News opinion 2008-05-22 Andanh.com

Plan would help cell phone users Thu, 22 May 2008 10:46:22 -0500
People who enter into contracts with cell phone companies shouldn’t have to pay hefty penalty fees if they cancel their services. The federal government is quietly negotiating to help cell phone customers avoid these fees. Under a proposal to the Federal Communications Commission, the wireless industry would give consumers the opportunity to cancel services without penalty for up to 30 days after they sign contracts or until 10 days after they receive their first bills. The proposal would also cap such fees and reduce them month by month over the course of a contract. It would prohibit a wireless company from imposing termination fees on customers who change terms of their contracts or end one contract period and begin another. Although the plan wouldn’t abolish cancellation fees entirely, it would give people who are not satisfied with their service the option of canceling without having to pay huge fees. Currently, some people pay up to $200 to cancel contracts before they expire. This is a lot of money for some customers, which is why we are happy that the FCC is trying to do something to help consumers. Cell phone companies may see these fees as profit centers, but they can also result in lawsuits by disgruntled customers. We believe the cell phone companies offer a pretty weak argument when they say these stiff fees are necessary to recover the cost of cell phones. Even if customers obtain cell phones below cost as an incentive to sign a contract, we doubt that the reduction amounts to $200. It is possible these fees are in place in part to discourage a customer who is dissatisfied with their service from switching to a competitor. There are also benefits to the cell phone companies in the proposal. The government would let cell phone companies off the hook in these court cases where they are being sued for billions of dollars in many states. It would also take away the authority of the states to regulate the charges, known as early termination fees. This is a balanced proposal and for consumers’ sake the FCC and wireless providers should come together and find some common ground.

A boost from Bush Thu, 22 May 2008 10:46:27 -0500
Sometimes the tit-for-tat exchanges of outrage between political candidates make me wonder: Are they for real? Or, like the trash talking between professional wrestlers matches on television, are they just meant to build up the box office take? Consider, for example, how President Bush in a speech to the Israeli Knesset compared those who seek talks with Iran and radical Islamic groups to those who thought they could buy peace from the Nazis before World War II. “We have an obligation to call this what it is - the false comfort of appeasement,” Bush said. Those were heard as fighting words by Sen. Barack Obama. Even though the Democratic presidential front-runner was not mentioned by name, he’s been saying since last July that he’s willing to talk to Iran’s leaders without preconditions during his first year in office. Appeasement? There’s a huge difference between simply holding talks and appeasement. Obama has said he would tell Iran to stop threatening Israel, stop developing nuclear weapons, stop funding terrorist groups like Hamas and stop stirring up deadly mischief inside Iraq. If Iran didn’t agree, Obama says, he would proceed with sanctions. Obama had never advocated talks with terrorist groups like Hamas or called for any giveaways in the way the Sudetenland was ceded to Germany in the 1930s. Still, Bush’s own spokespeople say the president wasn’t talking about Obama. In fact, as some of Bush’s allies insist, he could have been talking about former President Jimmy Carter, who has been quite outspoken in his insistence that Israel negotiate with Hamas. Nevertheless the speed with which Obama responded to Bush’s Knesset comments speaks volumes. After his prolonged primary campaigns, Obama is itching to lock horns with President Bush, especially if it makes the point that electing Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee, will be a “third Bush term.” “It is sad that President Bush would use a speech to the Knesset on the 60th anniversary of Israel’s independence to launch a false political attack,” Obama said in a statement released by the campaign. And McCain could not help but lash back Monday at Obama, saying the Illinois senator’s willingness to talk with Iran reveals “inexperience and reckless judgment.” “It is likely such a meeting would fail to persuade (Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad) to abandon Iran’s nuclear ambition, its support of terrorists and commitment to Israel’s extinction,” McCain said. That gave Obama the perfect opportunity to fire back that McCain was mimicking the policies of the Bush administration in which “anything but their failed cowboy diplomacy is called appeasement.” “For all their tough talk, one thing you have to ask yourself is ’What are McCain and Bush afraid of?’ “ Obama said in Billings, Mont. “I’m not afraid we’ll lose some propaganda fight with a dictator. It’s time to win those battles, because we’ve watched George Bush lose them year after year after year.” Welcome to the beginnings of the general election campaign. There’s a genuine policy debate going on in this back-and-forth. There’s some high-stakes politicking going on, too. With his Arab-Israeli peace process looking for all appearances as though it is dead in the water, Bush relishes an opportunity to retake the center of the world stage, especially with a controversial speech to a very friendly audience at the Knesset. But, at a time when polls show Bush’s disapproval ratings dragging down the ticket and leading congressional Republicans fretting about their tarnished “brand,” McCain’s chances in the general election may hinge on how well he can distance himself from the sitting president. Bush could be more of a burden to McCain in this election year than the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Obama’s retired and very controversial pastor, has been to Obama. Bush has a hard of a time staying out of this fray as Bill Clinton has in staying out of the way of his wife, Sen. Hillary Clinton’s candidacy: This election will be viewed as a referendum on the Bush presidency as much as Sen. Clinton’s campaign is viewed as a referendum on how much “Clinton fatigue” the public is suffering. But this back-and-forth over foreign policy is a risky game for Obama, too. It puts him in the arena of national security debates, where Republicans traditionally have an advantage over Democrats - especially if they happen to be war heroes like McCain, a former Vietnam POW. Yet the campaign must deal with foreign policy sooner or later. For Obama, it’s best to do it now, with months to go before the election, especially when President Bush so willingly offers up the opportunity.

