The George W. Bush Library: Scholarly Mecca or $500 Million Oxymoron? (NYT)

panties in wad

By DOROTHY SAMUELS

The proposed presidential library at Southern Methodist University raises issues that touch on the writing of history, the university's scholarly mission, governmental integrity and the rule of law.

New York's Public Schools (NYT)

hunch that teachers' unions are the enemy

Reforms that affect the lives of more than a million schoolchildren should not be made in haste or on the basis of consultants' hunches.

Saving Lebanon (NYT)

save munich too

In the interest of stabilizing Lebanon, the Bush administration needs to drop its stubborn resistance to diplomacy with Syria - and try to coax Damascus away from both Iran and Hezbollah.

The Budget Illusion (NYT)

what truth? seems to lack an antecedent.

no matter, it means tax increases, so it's good.

President Bush's tax cuts should largely be allowed to expire. Facing that truth is not a fiscal challenge, it's a political one.

Countdown to the Census (NYT)

cut another $50 million to ensure the accuracy

it reduces the number of constituencies that develop

To ensure the accuracy of the 2010 count, lawmakers must begin by reinstating the roughly $50 million that was cut from the current census budget by the previous Congress.

Mr. Bush's Oil Security Blanket (NYT)

maybe it's too small?

One of the stranger and so far unexplained items in President Bush's energy program is his proposal to double the capacity of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

Picking New York's Comptroller (NYT)

good advice is always do the opposite

We hope that New York's Legislature chooses a replacement for Comptroller Alan Hevesi from the fine list of finalists, and that their choice is Howard Weitzman, comptroller of Nassau County.

The Bait-and-Switch White House (NYT)

nothing raises your credibility more than sending in the troops and doing what you said you would do

President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have done grievous harm to the credibility of the Oval Office and the country.

Days of Decision in Ulster (NYT)

no muslims

Over the next few days, the militant Irish republican Gerry Adams and the fire-breathing unionist preacher Ian Paisley have the chance to lead Ulster into a new era of democratic self-rule.

More Willful Indifference (NYT)

who would believe that the left is against pedophiles!

it's very judgmental of them.

It turns out that the F.B.I. was just as phlegmatic about Mark Foley's sexual approaches to teenage pages as Mr. Foley's Republican colleagues.

The President's Risky Health Plan (NYT)

with any luck it will increase the ranks of those not needing insurance

the risk is to the health ``care'' bureaucracy

all health benefits should be completely taxable

then some realistic tradeoffs will happen for a change.

President Bush's new health care proposals would be unlikely to reduce the ranks of the uninsured very much and could actually increase their numbers.

Political Meddling With Justice (NYT)

clinton fired them all, 100%.

news flash for the NYT : it's a political office

Congress must demand a clear explanation from Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and the White House on why dedicated prosecutors are being purged.

Closing the Revolving Door (NYT)

since when is reducing the inmate population a goal?

safe streets is the goal

The only real way to reduce the inmate population - and the felon class - is to ensure that imprisonment is a method of last resort.

Moment of Opportunity in Somalia (NYT)

bush involvement not noticed

there's nothing like killing islamists to improve any situation

Thanks to an unusual and probably fleeting set of events, Somalia has a chance to return to the community of law-abiding and legitimate states.

Energy Rhetoric, and Reality (NYT)

NYT editorials about no drilling in Alaska or offshore predicted

and no nukes

Once again, we have heard this president make big promises about energy independence. Once again, we fear that very little will change.

Return of the Drug Company Payoffs (NYT)

that makes research more valuable, does it not?

take your choice here.

research or cheap products.

A costly legal loophole allows the manufacturers of brand-name drugs to resume the underhanded practice of paying generic competitors to keep their drugs off the market.

A Healthy, Well-Regulated Wall Street (NYT)

is the NYT aware that the markets are at new highs?

Beware of the doomsayers who argue that American markets are in free fall and contend that looser regulations are the only way to save them.

The State of the Union (NYT)

bush derangement syndrome

President Bush almost certainly didn't intend it, but his speech reinforced one vital political fact - that it's not just up to him anymore.

For the Record (NYT)

buckley observed that the trouble with NYT corrections is that they leave the impression that everything else was correct.

