelation that he had been unfaithful to his wife, Jenny, and had spent the past several days in Argentina with another woman instead of hiking on the Appalachian Trail — as he had told staff and as staff had told this state's media and its people — felt like a punch to the gut. | 06/25/09 14:28:55 By - The State (Columbia, S.C.)

Commentary: A father remembered

Sunday was my first Father's Day without a father. My dad died March 23. He lived 85 mostly hearty, mostly healthy years, but his final days were difficult, leading afterward to many repetitions of that line so many have us have exchanged with friends and family: "At least he is no longer suffering." | 06/22/09 11:55:41 By - Daniel Weintraub

Commentary: A Tweet for freedom in Iran

Look at the protest marches in Iran's capital — the largest since the 1979 revolution — and you see a real contribution of the West to democracy around the world: information technology. That technology makes it nearly impossible for a repressive regime to control people's access to information. | 06/22/09 11:27:57 By - The Sacramento Bee

Commentary: Do flies deserve any compassion?

Lexington Herald-Leader columnist Merlene Davis was quite impressed when President Barack Obama snatched and killed a fly last week in the middle of an interview. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals wasn't. So who was right? | 06/21/09 17:38:08 By - Merlene Davis

Commentary: Patrick Fitzgerald strikes out

When U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald was investigating the leak of a CIA officer's name a couple of years ago, he bullied witnesses, threw innocent people in jail and generally acted like J. Edgar Hoover on the trail of a commie spy — and his noisiest cheerleaders were American liberals, thrilled by the discovery that prosecutorial abuse can be fun when you're directing it at the Bush administration.

I wonder if they'll like it as much now that Fitzgerald is slapping around the First Amendment. | 06/19/09 15:32:23 By - Glenn Garvin

Commentary: Kevin Johnson seems to attract controversy

When a federal investigation of Mayor Kevin Johnson and his nonprofit St. HOPE was concluded in April, I wrote the words: "It's over." Shame on me. It's never over with this guy. | 06/17/09 13:41:05 By - Marcos Breton

Commentary: Don't hate Palin because she's pretty

I wasn't surprised when I watched David Letterman's jokes about Sarah Palin last week. I wasn't particularly outraged, either. In fact, to be honest, I laughed a little. My first thought when I watched the clip of Letterman's jokes at my desk last week was this: Hot lady winks at debates and wears Naughty Monkey pumps and encourages her daughter, the teen mom, to talk about not having sex on national television, and now she's mad somebody made some sexist jokes? She opened the door. And, Letterman (who isn't above going lowbrow for a laugh) just walked through it. | 06/17/09 12:57:39 By - Julia O'Malley

Commentary: Iranian protest movement shows deep divisions in society

Despite what hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad may wish, the election dispute in Iran has laid bare deep divisions in the country between a large segment of society and its clerical leadership. | 06/17/09 11:50:32 By - The Miami Herald

Commentary: Why the Holocaust Museum is important

The Holocaust Museum memorializes the murders of 6 million Jews and the horrific treatment of those who somehow escaped death at the hands of the Nazis during World War II. It also creates a visual display of genocide in hopes it would never happen again, though it has in eastern Europe, Asia and Africa. | 06/16/09 11:16:40 By - Jeff Jardine

Commentary: Discussions of Sotomayor's qualifications too much about ethnicity

On Tuesday, columnist Bill Ferguson wrote: "It really is too bad that we can't have a real discussion on Judge (Sonia) Sotomayor's qualifications in the midst of all of this talk about race and gender. Is she one of the finest legal minds in the country? Does she have a reputation for writing groundbreaking, well thought-out opinions? Is she respected in the legal community as one of the best at her profession? | 06/15/09 13:50:29 By - Charles E. Richardson

Commentary: Finally, regulation for tobacco

Tobacco is unique. As many have pointed out, it's the only legal product that, when used as intended, kills its users. | 06/15/09 11:05:23 By - The (Tacoma) News Tribune

Commentary: Will apology from DJs accomplish anything really?