A real choice Wed, 21 May 2008 22:29:00 EST
Tuesday's results in the Democratic Senate primary won't make everyone happy (they never do), but they do set up a clear choice for November.

Equestrian dangers Wed, 21 May 2008 22:30:00 EST
Racetrack breakdowns are not the only safety issue in need of attention to protect horses and riders.

Passing the torch from Ted Kennedy Wed, 21 May 2008 22:31:00 EST
I fell asleep Tuesday night listening to the news about the Kentucky and Oregon primary results -- and with Sen. Ted Kennedy on my mind.

'Pathetic rag' … Wed, 21 May 2008 22:31:00 EST
I've had enough! I've had it with this sorry excuse for a newspaper. I'm tired of reading every story, written as though it should be on the opinion page. I'm tired of this paper's rubber stamp for anything the Democrats come up with. … I'm tired of your race-baiting columnist.

'A personal tragedy and a political cataclysm' Wed, 21 May 2008 22:32:00 EST
Not since the day almost 45 years ago, when word reached Washington that his brother John had been cut down in Dallas, has there been news about an individual that struck so deep a blow to so many in this capital.

God bless Ted Kennedy Wed, 21 May 2008 22:33:00 EST
These days, people on "one side" of the political spectrum are not supposed to cooperate, much less have a personal relationship with anyone on the "other side." Siding with "the enemy" can get you branded a compromiser, a sellout or a fool.

'A good and decent man, who saw wrong and tried to right it' Wed, 21 May 2008 22:33:00 EST
The following are excerpts from the eulogy delivered by Sen. Edward M. Kennedy at the funeral Mass for his brother Sen. Robert M. Kennedy. The remarks were made on June 8, 1968, at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City.

Landed Another... Wed, 21 May 2008 22:24:00 EST

Readers' views Thu, 22 May 2008 08:18 EDT
TEEN ARRESTS SHOULDN'T COST POLICE PAY RAISES

It was appalling to read the May 17 article about the teens who were arrested in Hazard.

I applaud the police officers for the arrests and the ongoing investigation to find out who furnished or assisted the teens in getting alcoholic beverages to begin with. Once those individuals are found, they need to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

The parents of the teens need to thank God and then the police officers for being able to visit their teens in a detention center instead of a funeral home. That's what too many parents of teens do these days.

It would be unfortunate if the officers were punished by having their pay raises withheld. If this should happen, I hope that enough concerned Hazard citizens who are thinking of the welfare of the teens in their community would let their voices be heard at the polls the next time the mayor and city council are up for election.

Obama shouldn't write off Ky. Thu, 22 May 2008 02:04 EDT
On the heels of his drubbings in Kentucky and West Virginia, we have two words for Sen. Barack Obama: road trip.

Once he has sealed the Democratic nomination, he should enlist one or both of the Clintons to show him around the states he lost so decisively.

Former President Bill Clinton has traveled enough Kentucky backroads this spring that he probably wouldn't need a guide. And if actor George Clooney joined in, they'd have a native along.

What the presumptive nominee and his media entourage would find is that despite the region's heartbreaking poverty, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's stronghold in the foothills and highlands of central Appalachia is not the exclusive domain of white racists desperate for their next meal of squirrel brains.

The region has been home to anti-slavery abolitionists, some of the American labor movement's most courageous acts and a strain of Democratic politics that produced such stalwart progressives as the late Rep. Carl D. Perkins.

Stay out of the mud Thu, 22 May 2008 02:04 EDT
Bruce Lunsford did not get a full day to bask in winning the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate before Sen. Mitch McConnell came out swinging.

McConnell demanded, through reporters, answers about how the Louisville multimillionaire would vote or would have voted on various issues.

Fair game.

And the longer this campaign stays focused on public-policy issues, the better for Kentucky voters who shudder at the thought of being mired in mudslinging.

Also, the better for the candidates. Neither can afford to turn off voters.

Clinton win puts Beshear in tough spot Thu, 22 May 2008 02:04 EDT
Primary election thoughts:

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton did what the polls said she would do in Kentucky's presidential primary. She beat Sen. Barack Obama soundly.

The margin might have exceeded some expectations, but that's explainable since the Clinton family became Kentucky residents for the better part of a week and spent considerable time chatting up their new Kentucky neighbors while Obama made just one quick visit to the state.

But the thing is, if the national pundits have it right, nearly two-thirds of Kentucky Democrats voting in Tuesday's primary joined a losing cause by choosing Clinton.

And that could pose a bit of a dilemma for Gov. Steve Beshear, who is one of the three Democratic superdelegates from Kentucky who have remained uncommitted throughout the primary campaign. (Jennifer Moore and Nathan Smith, the party's state chairwoman and vice chairman, are the other two.)

CHEERS and JEERS: Congrats are in order for candidates
The candidates from Barren County performed well in the Democratic and Republican primaries on Tuesday.

Graduation sparks memories
Tomorrow night, the seniors at Glasgow High School will file out of the gymnasium to the sounds of “Auld Lang Syne” while clutching that all-important diploma.

YOUR VIEWS: Legislators praised for not raising tax
Being a smoker, I was recently very disappointed with the state’s budget process, at least until it was completed.

Chinese Dir