Missouri editorials

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Nov. 9.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch, on Roy Blunt and H1N1:

Roy Blunt usually is not the kind of politician who trades in populist outrage. But there he was last week, issuing a statement from his U.S. House office that said, "While many Missourians are still at risk, Wall Street bankers are at the head of the line for H1N1 vaccine."

Mr. Blunt was reacting to reports, first published by Business Week, that noted that Goldman Sachs, Citigroup and other Wall Street firms had received early shipments of the H1N1 flu vaccine from the New York City Department of Health.

In fact, it turns out that the greed factor - at least as far as H1N1 vaccine is concerned - may be overblown, according to health officials quoted by The New York Times. ...

Still, you could argue that banks should have been in line behind big hospitals like Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, which asked for 27,500 doses and received only 200. Health care workers are among those who are supposed to have priority.

Liberal groups overreacted predictably, blasting the bankers' greed. Mr. Blunt's was one of the few voices raised from the right. He blamed the Obama administration for the problem, saying, ...

He also praised European vaccine manufacturers, which he said were free from the "inflexible regulatory environment" that pesters U.S. vaccine manufacturers. ...

Whatever the reason, we welcome Mr. Blunt to the populist outrage front. Mr. Blunt was in Congress throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s when, during both Republican and Democratic administrations, the banks got everything they asked for, subsequently wrecking the economy. Mr. Blunt has been a reliable pro-banking industry vote, from repealing the Glass-Steagall Act in 1999 to refusing to allow bankruptcy judges to modify mortgages in 2009.

But now, with big banks setting aside billions for year-end bonuses and fighting desperately to preserve their free rein over the economy, with former Goldman Sachs employees and allies still calling the shots at the Treasury Department and with mortgage foreclosures still rising and unemployment at 10.2 percent, Mr. Blunt is taking populist outrage out for a spin.

It might come in handy in next year's U.S. Senate race in Missouri, when Mr. Blunt is expected to be the GOP candidate. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, he's already received $272,000 from the financial, insurance and real estate sectors for that race. Some populist.

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Nov. 9.

The Joplin Globe, on Missouri Southern State University's nursing school policy:

Missouri Southern State University's policy regarding nursing students and tattoos should be updated.

The Globe ... published a story about a few students who were not allowed into the nursing program because they had visible tattoos.

The standard uniform for nursing students at the university is short-sleeved scrubs. Any tattoos that are visible while students are wearing that uniform are not allowed.

However, area hospitals say employees can have tattoos as long as they cover them up with sleeves or a bandage. Other area universities also allow students into their program as long as tattoos are covered.

We would encourage MSSU to make the change, and allow students who have applied to enter its nursing program the opportunity to do so. While we understand that MSSU is trying to uphold standards, we believe the policy has become unreasonable given that it's not required by hospitals.

One student has said that after she finishes her core requirements, she will likely transfer across the state line to Pittsburg (Kan.) State University, where she would be accepted into the nursing school there.

MSSU's policy is now outdated and should come into line with the industry standard. Otherwise, it would appear that MSSU is being the gatekeeper where it is not needed.

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Nov. 8.

Southeast Missourian, on the Missouri Virtual Instruction Program:

Missouri's revenue for the current fiscal year is far below budget projections, and the forecast for the next fiscal year shows the gap widening to well in excess of $1 billion. As a result, state funding is being held or withdrawn for many programs. In the process, funding for the second semester of this school year for the Missouri Virtual Instruction Program has been eliminated. This leaves hundreds of students in the lurch.

MoVIP offers online courses that enhance the curriculum of many school districts. Some homeschooled students take all of their courses through the program. For high school students nearing graduation, the MoVIP cutbacks means they won't get their diplomas and will, in some cases, technically be considered dropouts.

The program began in the 2007-2008 school year with 2,000 students at a cost of $5.2 million. Funding rose to $5.8 million in 2008-2009 with 2,500 students. Funding this year was cut to $4.8 million and limited to 1,600 students. More than 2,000 students were turned away. Some students were added when parents or school districts paid tuition of $325 per course.

Eliminating MoVIP funding is like closing a school. Surely Gov. Jay Nixon can find a way to keep MoVIP going until the end of this school year.

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Nov. 8.

St. Joseph News-Press, on adding truck lanes to state highway:

Federal transportation officials have given Missouri officials the green light to rebuild Interstate 70 across the state to include lanes only for trucks. That's the good news.

But there are a couple of hitches.

The project is expected to cost about $4 billion. Where would the money come from?

And even with lanes separating trucks from regular vehicles, there still will be safety issues.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves. The idea is a sound one. Interstate 70 between Kansas City and St. Louis has been overcrowded for years, a corridor known for an overabundance of semis and vehicles traveling much faster than the 70 mph speed limit. The project recently approved by the federal government calls for trucks in the two inside lanes in each direction, with a grass median separating them from other vehicles. Cars, motorcycles, pickups and SUVs would travel in two outside lanes in each direction. ...

