Editorials: Long story short
Right way to startFor once, someone has put the horse before the cart: Before deciding where to put casinos in upstate New York, the state Gaming Commission is already planning how to deal with a...
View ArticleNotable quotes of the week
"The timing is unfortunate and we realize that." — Ron Lesko, Albany City School District spokesman, on raises for several administrators at a time when the district says it's struggling...
View ArticleKathleen Parker: Noah gets the Hollywood treatment
Washington There's nothing quite so helpful as a fatwa and threats of a Christian boycott to create buzz in advance of a new movie.''Noah," scheduled for its U.S. release March 28, has become such a...
View ArticleMaureen Dowd: Democrats wallow in fear, loathing
Washington Scott Brown, the Republican who admitted he wore pink leather shorts on his first date with his wife-to-be, is back.And Democrats are scared to death.It's not that Democrats are...
View ArticleCommentary: All countries must renounce force, use diplomacy to defuse crisis
Russian President Vladimir Putin has described the collapse of the Soviet Union as the "greatest geopolitical catastrophe" of the 20th century. Putin's actions in Ukraine reflect his determination to...
View ArticleCommentary: Crimeans confront their future
On the edge of the Black Sea, the Monument to the Fallen Sailor faces Crimeans commuting between the cities of Simferopol and Yevpatoria. This animated sculpture of three sailors is a disquieting...
View ArticleFDA should push for consistent drug-warning labels
The following appeared in a Los Angeles Times editorial:When Congress gave generic drugmakers a shortcut onto the market 30 years ago, it required them to provide the same warnings as the brand-name...
View ArticleCharles Krauthammer: Still time to thwart Russians
The president of the Los Angeles World Affairs Council challenges critics of President Obama's Ukraine policy by saying "What are you going to do, send the 101st Airborne into Crimea?" Not exactly...
View ArticleEditorial: Shine the light, Congress
It seems lately that the more government wants to know what citizens are up to, the less government wants citizens to know what it is doing. At a time when we are witnessing extraordinary revelations...
View ArticleEconomic citizenship isn't taxing
"I think we could do it for about $200,000," I told my wife in a text message. "That's not bad. I'll do more research in the morning and let you know what I find out."That figure is the going rate for...
View ArticleEditorial: Whose election is this, anyway?
In our republic, there is little as fundamental — as sacrosanct, really — as the voting process. To retain the public's faith, it must be transparent.So it's troubling that the Rensselaer County Board...
View ArticleRelinquish adoption protections
When I drove into Albany pulling a U-Haul with most of my worldly possessions, I was 23, and I was already on the run from my past. I'd had a child in Rochester and given her up for adoption. Now I...
View ArticleLearning curve at the Core
The following appeared in a Los Angeles Times editorial:If a sentence contains the phrases "New York state" and "Common Core," chances are that somewhere between the two is the word "botched." New...
View ArticleEditorial: Charter school $ecret$
THE ISSUE:A court says the state comptroller may not audit charter schools.THE STAKES:The public has a right to know if its money is being spent wisely. By the State Education Department's latest...
View ArticleFood is an everyday human right
Income inequality is the buzz word right now. President Barack Obama is talking about the enormous gap between rich and poor, and the state Assembly is seeking to expedite the 2015 minimum wage raise...
View ArticleDavid Brooks: A chance for change in Newark
Shavar Jeffries was born in Newark, N.J., in 1974, the son of a 19-year-old mother who was unprepared to take care of him. He spent the first nine years of his life shuttling between different...
View ArticleSwans teach life lessons
The mute swan may not speak for itself, but it doesn't need to. It's got friends. Nobody knew the depths of affection that New Yorkers have for these magnificent creatures, who graced city parks...
View ArticleEditorial: First, reform the Regents
THE ISSUE:Filling seats on the Board of Regents has become an embarrassingly flawed process.THE STAKES:This isn't just another patronage dump, but where education policy is decided. Add one more...
View ArticleEditorial: A fresh burst of sunlight in Washington?
For citizens who believe open government is fundamental to a healthy democracy, the Obama administration has been a huge disappointment.Halfway through his second term, the administration of President...
View ArticleResponse time to plane was critical
The following appeared in a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette editorial:It is difficult to comment on the missing Malaysia Airline plane that disappeared March 8 without appropriate sensitivity.Even if the...
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