The (Baltimore) Sun, July 28

The federal government has pledged $50 million to cover security costs for this week’s Democratic National Convention. That’s pretty close to what authorities in Boston believe will be spent to protect FleetCenter and the thousands of visitors to the city. This is notable for at least one reason as an unusual example of homeland security costs not being foisted on local government by the Bush administration and its allies in Congress.

Remember when Congress declared war on unfunded federal mandates? That was a decade ago, and clearly, homeland security is a major exception to this charming old principle (but hardly unique, since No Child Left Behind and Medicaid share similar status). President Bush and the Republican Congress have spent billions on preparedness but not nearly as much as the combined spending of local governments (despite their own budgetary woes). Worse, what is spent by the federal government is often not apportioned wisely.

… A recent survey found more than half of the cities have yet to get a first dollar from the federal government’s state-block grants, the nation’s largest homeland security program.

Considering how the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks were aimed at two cities, it’s a shocking state of affairs. …

Campaigns reach out to youth


The Post-Standard, Syracuse, N.Y., July 26

P. Diddy says he wants to make voting cool, so the hip-hop mogul has launched a nationwide effort to make voting “sexy” and encourage young people to vote. His nonpartisan campaign is called “Citizen Change.” That’s cool.

The nation’s eligible young voters need not be sitting on the sidelines for this presidential or any election, including the ones in their own backyard. They may believe political parties are old-school and out-of-touch, but the truth is that young people have the same opportunity as any other group – the opportunity to go into a voting booth and pull a lever. Their numbers are such that they really could influence many elections at the local, state and national level.

Unfortunately, the turnout has been terrible among 18-to-25-year-olds. Nearly 50 percent in that age group voted in 1972, the first time 18-year-olds could vote. In 2000, only 29 percent went to the polls.

Yet campaigns such as P. Diddy’s and others that have preceded him – Rock the Vote, with Madonna as one of its promoters, Russell Simmons’ voter registration drives at his hip-hop summits, BET and MTV voter awareness messages – are positive and much-needed efforts. They speak to a generation whose voice will be heard louder and clearer if it’s backed up by the power of the vote.

Iran’s credibility is strained


La Nacion, Buenos Aires, July 27

Iran just announced it will resume production of parts needed to assemble P-2 centrifuges used to make enriched uranium. This regrettable declaration has inspired distrust among European diplomats, who succeeded last year in having Iran suspend its work in this field, as part of an agreement governing Iran’s controversial nuclear program.

Iran had decided to suspend its program and arrange close cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency, the worldwide organization that is charged with controlling this field. In reality, Iranian authorities, far from collaborating with the IAEA, suspiciously attempted to confuse its investigators. … Iran continues to state that its plan is to cooperate with the IAEA. But the United States and other governments believe that, given certain characteristics of the nuclear program, that they cannot be sure the plan doesn’t have some unstated final goal of turning Iran into a new nuclear power.

This is all very worrisome, and shows Iran’s low international credibility. … Satellite photos have detected the dismantling of nuclear production facilities northeast of Tehran. After the dismantlement, the land was leveled, with the clear of intention of covering up what had occurred. Iran maintains that it has nothing to hide. Still, Iran’s recent announcements have failed to dispel the growing suspicions of the international community.