State Sen. Bill Stouffer, R-Napton, chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, has suggested raising the money with a statewide 1-cent sales tax. He projects that would raise enough money to rebuild not only I-70, but also Interstate 44.

The Kansas City Star, meanwhile, has suggested a toll-road approach. Let those who really want to use the road pay for it, the newspaper reasons.

Neither idea is perfect. ...

Further, anyone who has driven in harrowing I-70 traffic knows that semis are only part of the problem. A larger challenge is posed by drivers, many in oversized pickups and SUVs, who act as if they're training for the Indy 500 weaving in and out of traffic, cutting off other drivers, coming up behind you suddenly at speeds up to 90 mph and slamming on the brakes. They get away with it because the state generally is lax in enforcing the 70 mph speed limit.

Truck lanes won't stop that. A little more enforcement by the Highway Patrol would help.

Still, truck lanes for I-70 are a good idea, and officials should pursue the concept assuming they can find a way to finance it.

Meanwhile, remember that U.S. Highway 36 and U.S. Highway 50 also traverse the state from west to east. If you're looking for fewer big trucks and a little slower traffic, they offer a nice option. Sometimes the roads less traveled are the ones most interesting.

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Nov. 5.

The Kansas City Star, on rules for Missouri treasurer:

The Missouri Housing Development Commission has been through a rocky period. In June, a state audit criticized it for incomplete record-keeping, conflict-of-interest problems and weak rules on contracting.

And the panel's executive director was interviewed by the FBI as part of an investigation into low-income housing projects.

Fortunately, Missouri Treasurer Clint Zweifel, who became commission chair in May, has improved the way the panel does business. He quickly won approval for tougher ethical rules on the commission, which allocates tax credits and issues tax-free bonds to help finance affordable housing projects.

Under the new policy, a business relationship between commission members and developers must be disclosed. Members must recuse themselves from any related vote.

A lingering question involves the relationship between commission members and campaign contributors. In September, for example, Zweifel himself benefited from a fundraiser conducted by Sam Hamra of H&H Development Co., which won approval for a project in August.

Is a relationship between a contributor and commission member a red flag? In a recent meeting with The Star's editorial board, Zweifel drew a distinction between personal business relationships - subject to the commission's ethics policy - and campaign contributors.

Zweifel says he complies with the state's campaign finance laws, and added that he supports a cap on such contributions, which would limit the potential influence of any single donor.

Contributors, however, have an annoying habit of expecting some sort of payback. Example: Hamra, the developer who held the Zweifel fundraiser, once complained to the then governor, Matt Blunt, that he (Hamra) had received little in the way of commission projects, even though he had raised money for the governor, who was a member of the panel.

Zweifel has done good work in plugging the commission's ethical loopholes. But his experience with a fundraiser by a contributor who seeks benefits from the commission is another ripe example why the states need limits on contributions.

Missouri moved into dangerous territory by lifting caps on donations. Big donors bring big expectations. Why put taxpayers at risk of favors going to deep-pocket contributors? Or put politicians at risk of appearing to favor those donors?

Reasonable caps on individual donors must be reinstituted to avoid even the appearance of benefits flowing to the highest bidder.

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Nov. 4.

The Sedalia Democrat, on using waste for energy:

The phrase "trash to treasure" is used for a variety of recycling efforts. But nowhere is it more applicable than in the case of the Missouri Center for Waste to Energy, the renewable energy project announced ... at State Fair Community College.

As reported ..., the project would "harvest landfill gas, called methane, and then convert it into electricity." SFCC President Marsha Drennon touted it as a way to create both jobs and energy, and potentially allow the college to be powered entirely by alternative energy.

Capturing methane emitted at landfills and converting it into electricity is not a new concept, but that does not detract from the potential this project poses for Sedalia and the surrounding area. Methane conversion is only the jumping-off point for the project, which eventually could divert waste material from landfills to be burned and turned into more energy that, through green energy purchases by KCP&L, would help reduce local electricity costs. ...

All of (this) means this clever idea, which could have numerous positive effects locally, is reliant on a lot of people with no ties to Sedalia buying into its promise. And we wonder if the CDBG request is denied, will the project die out, or will ProEnergy Services already a key partner in the project or some other entity be willing to take a chance and bankroll the startup costs?

... This is an opportunity to build off of the momentum initiated by ProEnergy to make Sedalia a source for innovative energy concepts, and a chance to prepare local students for the 21st century economy.

But should the CDBG request be denied, we are hopeful that won't be the last we hear of this proposal. The Missouri Center for Waste to Energy is an investment in our community's future.

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