In last Friday's editorial about the administration official who urged corporations to punish lawyers for representing Guantanamo detainees: Charles Stimson is a deputy assistant secretary of defense, not state.

Watching the Energy Watchdog (NYT)

mysteriously, the more profitable con ed is, the better the electrical system gets

who can explain it? a complete enigma.

A report from the state's Public Service Commission about last summer's electrical blackout in Queens ignored a critical part of the problem: the commission itself, which has been incompetently monitoring the energy monopoly.

Nicotine Manipulation Confirmed (NYT)

a good year for hemp as well

i blame el nino

Any doubts that the tobacco industry has surreptitiously raised the nicotine content of cigarettes should be laid to rest by a study from researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health.

From Pakistan, With Jihad (NYT)

demand and send strongly worded letter as well

Washington should demand that Pakistan's president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, enforce an immediate halt on Pakistani military support for the Taliban insurgents who are crossing the border and killing American troops.

Chemical Insecurity (NYT)

the nylon menace

The new Democratic leadership in Congress has a chance to finally protect the nation's chemical plants from an attack.

When John Meets Al (NYT)

comedy series to rival NYT editorials

It's essential for Al Gore and others to become part of the conversation about global warming that John Dingell, the new chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, has invited.

Hedge Funds and Insider Trading (NYT)

editor's 401(k) grudge still weighs heavily

The possibility of a destabilizing meltdown only grows the longer hedge funds escape oversight.

The Clinic Is Open (NYT)

there's no haircut crisis

there's no food crisis

there's no housing crisis if you don't live in a rent-controlled city

why are there none of these?

because there's no tax deduction for any of them.

you pay for them yourself.

so you weigh what you prefer for your money, and don't patronize overpriced services.

magically, overpriced services disappear.

the health care crisis comes from WWII, when health benefits were declared tax free. suddenly your employer could buy health care cheaper than you could. enter third party payers, and lack of market correction.

it snowballs because the higher prices go, the fewer people can afford to be without having somebody else pay for it, and more and more get sucked into this economically unstable system.

solution : make health care a taxable benefit.

stop doing what can't work.

Innovative as they are, office and factory infirmaries will hardly solve the nation's entrenched health care crisis.

Congress's Challenge on Iraq (NYT)

framing is so important when you're wrong.

iraq isn't the point ; it's just the location for islamonutballism at the moment.

President Bush's refusal to come up with a serious policy on Iraq means that the Democrats will have to goad him toward one.

Senate Newcomer Is Designated to Encounter President Bush Yet Again (NYT)

the treason lobby plays to the left

By FRANCIS X. CLINES

Senator Jim Webb, a spirited Democratic freshman from Virginia, looked uneasy as he hand wrote his very first letter of condolence to a grieving constituent who had just lost her soldier son in the Iraq war. The senator, a lantern-jawed Marine veteran with his own son at war, brightened noticeably as he discussed the surprising invitation from his party's leaders to deliver the main response for the Democrats to President Bush's State of the Union address on Tuesday.

Blinding Ourselves in Space (NYT)

concerns rising at a yard a year!

major cities overrun!

stop funding it and concerns will ebb.

You don't have to be a space or climate expert to recognize that this country's ability to track climate and environmental changes from space is heading in the wrong direction. At a time when concerns about global warming are rising, the Bush administration is sharply reducing the number of satellites that can measure the impact of rising temperatures and a host of other environmental trends. The administration's hypocrisy is stunning.

Retreat and Cheat (NYT)

one possible explanation is that the NYT already published it

President Bush's warrantless wiretapping program was once deemed so vital to national security that it could not be subjected to judicial review. Last week, the White House said it was doing just that. In 2005, the White House would not even comment on news reports about the C.I.A.'s prisons because Americans' safety depended on their being kept secret. In 2006, Mr. Bush held a photo-op to announce that he was keeping them open.

The Street Corner Trap (NYT)

stupidity is the problem, not fairness.

drive up the profit margins on something and you will have more of it.

When officials who have dealt with the drug problem on a daily basis conclude that a drug punishment law is neither fair nor serving its purpose, it is time for the Legislature and governor to change it.

Connecticut's Diaspora (NYT)

connecticut needs to obtain an economics textbook

The state needs an improved housing law, without which it faces continued economic stagnation, traffic gridlock and the loss of Connecticut's young.