Undoubtedly, many people will be listening Thursday when some tasteless shock jocks on Sacramento's KRXQ apologize for mocking transgender people on the air. But is Thursday about apologizing to transgender people? Or is it about capitalizing on a staged event in an effort to score big in the ratings? | 06/11/09 13:18:28 By - Marcos Breton

Commentary: Alaska shouldn't try to force through Knik Bridge project

As Anchorage's local government and transportation planners near the end of a nine-month process aimed at halting the expensive and controversial Knik Arm Bridge project, the Palin administration has suddenly stepped in and is trying to keep the project alive. It's a misguided use of state time and transportation dollars. | 06/11/09 11:32:43 By - The Anchorage Daily News

Commentary: A medical marijuana proposal

Patients are caught in a Catch-22, where it's legal to possess marijuana and use it as medicine, but practically impossible to obtain it legally. Confiscated marijuana is destroyed as soon as it's no longer needed as evidence. Why not make it available to a legitimate user instead? | 06/09/09 11:56:04 By - The Tri-City Herald

Commentary: Tiller's shooting was domestic terrorism

When one American takes the life of another in the nation's heartland over an issue with deep political, ideological and moral implications, that's domestic terrorism. And regardless of anyone's perspective on abortion, such violence is unacceptable as a tool for changing the way society or any individuals treat that difficult and divisive issue. | 06/08/09 14:00:54 By - The Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Commentary: Obama sets right balance in Cairo address

President Barack Obama on Thursday called for "a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world." That is a timely and necessary appeal. Obama deserves praise for both the words and symbolic nature of the setting in which he spoke them, to young Egyptians at Al Azhar University in Cairo, one of the hearts of Islam. | 06/05/09 13:20:58 By - The Kansas City Star

Commentary: What’s up with Dick Cheney?

If former vice president Darth Cheney had been arrested for any of his multiple felonies, he might remember the most important of the Miranda rights that the arresting officer would have read to him: You have the right to remain silent. | 06/04/09 16:01:40 By - Joseph L. Galloway

Commentary: Drums of a blue crab war?

The legendary disputes over Chesapeake Bay natural resources involving Maryland and Virginia watermen have been called wars for good reason. Both states have not always cooperated to protect the great estuary's natural resources, which include striped bass, shad and blue crabs. | 06/03/09 06:00:48 By - Carlos Tobias

Commentary: My answer to being slimed on Huffington Post

Kevin G. Hall, McClatchy's economics reporter, responds to a Huffington Post blog that called him un-American for a story he wrote wondering about the role of speculation in recent oil price hikes: "You can defend the trade however you choose — and since Mr. Martin is a commodities trader I'd expect him to — but this isn't the way oil trading used to work. And in the real world, far from Wall Street's fine dining and fancy John Lobb shoes, real people trying to stretch their income have less wiggle room because of higher pump prices." | 05/29/09 17:08:47 By - Kevin G. Hall

Commentary: Schwarzenegger no longer lauded by local officials

Five years ago, Arnold Schwarzenegger was the much-heralded hero for city council members, county supervisors and other local government officials, helping them achieve long-sought constitutional protections against raids by the state. | 05/29/09 11:20:43 By - Dan Walters

Commentary: How Twitter poses a threat to newspapers

The end began in January 1998, when Matt Drudge broke the story on his blog that linked President Clinton amorously to a young White House intern. At least that's how his scoop is remembered, as a signature moment in the growing dominance of online news. Except that's not what happened. Drudge didn't break the intern story because he didn't have it. What he reported was that Newsweek magazine had the story but wouldn't publish it. | 05/28/09 06:17:27 By - Edward Wasserman

Commentary: Gitmo is a picnic compared to U.S. prisons

President Obama's promise to shut down the Guantanamo Bay detention center in Cuba has hit a snag because he hasn't figured out what to do with the 240 detainees.

Apparently even the scrawniest Taliban is so cunning and strong that he'll be able to break out of our toughest maximum-security prisons — prisons that nobody ever escapes from, except in the movies. | 05/27/09 08:36:55 By - Carl Hiaasen

Commentary: Guantanamo closing becomes a battle of fear vs. faith

On Thursday, the American people heard an appeal to fear, and an appeal to faith in the principles of the Constitution. An appeal to fear, and an appeal to faith in this country's competence to identify and protect itself from security risks. | 05/23/09 05:18:47 By - The Lexington Herald-Leader

Commentary: Alaska shouldn't pay for partisan political trips

We have no quarrel with Gov. Palin campaigning for someone outside Alaska. She's a national figure now. But to describe her trip to Georgia as state business because Chambliss favors ANWR drilling is fig leaf cover at best. Supporting Alaska in a congressional issue is hardly grounds for using State of Alaska money to support one side in an election battle. | 05/18/09 11:31:55 By - The Anchorage Daily News

Commentary: Missouri House vote shows disdain for poor

Say you're a single mom who's having a hard time. Maybe you lost a decent job and you're waiting tables or working at a convenience store. Maybe you have headaches, or something worse. You think you should see a doctor, but you can't pay. Guess what? Republicans in the Missouri House this week killed a plan that would have provided health insurance for 35,000 people like you — parents who make up to 50 percent of the poverty level. | 05/13/09 12:48:46 By - Barbara Shelly