European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 8, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Sunday april 8 2007 stars and stripes Page 21 opinion what newspapers Are saying at Home the following editorial excerpts Are selected from a Cross Section of newspapers throughout the United states the editorials Are provided by the associated press and other stateside syndicates fair to discuss Iraq timetable the Lima Ohio news Congress by a 5048 vote in the Senate and a 218212 margin in the House passed a Bill that attaches a timetable for withdrawal to a billion funding Bill for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan the two versions will be reconciled before being sent to the White House president Bush has vowed to veto any Bill with a dead line for withdrawal and neither House is Likely to Muster a two thirds majority to Over ride a veto still these Bills Are an important mile Stone democrats believe they owe their majority in Congress to americans Discon tent with an increasingly unpopular War in and they have translated that Discon tent into a plan of their own an honest assessment must include the very real possibility that a us withdrawal will be followed by a period of bloodletting in Iraq but the costs of leaving must be balanced against the costs of staying with Little Chance of improving conditions the Cost to taxpayers is some billion per month and rising the Cost in american lives is now about 800 a year and Likely to Rise even a superpower cannot maintain such a commit ment indefinitely dont complicate War funding the Greenville so news a supplemental spending Bill to fund the War in Iraq deserves a veto from president Bush for two reasons it contains an ill con Cei Ved deadline to bring Home american troops and it is loaded with pork barrel spending that has no place in supplemental War appropriations legislation telling the enemy when the us forces will leave a War zone sends a message to the terrorists and iraqi insurgents they have won and need to hold out for another year to be rid of american forces putting such a Light at the end of the Tunnel would endanger us forces there is a time and place for every debate in Congress that includes the unrelated spending in the Iraq funding Bill and the idea of bringing the troops Home but Nei ther Issue belongs in the War appropriations Bill which should be about supplying the troops and nothing else president Bush has rightly promised to veto this Bill when a reconciled version is for warded to the White House following con Gress Spring recess after the veto con Gress ought to vote on a proper Bill that sup plies our troops and is not obscured by a frivolous deadline or massive amounts of pork Bush right to go against Grain Poughkeepsie journal it is on its face extremely difficult for our Federal leaders to vote against anything in tended to help Farmers but some of the country farm subsidies have gotten completely out of hand president Bush is proposing to bring some sense to the system Congress must embrace this new direction having failed the last time around the farm Bill a massive piece of Legisla Tion is up for renewal having last been addressed in 2002 Back then Congress consid ered but then rejected the sound idea that Caps should be placed on How much Money Mega farms get from taxpayers Mega farms would rather see Congress merely extend the 2002 Deal but the Bush administration is correctly pushing for Caps this year since certain congressional districts most notably in the Midwest and South have a lot to lose Here Bush plan will meet with stiff prickly City by Scott Stantis opposition in some circles but the administration has taken an important step to put some sanity Back into farm subsidies con Gress should look to improve the plan not gut it pay go has enduring Appeal the Star Ledger Newark no ifs budget season in Washington and this year there is some Welcome substance to the usual prattle about fiscal discipline and responsibility democrats in both the House and the sen ate Are making a Payas Yugo mandate Cen trial to their trillion budget plans mean ing any spending increases or tax cuts have to be paid for either with spending cuts or tax increases this sensible principle helped balance the budget in the 1990s but quickly disappeared during George w Bush first republicans chopped taxes raised spend ing and went to War in both Afghanistan and Iraq the result a National debt that has Ca reared toward a vertiginous trillion level the democrats budget plans have other flaws including relying on questionable future surpluses to pay for expanded Chil Drens health insurance As Well As accepting for accounting purposes the presidents Wishful idea that Iraq and Afghanistan War spending will total Only s50 billion in 2009 but the party decision to restore pay go As ifs known As a Central pillar of the Bud get process is a real and important first step toward getting the Federal deficit Back under control republicans should support pay go discipline not demonize it punish execs for illegal hires Dorado Ark news times two executives at Golden state Fence co were sentenced late last month after plead ing guilty in Federal court to knowingly Hir ing illegal aliens ironically the san Diego company once helped build a Fence to keep illegal immigrants from crossing the mexican Border into the United first the company gets the contract to build the Fence then hires the people the Fence was intended to keep out Mel Kay founder chairman and president of Golden state Fence co and manager Michael Mclaughlin have been ordered