When Food and Rent Compete (NYT)

thirsty too

so many choices!

but you can't get rent at the food pantry ; they specialize.

rent control doesn't bring you food, only overpriced apartments owing to a housing shortage.

needed : bar subsidies.

Directors of soup kitchens, food pantries and the regional food banks that supply them report that the poor in Connecticut often have to make a routine choice between paying the rent or going hungry

The Reform Window (NYT)

reform fixes what cannot work by introducing something else that cannot work

uncuriosity about the incentive structure is the cause

Sometimes in politics there occurs just the right combination of will, power and urgency to make real progress. Such a moment has arrived in Albany.

Bad Way To Begin Letter to Editors (confederate yankee)

Dear Publisher Inskeep, President Lord, Publisher Mitchell, Publisher Rust, CEO Singleton, and President Smith:

I write to you today as members of the Board of Directors for the Associated Press, asking you to write a wrong that Executive Editor Kathleen..

Public Parks and Private Schools (NYT)

delicate balance of inane editorials and word count threatened

The city will have to work hard if it is to prevent the balance between private interests and the public’s right of access from tipping the wrong way on Randall’s Island.

Sniffing Out the Truth (NYT)

seagull poop

By GREG O’MULLAN, WADE McGILLIS, RAY SAMBROTTO, PHILIP ORTON and BRIAN MAILLOUX

A group of environmental scientists believe that the mysterious odor that blanketed Manhattan on Jan. 8 was caused by gases released from saltwater marshes in the metropolitan area.

What You Can’t Smell Will Kill You (NYT)

step on a crack, break your mother's back

By LUCA TURIN

Relax New York: If the scent is bad, you’re probably safe.

The Underdog Days of Winter (NYT)

federal subsidy needed

By A. J. DAULERIO

The best gambling advice going into the final weekend of actual football — before the Super Bowl spectacle of football — is to veer away from the allure of the underdog trend.

Senate Newcomer Is Designated to Encounter President Bush Yet Again (NYT)

democrat space program

By FRANCIS X. CLINES

Senator Jim Webb brightened noticeably as he discussed the surprising invitation from his party’s leaders to deliver the main response for the Democrats to President Bush’s State of the Union address on Tuesday.

Blinding Ourselves in Space (NYT)

scientist welfare crisis

After pledging that research would be the centerpiece of a new climate change strategy, the Bush administration is underfinancing some of the most important efforts to gather data.

Retreat and Cheat (NYT)

anti-Bush values

The campaign to expand presidential power goes on, at the expense of American values.

The Biggest Man on Campus (NYT)

controversy

By JAMES F. HOLLIFIELD

Southern Methodist University should accept the George W. Bush presidential library.

Archives of Spin (NYT)

history should be run by newspaper editors

By BENJAMIN HUFBAUER

If we give in to the worst impulses of presidents and their supporters, presidential libraries risk becoming temples of political propaganda.

A Product of the U.N. System (NYT)

in any system, intra-system goals come first

it's not particularly perverse, just a system running in the normal way.

so stop creating systems

The indictment of Benon Sevan on federal corruption charges stemming from the Iraqi oil-for-food program points to a continuing problem in the U.N. appointments system.

Reform, Finally, in the Senate (NYT)

corruption produced by govenment taking and spending

corruption grows to take a tiny cut of any vast flow of funds

corruption watchdog committee will be next, taking its cut

the real solution is not to produce the temptation that attracts crooks in the first place, namely taking and spending anything.

An overwhelming majority approved the first serious anticorruption strictures since the Watergate era.

China’s Muscle Flex in Space (NYT)

sun tzu meets feng shui

The way to counter China or any other potentially belligerent space power is through an arms control treaty, not a new arms race in space.

Reforms for Movie Ratings (NYT)

use the same system that reports NYT circulation figures to advertisers

Reforms announced by the motion picture industry are an important step toward making the movie ratings system more transparent and fair.

Tell the Troops (NYT)

troops as victims

anything more complicated makes bad propaganda

It is bad enough for troops in Iraq to learn that their tours of duty have been extended. It is terrible for them to have to hear about it from loved ones at home rather than from their military commanders.

