Editorial voices from elsewhere
Editorial voices from newspapers around the country as compiled by the Associated Press:
Within days of the August 2012 sexual assault of a 16-year-old Weirton, W.Va., girl by two Steubenville, Ohio, football players, allegations were made that school officials tried to cover up the crime. Nearly a year and a half later, the public knows very little about what really happened.
Former Steubenville school Superintendent Michael McVey was scheduled to go on trial on various charges he obstructed justice and falsified records linked to the case and another situation involving an underage girl in April 2012. But after McVey, who was on leave, resigned his post, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine’s office dropped charges against him.
McVey’s decision to resign, made in exchange for having the charges dropped, may indicate he had some culpability in the alleged coverup. But without a trial, details of what he was accused of doing may never come to light.
But the public has heard so many allegations of attempted obstruction of justice that there is an understandable hunger to know more about what happened. DeWine’s office should, if possible, provide more specifics about what was done in the coverup.
Let’s play a little game.
Imagine you’re a parent or a grandparent. Now, consider how you would react if your little one used some of the following language or copped any of these tones during what should be a polite discussion.
“Idiots!”
“Boo hoo.”
“That’s just stupid.”
Those are excerpts from just a few of the hundreds of online comments adults made about school being canceled for severe weather.
School snow days are the bane of working parents with sudden, unexpected child care needs. Unfortunately, as everyone knows, those days are always a possibility during central Illinois winters.
As much as some parents, grandparents and caretakers may wish to disagree, school superintendents are not out to make anyone’s life more difficult when they grapple with decisions about whether to close school for weather, nor are they out there abusing their “power” and closing schools at will. They, too, want children in classrooms learning. They realize that for many children, school is the safest, warmest place they will be during the day.
But, like so many things in life, it’s not that simple.
The president’s sweeping health care law isn’t going away anytime soon – not as long as the Democrats have veto or filibuster power.
So, the bipartisan goal in Congress should be to improve, not undo, what’s popularly known as Obamacare.
That’s actually what happened on the first day the 114th Congress convened. The Republican-run House voted 412-0 to exempt veterans from Obamacare’s employer mandate. The GOP-led Senate then moved the bill to a key committee. Just as significantly, the White House indicated its support.
The apparent agreement to refine Obamacare is small but potentially significant. The American people should encourage more cooperation from their leaders in Washington to improve outcomes for patients while making health care truly affordable far into the future.
Not everything Congress passes will be approved, of course. Some Republican-backed bills will quickly trigger vetoes, especially if “repeal and replace” is the stated goal. Yet President Obama should view GOP proposals on health care with an open mind, especially if they enjoy bipartisan support.