New SAT writing section scores low
The essay-writing expectations bear no resemblance to real life. By
Mark Franek
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0215/p09s02-coop.html?s=hns

http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=3671

Medicare Prescription Drugs: Medical Necessity Meets Fiscal Insanity
Joseph Antos and Jagdessh Gokhale
Cato Institute Briefing Papers

___________________________________
THE EVENING WRAP

February 14, 2005 -- 5:03 p.m. EST

The telecommunications industry continued its steady consolidation as MCI agreed to be purchased by Verizon for $6.75 billion.

More Wedding Bells

By MARK GONGLOFF
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE

The telecommunications industry continued its steady consolidation as MCI agreed to be purchased by Verizon for $6.75 billion.

MCI, the long-distance provider formerly known as WorldCom, took Verizon's offer, even though it was lower than one previously made by Qwest, a smaller regional phone company. Qwest had offered more than $7 billion, but MCI shareholders considered Verizon's financial condition more solid. The deal is a sort of triumph for MCI, which not long ago emerged from bankruptcy after former executives committed some $11 billion in accounting fraud, the biggest in corporate history. But investors were disappointed that MCI didn't win a more lucrative merger deal, and its shares fell nearly 4%. Shares of spurned suitor Qwest fell nearly 4%.

The apparent winner in the deal was Verizon, which bought itself a passel of business customers, helping it keep pace with competitor SBC, which recently bought AT&T to bolster its own business portfolio. "It enables Verizon to more aggressively address the enterprise market, in which it had less traction than SBC," Prudential Equity analyst Christopher Larson wrote in a note. Other analysts, though, were less than enthused about buying into Verizon, some saying SBC still had an edge and others saying Verizon's shares weren't cheap. They fell slightly today.

Some indicated that customers will be the clear losers because of shrinking competition. "Pricing pressure in the enterprise market will likely increase as the carriers now control access in roughly two-thirds of the U.S.," UBS analyst John Hodulik wrote in a note -- good news for carriers, not so great news for businesses that need services. Independent long-distance service is now nonexistent, and there are suddenly just five large players in the industry, each offering the same broad array of services to both consumers and businesses. Of those three, Verizon, SBC and the company that will be formed by the Sprint-Nextel merger will dwarf the other two, BellSouth and Qwest, in annual sales. Ma Bell and her seven Babies, created with the break-up of AT&T in 1984, have re-coalesced into just four big firms: Verizon, SBC, BellSouth and Qwest. A wave of mergers in the wireless industry has resulted in a big three of Cingular (owned jointly by SBC and BellSouth), Verizon Wireless and Sprint-Nextel.

AIG Gets More Subpoenas
New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer and the Securities and Exchange Commission served insurance giant American International Group with subpoenas last week, looking for information about "nontraditional insurance products and certain assumed reinsurance transactions and AIG's accounting for such transactions." The subpoenas were delivered just after AIG finished telling shareholders and analysts that an internal probe had revealed no wrongdoing in the company, aside from the alleged bid-rigging activity that led to guilty pleas by two former AIG executives last year. AIG was implicated, but not charged, in a wide-ranging probe by Mr. Spitzer and other regulators into industry practices, including allegations that insurance companies had paid insurance brokers kickbacks to steer clients their way. Without admitting or denying wrongdoing, AIG also settled a separate investigation last year into charges that it had helped two clients pretty up their earnings with some unusual insurance services that functioned more as loans. AIG's shares, which had grown back from a steep haircut last fall, lost more than 2% today.

Stocks Aimless
U.S. stocks struggled to find direction. The latest leg of the roller-coaster ride of Dow component AIG helped pull the Dow down some 5 points, with about 603 million shares trading on the Big Board. The S&P 500 rose less than a point. The technology-heavy Nasdaq rose about 6 points. Google shares jumped more than 2% on the last day of the post-IPO lock-up period for some 177 million shares owned by company insiders. Crude-oil futures edged higher on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Treasury bond prices inched up, keeping interest rates low. The dollar fell against the euro and the Japanese yen. Major European markets were mixed, while major Asian markets rose.

Former Lebanese Premier Dies in Blast
After years of relative calm, Beirut was shattered this morning by a massive explosion that took the life of Lebanon's former prime minister, Rafik Hariri, killed nine other people and wounded a hundred more. No one credibly claimed responsibility for the bombing, and it was not clear what anybody would have had to gain from it. Mr. Hariri had led Lebanon since the 1990 end of its 15-year civil war, but resigned last year after a dispute with Syria. He had since called for the removal from Lebanon of Syrian troops, which have occupied part of the country since 1976. But Syria's president called the blast a "criminal action," and its government argued that unknown groups were trying to worsen relations between Lebanon and Syria. The U.S. has condemned Syria's continuing influence in Lebanon.