Apology Not Accepted (NYT)

loathesomeness deprecated

Charles Stimson, the deputy assistant secretary of state for detainee affairs, has been trying to spin his way out of his loathsome attempt to punish lawyers who represent inmates of the Guantánamo Bay internment camp.

Nowhere to Turn for Shelter (NYT)

black voting patterns ignored

That New Orleans remains a shattered city is a sad monument to impotence for the most powerful country in the world.

In Which We Reach Southern California in a Season of Strange Weather (NYT)

new yorker with jet lag

By VERLYN KLINKENBORG

No matter where we stopped, it seemed hard to believe that we were really there, because the only there was the pickup cab and the two sleepy dogs in the back seat and the sound of our audiobook.

The Mayor and His Tax Cuts (NYT)

taking other people's money recommended as good in itself

the purpose of private enterprise is to support bureaucrats and their experts

Michael Bloomberg will have to make the case that any gains from his proposed tax cuts would not come at the expense of the fiscal responsibility he himself has long championed.

Politics and the Corruption Fighter (NYT)

clinton appointments

In its secretive purge of key United States attorneys, the Bush administration is needlessly giving comfort to any number of individuals now under federal investigation

A Spy Program in From the Cold (NYT)

congress can't reduce executive authority no matter how much the NYT wants it

The public needs to know why President Bush broke the law for more than five years and what should be done to ensure there will be no more abuses of the wiretap statute.

Another Perspective, or Jihad TV? (NYT)

journalism school graduate

By JUDEA PEARL

As Al Jazeera on the whole feels the heat of world media attention, we can hope that it will learn to harness its popularity in the service of humanity, progress and moderation.

Escape From the Nursing Home (NYT)

animal shelter. employ old people to pet the animals.

By IRA ROSOFSKY

A nursing home works well for short-term recovery. But for long-term care, couldn’t we imagine a better way to spend that $75,000?

How to Choose a Fiscal Watchdog (NYT)

politics deplored, and editorial remedy insisted on

New York legislators should resist the pressure to make a political choice for state comptroller and vote for the most able and independent candidate.

Ending the Prison Windfall (NYT)

increase in blue-state representation proposed

The 2010 census should include a test run at counting the nation’s 1.4 million prison inmates at their permanent addresses instead of in prisons.

Keep Your Shoes On, for a Price (NYT)

editor annoyed by intrusive government

Of all the hassles at the airport in this age of heightened security, perhaps the most annoying is the requirement to take off your shoes to send them through the X-ray screener.

The Missing Partner in Iraq (NYT)

another idea from the newspaper that brought you treason

Nuri Kamal al-Maliki, the prime minister of Iraq, has demonstrated how far his own goals diverge from America’s best interests or any reasonable path for containing Iraq’s civil war.

A Rifle in Every Pot (NYT)

people in flyover country eat squirrels, is the idea of the title

whereas concealed carry is what's proposed, in effete eastern cities like NYC

By GLENN REYNOLDS

What’s wrong with encouraging people to bear arms?

Gadgets as Tyrants (NYT)

times select

By XENI JARDIN

Many new electronic toys limit our freedom to use and share the music, movies and other content they are intended for.

When Being Green Raises the Heat (NYT)

illusion deplored

By KEN CALDEIRA

The notion that we can save the planet just by planting trees is a dangerous illusion.

A Bishop’s Fall Provides a View on Soviet-Era Collaboration (NYT)

cruciating is honored ritual

By SERGE SCHMEMANN

Surviving the Communist dictatorship, especially for anyone in a position of authority, presented excruciating choices, again and again.

Fix the Dysfunctional Family Court (NYT)

word ``trouble'' sought

editorial tip of tongue

New York City’s Family Court, which state neglect has left in something between chaos and despair, is in urgent need of fixing.

Tracking Outsourced Bonanzas (NYT)

few programs includes social safety nets of all kinds, whose only purpose is to take a cut of vast flows of funds

Few Bush administration spending programs are more in need of scrutiny and daylight than the outsourcing of government programs to private contractors.

Energy Time (NYT)

everybody comes to eastern intellectuals for advice

We cannot continue to hold our national security and the health of the planet hostage to our appetite for fossil fuels.

Ethics Fencing in the Senate (NYT)

so, speaking of ethics, how's the treason going?