to each per form 1040 hours of Community service and spend three years on probation Kay 64 was fined As part of a plea agreement and Mclaughlin 42 agreed to pay the penalty for Golden state and its executives goes far beyond what sentence the fed eral court has handed Down the firm was banned from government work which accounts for 30 percent of its Revenue convicting and punishing the us Compa Nies that knowingly break our Laws is the Way to quell the flood of illegal workers if the illegal workers dont have jobs they wont come Here weve made this Point Many times knocking the wind out of the profits of some of these multimillion Dollar companies and shining the spotlight of pub Lic scrutiny on their shameless executives will work Tillman family deserves better Walla Walla Wash when Pat tinman a Star football player for the Arizona cardinals gave up his Multi million Dollar salary to be an army Ranger he became a poster boy for military recruit ers he put his country before himself and when Tillman was sent to the front lines in Afghanistan the Pentagon brain Trust had visions of Tillman emerging As a hero but War is not predictable Tillman was shot and killed the army still yearning for a hero altered the facts surrounding Tillmans death to create the illusion that he died on the Battlefield in combat with the enemy the truth was that Tillman was killed by Friendly fire the us government lied to the Tillman family and it lied to us the tinman family has had enough of it and is now calling for a congressional investigation the family is not satisfied with the army apology four years after Tillmans death the Tillmans Are right to be sceptical they have been lied to by the government since the Day Tillman was killed at this Point the army must take extraordinary Steps to regain credibility and not just about Tillmans death but the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq Pat Tillman served this nation with Honor his family in pushing the army and the de sense department to be honest with the american people is also serving the nation Green Light on global warming the Baltimore Sun the supreme courts rebuke of presi Dent Bush policy on global warming appropriately rejected the administrations absurd argument that it Doest have the authority to regulate greenhouse emissions but the real Impact of the High courts unexpectedly Strong stand in support of Carbon dioxide curbs to combat global warming will Likely be in Congress where lawmakers now have a powerful Case for Federal action and affected industries should be newly motivated to cooperate if Only to avoid a Patchwork of state legislation with this affirmation of regulatory authority the stage should be set for aggressive action by the executive Branch but no sur prise Here Bush made Clear last week that Hes still in no hurry so Congress must move Forward on its own with Tough Stan Dards for motor vehicles As Well As smoke stacks global warming is already having harm Ful effects including melting Polar ice Caps rising seas and extended droughts the urgency of remedial action can hardly be overstated the United states has been dragging its heels for too Long sing a new tune in the swamp Florida today Melbourne question what is Florida state song most of us Haven a clue and May be sur prised to learn the Anthem is tainted the old folks at Home better known As Way Down upon the Swanee River be came the states official tune in 1935 the song was composed in 1851 by Stephen never visited Florida so the connection is purely arbitrary theres something else about the song you should know its official version contains highly offensive racial lyrics including a mention of darkens and imitative slave Dia Lect that3s Why some lawmakers and the Florida music educators association want to retire it and Are sponsoring a contest asking the Public to compose possible re placements through a web site  have up and running by the summer a Bill to make the winning song official will follow next year there right to push for the change ifs time for this song with its ugly overtones to be left behind missing life in the slow Lane the Orlando a Sentinel remember when families used to gather around the card table building empires and trying to avoid bankruptcy and jail All while talking laughing and making warm memories until the wee hours of the morn ing through those Long games of monopoly generations of children Learned to count Money parents developed patience and fam ily Bonds grew stronger what a contrast to today fast paced video games whose players often Are More interested in beating their last score than in sharing the experience with family no matter How quaint and old fashioned those Dusty Board games May appear in the Shadow of their flashy modern Day cousins there is something appealing about their Power to slow people Down and bring them together that Why we were disappointed to hear that in an Effort to keep up with the times the old Boardgames companies Are picking up the Pace and offering shortened versions of the classics expect monopoly express scrabble express and sorry express to be introduced this year along with a streamlined version of the game of life a 20minute game of monopoly that barely enough time to get through a big bowl of Popcorn the change  come As a Surprise to anyone Given today microwave mentality still its a sad commentary on society when families cant squeeze in a couple of Low tech hours for one of lifes simplest plea sures full length Board games without them How can you Ever achieve the great Triumph of building a hotel on Boardwalk