Three explosions in the Philippines, including one that blew up a bus in Manila, killed 11 people and injured about 130 more. A militant rebel group associated with al Qaeda claimed responsibility for two of the attacks, and officials said they believed they the group was also responsible for the third.

More Pentagon Contracts Under Scrutiny
The Pentagon announced an investigation of eight more contracts between the Air Force and various firms, including Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Andersen Consulting. The Pentagon said the contracts, worth about $3 billion in total, were influenced in one way or another by Darleen Druyun, a former top Air Force weapons procurement official. Ms. Druyun was recently sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to charges that she'd awarded government work to Boeing, including a $23.5 billion order for aerial refueling tankers, while seeking work with the firm. Former Boeing executive Michael Sears is scheduled to be sentenced later this week for improperly giving Ms. Druyun a job. The Pentagon cautioned that it was still too early to tell whether there was really any wrongdoing involved in the new contracts under scrutiny. Boeing's shares were little changed.

OfficeMax CEO Resigns
OfficeMax said its CEO had resigned, and it announced the firing of two more employees amid an internal probe of its accounting. The office-products retailer also said it overstated earnings for the first quarter of fiscal 2004 by $5 million to $10 million and understated income in the second and third quarters. For good measure, the company also slashed its forecast for operating income for the full year. OfficeMax shares fell nearly 6%. Last month, the company's chief financial officer resigned after just two months on the job, and four other employees were fired. The internal probe involves a claim by an unknown vendor that OfficeMax employees had falsified bills of about $3.3 million. The company said it would end its investigation later this month.

Nokia, Microsoft in Sudden Thaw
Nokia and Microsoft said they were working together to develop a way for customers to transfer music, e-mail and address books from their computers to their Nokia phones. It was an abrupt truce to what had been a somewhat heated battle; Nokia, the world's biggest cell-phone maker, had long been a vocal agitator against Microsoft's efforts to apply its software to cellphones. Last year, Nokia competitor Motorola teamed up with Apple to let customers play iTunes on Motorola phones.

VW Profit Drops
Volkswagen AG said it earned 677 million euro ($871.2 million), or 1.75 euro a share, in 2004, down 31% from the prior year. Sales rose 4.9% to 88.96 billion euro. Europe's biggest auto maker had the weakening dollar to thank for its troubles, as the greenback fell sharply against the unified currency last year, hurting many European exporters. But VW said it would keep its dividend unchanged, a move that may please shareholders but will erase much of the company's profit. VW has been trying to cut costs amid tightening competition, and investors may be liking what they see; the company's shares have jumped some 14% so far this year.

Sullivan Cross-Exam Delayed
The judge in the fraud trial of former WorldCom CEO Bernard Ebbers delayed until Wednesday the defense's cross-examination of former CFO Scott Sullivan. Mr. Sullivan, who has pleaded guilty to participating in the biggest accounting fraud in U.S. corporate history, ended about four days of direct testimony today. Without explanation, the judge said cross-examination wouldn't begin until Wednesday. Mr. Sullivan has accused Mr. Ebbers of ordering the fraud to keep WorldCom's stock afloat, a charge that Mr. Ebbers has denied.

In the trial of former Tyco International executives, the company's former head of human resources testified that she was never asked to hide from the board details of compensation paid to former CEO Dennis Kozlowski and former CFO Mark Swartz. The two men are accused of using the manufacturing conglomerate as their personal piggy bank, charges they have denied.

Deadly Underwater Gnomes Return
Somewhere at the bottom of Wastwater, the deepest lake in the U.K.'s Lake District, is an underwater kingdom of garden gnomes. One rides an airplane, another pushes a lawnmower and a third has been nicknamed Gordon. "I've seen around 40 gnomes down there but there must be more," one diver told London's Daily Mirror. "They are all over Wastwater." Sounds amusing, but it's deadly, according to reports today by the Mirror and the BBC. The garden has apparently killed several unskilled divers, who stayed too deep for too long gawking at the goofy sight, in recent years. Police removed the garden, which was surrounded by a picket fence, but other divers have reportedly restored it in another location in the three-mile-long lake. A diver interviewed by the BBC warned underwater gnome-hunters to proceed with caution: "You have got to be experienced to go below that sort of depth, especially in Wastwater. It's a very risky thing."