The Senate’s promising start in reforming its ethical shortcomings is showing signs of slippage.

The Light-Touch Tax Audit (NYT)

assuming found in error

With corporations posting record profits amid nonstop accounting scandals, one would assume that the Internal Revenue Service is looking hard at big companies’ tax returns. Unfortunately, the opposite is true.

Politicizing Prosecutors (NYT)

translation : any man not himself suffering from Bush derangement syndrome

The Bush administration has appointed an extreme political partisan as the new United States attorney for Arkansas.

Busywork for Nuclear Scientists (NYT)

NYT military strategic think tank

all the knee-jerk dot connection that fits

Nearly two decades after the country stopped building nuclear weapons, does it really need a new one? The answer, emphatically, is no.

False Security on Sex Offenders (NYT)

all the better for frighten-the-women news features

Laws that restrict where convicted sex offenders can live risk turning them into unstable, rootless individuals, harder to track and arguably more dangerous.

The Fruits of Fiscal Responsibility (NYT)

pension system proposed

Fighting the urge to spend the city's budget surplus will be a real and pivotal test for New York's elected officials.

They Say We Have Too Many Lawsuits? Tell It to Jack Cline (NYT)

hard luck story meets deadline

By ADAM COHEN

Everyone knows the story of the woman who sued McDonald's because she was burned by hot coffee. But few people know of the Jack Clines, who have been denied their day in court.

Picking Up the Pieces (NYT)

must have been a good speech

the surreal hallucination from the left

It was surreal how disconnected President Bush was the other night, both from Iraq's horrifying reality and America's anguish over this unnecessary, mismanaged and now unwinnable war.

Catch a Falling Star (NYT)

the two coasts where smart people live

The story of British soccer star David Beckham's departure for Los Angeles appeals to us because it matches a notion we Americans cherish about ourselves: We are a destination.

Another Chance to Help (NYT)

overlooked by the other thousand income transfer programs in new york

for Augustine, charity meant thinking the best of somebody rather than the worst.

that was good for the soul.

it changed to money sometime since then.

God really likes money.

Dorothy Townsend needs physical and financial assistance taking care of her two grandchildren, and the Brooklyn Bureau of Community Service, a beneficiary of The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund, provides some.

Earning a Bad Reputation (NYT)

strongly worded letter follows

Only strong pressure from the United States and international help will keep Bangladesh from slipping further off a democratic path.

Round Up the Usual Lawyers (NYT)

jihad misdemeanor

The administration's new attack on lawyers who dare to give detainees the meager representation permitted them is contemptible.

Where Covering a Wedding Can Bring Death Threats (NYT)

Mexican economy thrives thanks to US drug laws

pass more drug laws and it will do even better

a modest example of the cause and effect that is so deplored.

By TINA ROSENBERG

Widespread intimidation of reporters in Mexico has brought coverage of drug trafficking virtually to a halt.

Wake Up Your Computer (NYT)

regulation of competing media proposed

Every user has a personal responsibility for our collective security on the Internet, no matter how much of a hassle updates, firewalls and security patches may be.

Pork, Peanut Butter and Security (NYT)

fly-over resentment

Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York City stated the obvious when he said that money to defend against terrorism should be divvied up based on an assessment of risks, not ``spread across the country like peanut butter.''

Negotiating Lower Drug Prices (NYT)

all cause and no effect is the leftist understanding of everything

It is time for the Medicare drug program to work harder for its beneficiaries without worrying so much about the pharmaceutical companies.

Eau de New York City (NYT)

it's the alertness of new yorkers that prevented the trade center collapse

It is a frightening world, and New Yorkers now know to speak up if we see, hear, sense - or smell - something untoward.

Body Mass and the Student Body (NYT)

fat pimply kid lobby

In an environment in which even a pimple can upset the fragile social pecking order, why add the stress of having to make weight?

Tax Cuts and Consequences (NYT)

as declared in the declaration of independence, man is born entitled to equal income, thus the income tax, according to the NYT

A recent report by Congress's budget agency provides fresh evidence that Bush-era tax cuts have done more to reinforce inequality than to redress it.

