The Patriot Ledger, Quincy, Mass., Nov.3

… (Senator Kerry) could see that even with more than 100,000 absentee and provisional ballots to be counted in Ohio, the odds were against reversing a Bush victory. In late morning Kerry called the White House to concede the election.

… By any measure, Tuesday was a very bad day for Democrats. Along with Bush’s 3 million-vote margin in the popular vote, Republicans gained seats in both houses of Congress. They had a huge psychological and strategic win in South Dakota, knocking off the Senate Democratic leader, Tom Daschle.

… Social issues were highly significant for the president’s victory. …

… Ohio was telling. In a state that lost a quarter-million jobs on Bush’s watch, social issues would appear to have tipped the balance in the president’s favor. Ohio was one of 11 states with a ballot question on what constitutes a marriage, a subject sure to draw social conservatives to the polls to vote for Bush.

… When the voting details are dissected state by state, it may be that the gay marriage issue was the key variable in a tight election. …

Government’s responsibility


The Walla Walla (Wash.) Union-Bulletin, Oct. 28

There isn’t much money to be made … in preventing flu.

And that’s a significant reason the flu vaccine is in short supply this year. Pharmaceutical companies simply aren’t interested in making the vaccine.

… Flu vaccine can’t be saved from year to year because the flu virus constantly mutates. A year-old vaccine is ineffective.

… In addition, drug companies worry about the legal liability of the flu vaccine. …

This year just two companies made flu vaccine for the U.S. market. But one of the companies, Britain’s Chiron Corp., couldn’t deliver 48 million doses because of a contamination problem. …

U.S. government health officials have established guidelines so the most vulnerable to complications from the flu have access to the vaccine. … But what about next year and the year after?

… The issues of vaccine supply and liability can and should be worked on in a bipartisan manner regardless of who controls Congress and the White House.

After all, protecting the health and safety of the people is one of the primary responsibilities of government. …

Boston curse ends


The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C., Oct. 30

On Oct. 17, the Boston Red Sox were routed in their home park (Fenway) by the dreaded New York Yankees a humiliating, 19-8 defeat that pushed the visitors’ edge to three games to none in the American League Championship Series. Ten nights and eight consecutive victories later, the Red Sox captured its first World Series title since 1918, finally and emphatically removing the “Curse of the Bambino.”

… Boston didn’t need a seventh World Series game, or even a fifth, this time. After taking four in a row over the Yankees to become the first team in big-league history to win a best-of-seven series after losing the first three games, the Red Sox made short work of the National League champion St. Louis Cardinals, capping the four-game World Series sweep with a 3-0 road victory Wednesday night.

Eventually, the Red Sox will lose another game. But not this year. And when they do, nobody will be able to blame it on the Curse of the Bambino.

Bin Laden changes his message


The Jordan Times, Amman, Nov.1

There is something unsettling about the latest videotaped message of Osama bin Laden. The consensus appears to be that bin Laden sought two objectives: To influence Tuesday’s U.S. presidential elections and to extend an olive branch to the U.S. by ending threats against America’s security in return for changing Washington’s policies towards the Arab and Muslim worlds.

(The message) will be noticed by an audience … even more important to the goals of al-Qaida’s leader … a young, certainly more moderate, but definitely frustrated Muslim street.

Perhaps bin Laden has come to the realization that since his tune has not changed, his support is fading. The horror he has perpetrated has done the greatest damage to the Arab and Islamic worlds.

The timing of the release of the tape, just four days before the U.S. elections, suggests rather forcefully that bin Laden seeks … a change of leadership in the U.S. … .

… Meanwhile, has he managed to catch the ear of a disheartened Muslim youth?

Guard changes in South Korea


JoongAng Ilbo, Seoul, South Korea, Nov. 1

The task of guarding the Joint Security Area (JSA) near the truce village of Panmunjeom, overseen by the U.S. forces in Korea for more than five decades, has now been transferred to the Korean military. … Before now, the north of Panmunjeom was guarded by North Korea’s military, but the south was guarded by U.S. forces, an awkward fact. …

… How prepared are we to fill the void left by U.S. forces’ withdrawal from the JSA? … North Korea’s response to the changing of the guard at JSA is also worth noting. It has claimed that transferring responsibility for the Demilitarized Zone from the United States to South Korea violates the armistice agreement. …

Compensating for the decreased U.S. military presence is also an imperative. … The government must provide specifics of how it will cover all the expenses entailed in reorganizing our defense.