http://online.wsj.com/articles/the_evening_wrap

__________________________________
TODAY'S MARKETS
The Dow Jones industrials fell 4.88 points to 10791.13 as investors mulled the Verizon-MCI merger. AIG and Hewlett-Packard weighed on the blue chips. Trading in Google was heavy following a lock-up expiration of 177 million insider shares.

http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1108382...tml?mod=djemTEW


Since it was published four years ago, the "hockey stick" temperature graph has been used by hundreds of environmentalists, scientists and policy makers to make the case that the industrial era is the cause of global warming. Now, a semiretired Canadian mining executive is raising doubts about the graphic's veracity.

http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1108340...tml?mod=djemTEW

It took the discovery of crude oil in Pennsylvania in 1859 to kill off the U.S. whaling industry. It may take something almost as momentous to kill off an $8.5 million federal program that celebrates it.

http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1108340...tml?mod=djemTEW

GM agreed to pay Fiat $1.99 billion to end an alliance between the two auto makers. Under the deal, GM will no longer be required to buy the 90% stake in Fiat's auto unit that it doesn't already own.

http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1108294...tml?mod=djemTEW

Judge may reveal report on FBI:

A federal judge is weighing whether to make public a secret Justice Department report that officials say is sharply critical of the FBI for failing to piece together terrorism leads before the Sept. 11 attacks.
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/nation/3037164

ON POLITICS
February 15, 2005

Performance Assessment
By Charlie Cook, National Journal

What with President Bush's State of the Union speech, the ongoing debate over his efforts to change Social Security, his federal budget proposal, and the Iraqi elections, political junkies have had plenty to chew on in recent weeks. To top it off, we can mull former Sen. John Edwards's never-too-soon visit to New Hampshire and the creation, at the University of North Carolina, of a poverty policy institute that could give him a springboard for a 2008 bid for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Edwards's poverty-institute move was pretty straightforward: He needed a platform that would allow him to stay engaged in public policy debates while continuing to run his One America political action committee, which will facilitate his political travels. His challenge is to remain a part of the national political dialogue and to project an image that is different from whatever Democrats eventually decide was the cause of their failure to win the White House last year.

But the more-interesting development was the Feb. 8 release of a new CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll indicating that Bush's job-approval rating has surged 6 points—from 51 percent on January 14-16 to 57 percent last weekend. The increase appeared to be driven by favorable news coming out of the Iraqi election. The president's approval rating on his handling of Iraq rose 8 points—from 42 percent approve, 56 percent disapprove to 50 percent approve, 48 percent disapprove. On the similar topic of his handling of foreign affairs, Bush's approval rating jumped 4 points—to 51 percent—and his disapproval rating dropped 5 points—to 44 percent.

The American public's increased optimism about Iraq was also evident in responses to questions that did not mention Bush by name. A majority of respondents—55 percent, up from 47 percent—said that going to war in Iraq was not a mistake. And 53 percent said that things in Iraq are now going "moderately well" or "very well," up from 40 percent last month. Sixty-four percent said they think it is "very likely" or "somewhat likely" that a democratic government will be established in Iraq—a 17-point surge.

On domestic policy questions, Bush's approval scores didn't improve much. For example, approval of his handling of the economy held steady at 50 percent. And on his handling of Social Security, he bumped up just 2 points—to 43 percent.

So, is the rise in Bush's overall job-approval rating just a temporary blip or something more enduring? Since good news out of Iraq seems to have driven his numbers up, events in Iraq are likely to determine whether Bush can retain his current popularity. The success of his domestic initiatives may well hinge on whether he stays at least as popular as he is today.

Even though Bush is asking a great many constituency groups to absorb painful budget cuts to pay for a war, if that war is perceived as going well, he'll be in a fair position to make the cuts stick. But if the news from Iraq again turns relentlessly negative and American deaths continue to mount, then the president will be buffeted by complaints that he wants to cut domestic programs to pay for an ill-conceived and badly executed war.

Bush's popularity or unpopularity has a tremendous impact on the behavior of members of Congress. If Republican lawmakers are forced to choose between favorite constituency groups and a president whose approval numbers are high, they might decide differently than if that president is looking weak and unpopular. Once lame-duckitis sets in, the rest of a presidency is history.

On the Social Security front, skepticism about Bush's proposals continues. Only 44 percent of respondents approve of his approach, even though it was the centerpiece of his nationally televised State of the Union address.