The Real Disaster (NYT)

a modern government in the Middle East is a better choice for Muslims than getting annihilated after the first nuclear attack on an American city.

that we have friends in Iraq counts for something, too

against this is Bush derangement syndrome at the NYT and on the left and in the media.

Wednesday night was President Bush's chance to stop offering more fog and be honest with the nation about Iraq, and he did not take it.

A Good Call in New York (NYT)

ESPN sports cell phone sneakers allowed

Gov. Eliot Spitzer set an important national example by backing away from a longstanding policy of charging prison inmates and their families more than six times the going rate for collect calls made from prison.

Well-Grounded Ethics Reform (NYT)

only NYT editors should petition government

lobbyists have agendas, where editors speak plain common sense

It is far past time for Congress to end the mutual back-scratching of lobbyists and lawmakers.

Venezuela Inc.'s Hostile Takeover (NYT)

go mets

While the Bush administration needs to condemn any seizure of American assets, it should choose its words carefully so as not to play into Hugo Chavez's Yanqui-baiting game.

Moving Ahead on Stem Cells (NYT)

right result, wrong reason

as so often when the NYT is right on something

A new study suggesting that broadly useful stem cells can be derived from amniotic fluid without destroying embryos in no way lessens the need to widen the array of embryonic stem cells available for research.

A Meteorite Lands in N.J. Bathroom (AP)

coprolite

FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP, N.J. (AP) - A hole in the roof, a bathroom full of debris and a strange, silvery rock near the toilet - the Nageswaran family soon realized they needed an astronomer, not a contractor, to fully explain what damaged their house.

Don't Play With Maps (NYT)

8th century religion overlooked

By DENNIS ROSS

What's the greatest barrier to Mideast peace? Mythology.

A Green Line in the Sand (NYT)

deadline looms

By DAVID NEWMAN

In Israel, an old but durable marker is finding new relevance.

Appreciations: Mr. Noodle (NYT)

surprise reported

The news on Friday of the death of the ramen noodle guy surprised those of us who had never suspected that there was such an individual.

Common Sense on the Census (NYT)

various steps urged

Various steps must be taken now to ensure an accurate count in the 2010 census.

Past Time to Get Real on Iraq (NYT)

same options as always, a steely determination that does not cave to media's alliance with al qaeda, as well as every other tyrant in the world

What Americans need is for President Bush to acknowledge how bad things have gotten in Iraq and to be honest about how limited the remaining options truly are.

Priorities for New York’s New Year (NYT)

The culture of public problems, is the problem.

since when are goals a good thing?

Some achievable goals must not get overwhelmed by the ambitions and rosy budget forecast of the new year.

A Fleeting Victory in Somalia (NYT)

nuke Iran and the problem goes away

By JONATHAN STEVENSON

Unless America plays a constructive role in Somalia's next stage, the conflict could become a regional war and a new field of jihad.

Free-Market Justice (NYT)

they have to do something that somebody actually wants, rather than something that meets a job description.

By MORRIS B. HOFFMAN

Why do private lawyers do better than public defenders?

Joe Economics (NYT)

In the 80s, there was a frost in Brazil, and coffee became scarce.

Yet the shelves had all the coffee you wanted!

It just cost a lot.

``More than the poor could afford.''

Magically, people cut back to just meet the supply. No lines formed. No glut developed.

What does ``can't afford'' mean?

Suppose you give a poor person $10 for a can of coffee as he enters the store.

Does he buy a can of coffee with the $10?

No, he does not. There's other things he prefers to coffee at $10 a can.

Yet he has the $10!

That's what ``can't afford'' means. It means not that he can't obtain it, but that he prefers other things first, at the price at hand.

Likewise when the poor ``can't afford'' health care or anything else.

Final economics lesson : what happens, instead of giving the poor person $10, you hand him a can of coffee?

Then the demand for coffee does not match the supply, and there is a coffee crisis! The poor have no reason to cut back, because their preference for something else gets no foothold.

They must then take the coffee or nothing.

Now think about health care.

The rising cost of coffee is a reminder that fluctuations in commodity prices are not just about oil and violence in the Middle East.

Mr. Schwarzenegger’s Modest Idea (NYT)

``insure'' means ``pay for'' unless you buy it yourself

it's one of the fallacies of composition that thrives, for some reason

inability to see consequences is the mark of the left

Special recognition is due California’s governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, who is reportedly ready to begin his new term with an actual proposal that his state insure all children.

