Editorial

What they're saying…

Tuesday, January 8, 2008

Here are excerpts from recent editorials in Missouri newspapers:

Dec. 31

The Southeast Missourian, on Southeast Missouri State band:

He is probably far better known nationally among university marching band leaders than he is in his own city.

You might have already seen Barry Bernhardt's work on national television this week. Bernhardt has had his hands on the marching band performances of eight bowl games this year, including the Champs Sports Bowl and the Gator Bowl, which he was to direct.

The others he helped choreograph by using computer software where he can orchestrate movements of up to 2,000 performers.

The director of university bands at Southeast Missouri State University also had a hand in getting the Golden Eagles Marching Band to play at the world renowned Edinburgh Military Tattoo in Scotland last year. They were only the second U.S. university band to be invited.

As if once wasn't enough, the Golden Eagles have been invited back next summer.

Congratulations to Bernhardt and the university for continued musical success around the nation and abroad.

Dec. 31

The Examiner, on the new year:

Maybe the best thing we get from the new year is a half-minute to take a deep breath before resuming the frantic pace of modern life.

After pouring a second cup of coffee and sitting down to take in a New Year's Day parade or football game, a person could look ahead and ponder all that 2008 promises: local, state and national elections; the spectacle of the Olympics; worries about the economy; one new season after another about sports; the thousand and one commitments we all have to keep for family, friends, work, church, service groups and, well, that list never quite ends, does it?

It will be a time of resolutions kept but -- let's be honest -- more resolutions neglected and forgotten. Whose idea was that anyway?

Maybe the best resolution would be to slow down a little and pay more attention to the really important things. But there's always that insistent do-list -- one's own and the world's.

Dec. 28

St. Joseph News-Press, on Sen. Claire McCaskill:

Politicians are routinely judged on the sum of their professional lives. Occasionally, one vote will come along that can define an elected official.

U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill may have just cast that vote when her fellow senators passed an omnibus appropriation bill. You probably heard about it.

The $516 billion authorization measure was needed just to keep the government running while lawmakers continue to quibble over the regular draft of appropriation bills. But it is also famous for swelling up with some 9,000 earmark projects.

Lawmakers use earmarks, of course, to salt away funding for pet projects back home. We will have more to say about this game later in the week, because St. Joseph benefited from the work of another Missouri senator.

Most lawmakers, for that matter, like earmarks. This Christmas tree legislation passed on a vote of 78 to 17. McCaskill, a freshman Democrat, stood up to her own party leadership to vote against the bill. ...

We can point to other signs that McCaskill could just be a rare commodity in Washington. She has demonstrated a penchant for bipartisan efforts. McCaskill crossed the aisle to co-sponsor legislation with Republicans Susan Collins, on whistle-blower protections, and Jim Demint, on government travel abuses.

Her work for a Wartime Contracting Commission produced success in the first session. The independent commission, which aims to address systemic problems associated with military contracting, passed Congress as part of the National Defense Authorization Act. It awaits the president's signature.

While the commission will raise the profile of contracting fraud and abuse, the senator told our reporter that she believes Congress made little progress this year in coaxing the Iraqi government to take account for itself.

We suspect that McCaskill has the chutzpah to keep the pressure on Congress.

Dec. 28

The Kansas City Star, on making Kansas City greener:

Crews are installing new planters along 12th Street downtown, which means more trees are putting down roots in the heart of Kansas City.

Unfortunately, planners discovered that many sidewalks rest atop underground vaults, and in those instances planting a tree is too expensive or impossible.

As a result, the spacing of the 12th Street planters is spotty and erratic on some blocks.

That's too bad. A year ago the city set out to line the street with trees, but the frequency of below-ground cavities meant the number of plantings had to be pruned by about 40 percent. Now officials are looking at more surface planters as an alternative.

Good.

Downtown project coordinator Rick Usher says that in the spring, a couple of proposed planter designs will be tried. The 12th Street project, about 85 percent complete, has been stalled of late because Kansas City Power & Light crews are also working in the area.

Usher says the parks department likes the idea of putting trees in surface planters, but there must be some varieties able to survive as well as planter designs capable of supporting small trees. If not, then perhaps shrubs could offer an alternative.

In addition to the work done by the city along 12th Street, downtown businesses should be encouraged to line their streetfronts with trees and shrubs. As parks department director Mark McHenry says, ''The goal is to make it more pedestrian-friendly, and obviously part of that is landscaping and greenery instead of all concrete.''

The sidewalks of the Power & Light District, still under construction, are lined with trees, as is much of Quality Hill. Surely city officials, despite the underground vaults, can find a way to bring more foliage to other parts of downtown.