If Bush pursues a plan that cuts future benefit levels by gearing cost-of-living increases to the rise in prices, not the faster rise in wages, and if he carves out a big chunk of Social Security payroll taxes to fund private accounts, reducing the funds that will be available for the next wave of retirees, his plan is destined to fail. On the other hand, if Bush remains flexible and willing to modify his proposal and demands, his chances of success are pretty good.

Regardless of the contours of Bush's final Social Security plan, where he stands in the polls will have an incalculably large influence on how effective he is over the next year or two. At some point, though, inevitably, the lame-duckitis that every second-term president eventually suffers will overtake him.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This column is published at http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0205/021505op.htm
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chertoff nomination stalls over Guantanamo Bay questions
By Greta Wodele, CongressDaily

Michael Chertoff was on the fast track this week to become the next Homeland Security secretary, but debate on class-action overhaul and a holdup over a contentious FBI memo has pushed back the vote to Feb 15.

"There are on-going negotiations between [Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich.] and the Bush administration, and we're focused on the class-action debate," said a spokeswoman for Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., Wednesday. She said the vote is likely to be early next week. Levin's spokesman Wednesday said the senator was not holding up the vote.

Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs ranking member Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., and Levin are waiting for the Justice Department to produce an uncensored copy of a memo on the Bush administration's interrogation policies at Guantanamo Bay during Chertoff's tenure as head of the department's criminal division, according to aides.

Full story: http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0205/021005cdam1.htm

NEWS ANALYSIS
With Huge Proposed Mergers, the Regulatory Maze Ahead for a
Recast F.C.C.
By STEPHEN LABATON
Most expect that the recent mergers, including Verizon's
acquisition of MCI, could prompt a fine-tuning of existing
rules.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/business/15regs.html?th

After Lengthy Wait, Acting Head of F.D.A. Is Picked to Be
Leader
By GARDINER HARRIS and ROBERT PEAR
Dr. Lester Crawford's nomination comes amid widespread
calls that the Food and Drug Administration strengthen
oversight of drug safety.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/politics/15fda.html?th

- QUOTATION OF THE DAY -

"Gay men do not have the right to spread a debilitating and often fatal disease. A person who is H.I.V. positive has no more right to unprotected intercourse than he has the right to put a bullet through another person's head."
- CHARLES KAISER, historian and author of "The Gay Metropolis."


http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/health/15aids.html?th

..................

- ARTS -
'The Gates'
Coverage of Christo and Jeanne-Claude's installation in Central Park includes video and photos.
http://www.nytimes.com/ref/arts/design/GATES-REF.html?th

Trying to Strengthen an 'I Do' With a More Binding Legal Tie
By RICK LYMAN
Gov. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas and his wife publicly
revised their vows in an effort to promote so-called
covenant marriages.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/national...arriage.html?th

370, Mostly Celebrities, on Jackson Witness List
By JOHN M. BRODER
The defense's witness list contains well-known people like
Kobe Bryant, Quincy Jones, Larry King, Diana Ross,
Elizabeth Taylor and Stevie Wonder.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/national/15jackson.html?th

Rocket Fails to Launch in Test Run
By DAVID STOUT
An interceptor rocket failed to launch from its base on an
island, leaving the target rocket to splash into the
Pacific Ocean.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/politics/15missile.html?th

Vote Nearing, Clean Air Bill Prompts Rush of Lobbying
By MICHAEL JANOFSKY
The burst of activity by forces for and against the Clear
Skies Act of 2005 reflects the approaching showdown over it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/politics/15enviro.html?th

Pentagon Is Investigating Another 8 Air Force Contracts
By LESLIE WAYNE
The Pentagon is investigating the contracts as part of a
broader investigation into influence-peddling involving a
former Air Force official and the Boeing Company.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/business/15boeing.html?th

A.I.G. Receives 2 Subpoenas: One Federal, One From State
By JOSEPH B. TREASTER
The subpoenas seek information on nontraditional insurance
and transactions that some companies have used to improve
the appearance of their financial statements.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/business/15insure.html?th

Merck's Actions on Vioxx Face New Scrutiny
By BARNABY J. FEDER
The spotlight is likely to be on Pfizer on Wednesday when
federal drug regulators begin hearings on cox-2 drugs, the
medicines that include Celebrex and Bextra.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/business/15merck.html?th

Self-Inflicted Wounds
It is becoming increasingly clear that prisoner abuse is a
wretched failure that does nothing to aid the war on terror.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/opinion/15tue1.html?th