Congress and Your Security (NYT)

treason excepted

The new Congress should be uncompromising on the challenges of homeland security.

Testing the Testers (NYT)

government is for taking private rights away

The government should not be protecting the private interests of companies that make or test voting machines.

Justice for the Poor (NYT)

mugger defense act

Government has a critical obligation to provide adequate civil legal services for the poor.

Running Dry on the M.T.A. (NYT)

sexual inequality deplored

A railroad that cannot keep its bathrooms clean should probably not be selling beer.

Using the Victims Yet Again (NYT)

best-seller

That the Diocese of Bridgeport would dare to use the welfare of the 23 sex-abuse victims to justify keeping secret the crimes of the clergy against them is downright Orwellian.

Looking Down the Road That Leads Across the U.S.A. (NYT)

thousand steps taken

By VERLYN KLINKENBORG

Between the G.P.S. and the BlackBerry, I realize that we're driving the open road in a cloud of information.

Bipartisanship as the First Resort? (NYT)

bipartisan always means doing what the democrats want, no matter who is in power

If Democratic candidates were smart enough during the campaign to realize that the voters demand bipartisanship, they should be quick enough to try it from the start.

The Imperial Presidency 2.0 (NYT)

founding principles, illogically, defended

The administration's assault on some of the nation's founding principles continues unabated.

Safe as Milk? (NYT)

better production, is why

Asking whether cloned meat and milk are safe is not even the right question. The right question is, why clone at all?

A Status Quo Secretary General (NYT)

sounds like asia's turn

The United Nations Security Council chose Ban Ki-moon as secretary general because they wanted a low-key bureaucrat who wouldn't rock the boat, and the world has gotten exactly that.

Making No Small Plans (NYT)

editor in full cello

What New Yorkers saw in Eliot Spitzer's first week in office was a governor in full trumpet about how to overhaul their state government.

The Senate's Task on Warming (NYT)

wouldn't loading the dice be wise in a dangerous game?

It is important that the new Democratic leadership not lose sight of a fundamental reality: Saturating the atmosphere with greenhouse gases is loading the dice in a
dangerous game.

Rethinking the Death Penalty (NYT)

democrat voter rolls threatened

We applaud a legislative commission in New Jersey for having the courage to recommend that the state become the first to abolish the death penalty since states began reinstating it 35 years ago.

Tax Cuts and the Minimum Wage (NYT)

tax cut anger

Some politicians - mainly President Bush and Senate Republicans - seem incapable of viewing an increase to the federal minimum wage as anything other than a pretext for more tax cuts.

Lagging Judicial Pay (NYT)

lagging pay problem invented

fortunately easily fixed with somebody else's money

The nation would be well-served by a bipartisan package that grants federal judges a sizable raise and requires judges to forgo privately financed junkets that cast an ethical cloud on the courts.

Mr. Negroponte's Newest Job (NYT)

goose entrail revealed

The reported return to the foreign policy fold of John Negroponte - the former ambassador to Baghdad, and, before that, to the United Nations - has a certain logic to it.

A Big Hero in the Big City (NYT)

he or she

If anyone doubts that integrity, compassion and heroism are big-city values, they should consider Wesley Autrey's heroic turn at the 137th Street and Broadway subway station this week.

Out With the Old (NYT)

Salzburger of Home Depot deposed

We hope the departure of Robert Nardelli, Home Depot's imperious chief executive, will mark the beginning of a new era of accountable management at the company.

New Congress, Leftover Challenge (NYT)

credulity test real

The real test for the 110th Congress will be its willingness to clean up its own act by adopting forceful and credible ethics reform.

The Ugly Death of Saddam Hussein (NYT)

spiral fueled

What should have been a symbolic passage out of Iraq's darkest era will instead fuel a grim new era of spiraling sectarian vengeance.

Now It's Belarus's Turn (NYT)

big oil regulation deplored

The Kremlin will let nothing - personal loyalty, contracts, the law - halt its drive to reimpose state control on Russia's energy sector.

A Light Bulb Goes On (NYT)

reduced lightbulb draw increases furnace draw by the same amount, unfortunately, and the electricity is nuclear

but the light bulbs do cost more

It's great news that Wal-Mart is putting its considerable heft behind one of the easiest ways to reduce energy consumption and the production of global-warming gases: the corkscrew-shaped light bulbs of the future.

After the Rip van Winkle Years (NYT)

populist wallet danger

In Gov. Eliot Spitzer, we see a figure poised to rattle Albany's do-little establishment, to air out a dark, closed government and to try to convert New York's Legislature to the higher purposes of public service.

Protecting Internet Democracy (NYT)

goals not supported in the middle east though

Net neutrality is vital to preserve the Internet's role in promoting entrepreneurship and free expression.

100 Years Later, the Food Industry Is Still ``The Jungle''

Sinclair Lewis meanwhile unremembered

By ADAM COHEN

Upton Sinclair's book awakened a nation not just to the dangers in the food supply, but to the central role government has to play in keeping it safe.

Something to Tide You Over (NYT)

warning signs of money

All the money you donate to The Neediest Cases Fund goes to one of seven charities.

Holding the Line (NYT)

stock options are the result of the previous reform

Fudging the grant date for stock options doesn't have the spotlight-grabbing immediacy of Enron's collapse, but it is still gaming the system at the expense of shareholders.

Mr. Wolfowitz and the Bank (NYT)

the jews

Why do so many people at the World Bank mistrust Paul Wolfowitz - including many of the leading shareholders?

Edges and Order (NYT)

small edges imagined

By VERLYN KLINKENBORG

I could easily believe that the purpose of nature is to create edges, if only because every edge, no matter how small, is a new habitation.

Department of Household Security (NYT)

the adverb connection

Thousands of handicapped immigrants who received asylum to enter the U.S. are beginning the new year caught up in an immense backlog of background checks.

Environmental Harmony (NYT)

public problems invented

The Democrats' return to power in Congress has raised hopes that progress can be made on vital matters like global warming, oil dependency, national parks and threatened wetlands.

The Hope of a Fresh Start (NYT)

cynicism that does not extend to ideas of the left

``This will be the year ...,'' you find yourself thinking, but before you can finish the thought you remember what all the previous years have taught you - that there's just no telling.

A New Year for School Reform (NYT)

new ground unrepaired

The No Child Left Behind Act broke new ground when it required the states to educate impoverished children up to the same standards as their affluent counterparts, in exchange for federal aid.

And Now, a Word From Chile (NYT)

memory banks searched

Everyone who followed the debate about privatizing Social Security back in 2005 has vivid memories of the Chilean model.

The Bones of Christmas Past (NYT)

writers' block

By MAURA J. CASEY

When the last visitors are driven to the airport and my house no longer resembles the aftermath of a Roman Saturnalia, the final holiday ritual will loom: taking down the Christmas tree.

A New Year for School Reform (NYT)

all-powerful teachers' union accommodated

While the achievement gains from the No Child Left Behind Act have fallen far short of what Congress hoped for when it passed the landmark federal law, there is encouraging news from a handful of states.

And Now, a Word From Chile ... (NYT)

the american problem is demographic

easily solved : raise the retirement age to match the raise of longevity

The overarching problem with the Chilean model of retirement investments - and the real lesson for the United States - is that private savings are not a substitute for a guaranteed core tier of old-age support.

Editorial Observer; If Eliot Spitzer Could Channel Bob Marshall (NYT)

bear-free cell phones

By ELEANOR RANDOLPH

Almost anybody who loves wandering in a quiet wood -- minus the all-terrain vehicles or snowmobiles or cellphones -- owes a lot of that uncommon silence to Bob Marshall, who helped create the Wilderness Society.

Dealing With Congressman Inc. (NYT)

the reform biz

own money not involved in any proposal

As the Democrats regain power in Congress next week they would be wise to look to one of their own -- Representative John Murtha of Pennsylvania -- for ironic inspiration in enacting the ethics reforms they promised voters

Obstacles in Turkey's Path (NYT)

the unsurprised tense

It came as no surprise when the European Union recently suspended some of its planned membership talks with Turkey.

Sex Offenders in Exile (NYT)

sex offenders need their own political lobby

Of all the places that sexual predators could end up after prison, the worst is out of sight, away from the scrutiny and treatment that could prevent them from committing new crimes.