On Guard, America
The House's Real ID bill represents a setback for one of
the nation's bedrock principles: sanctuary for the
persecuted.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/opinion/15tue3.html?th

EDITORIAL OBSERVER
The Blessing of Lono: A Vision of Paradise in an Oklahoma
Prison
By LAWRENCE DOWNES
Prisoners at Diamondback Correctional Facility are
reawakening a Hawaiian religion in eclipse since missionary
days.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/opinion/15tue4.html?th

http://independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?id=1464

Bush's New Defense Budget

FDA chief chosen amid troubles
President Bush taps acting commissioner Lester Crawford, as the agency
faces criticism for handling of popular drugs. By Gregory M. Lamb
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0216/p02s01-uspo.html?s=hns

Smoking Out Big Tobacco
A federal appeals court panel ruling represents an unfortunate step
backward in government's fight with cigarette manufacturers. The
Monitor's View
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0216/p08s02-comv.html?s=hns

Dean chairmanship is first volley of next election
Democratic intent seems to be to enliven the tedium of the long
campaign. By John Hughes
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0216/p09s01-cojh.html?s=hns

Taking stock as Kyoto takes effect
An undeniable global accomplishment tarnished by the US unwillingness
to participate. By Todd Stern
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0216/p09s02-coop.html?s=hns

Property rights: not a given for churches
Churches don't generate taxes. Could that make them prime targets for
eminent domain actions? By Jane Lampman
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0216/p15s01-lire.html?s=hns

Please don't turn my church into a minimart!
When churches must sell their buildings, congregants often have strong
feelings about appropriate reuse. By G. Jeffrey MacDonald
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0216/p15s02-lire.html?s=hns

New generation blase about old freedoms
Survey reveals many high school students know little and care less
about First Amendment freedoms. By Susan Llewelyn Leach
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0216/p17s01-legn.html?s=hns

REPORTERS ORDERED TO TESTIFY BEFORE GRAND JURY

A federal appeals court panel today said that two reporters must
respond to a grand jury subpoena requiring them to identify their
confidential sources or else they may be jailed for contempt.

Judith Miller of the New York Times and Matthew Cooper of Time Magazine
have no First Amendment protection from a grand jury subpoena seeking
the identity of sources for their reporting on the matter of former
covert CIA officer Valerie Plame, the court said.

The decision is posted here:

http://pacer.cadc.uscourts.gov/docs/common...02/04-3138a.pdf

In response to this and similar cases, new legislation has been
introduced in the House and Senate to limit the government's authority
to compel disclosure of confidential sources.

"This important legislation will provide reporters with protection from
being compelled to disclose sources of information in any Federal
criminal or civil case without meeting strict criteria," said Rep.
Mike Pence (R-IN), who introduced the "Free Flow of Information Act"
(HR 581) with Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA).

"It is important that we ensure reporters certain rights and abilities
to seek sources and report appropriate information without fear of
intimidation or imprisonment," said Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN), who
introduced a companion bill (S. 340) in the Senate. "This includes
the right to refuse to reveal confidential sources."

See the introduction of the "Free Flow of Information Act" here:

http://www.fas.org/sgp/congress/2005/s340.html

DENIAL OF HISTORICAL INTEL BUDGET DATA CHALLENGED

The decision by a federal court last week to categorically deny release
under the Freedom of Information Act of historical intelligence budget
data from 1947 to 1970 (SN, 02/11/05) was challenged today in a motion
to amend the decision.

The decision included a technical error, the Federation of American
Scientists argued, because it failed to require the CIA to disclose
the 1963 CIA budget figure even though the court found that that
number -- $550 million -- was not exempt from disclosure.

The possibility of an appeal of the decision as a whole remains open.
See the FAS motion to amend here:

http://www.fas.org/sgp/foia/1947/sa021505.pdf

The decision was reported by Ryan Lozar of the Reporters Committee for
Freedom of the Press here:

http://www.rcfp.org/news/2005/0214-foi-public.html

INTELLIGENCE OVERSIGHT: A COMPARATIVE ASSESSMENT

The challenge of legislative or parliamentary oversight of intelligence
and security agencies is explored in a new study published last week
by the Parliament of Norway.

Based on a comparative analysis of oversight practices in liberal
democracies in the Americas, Europe, Africa and Asia, the authors
derive some proposed legislative standards and best practices.

See "Making Intelligence Accountable: Legal Standards and Best Practice
for Oversight of Intelligence Agencies" by Hans Born and Ian Leigh
(editors), February 2005, linked under "new publications" on this
page:

http://www.dcaf.ch/news/thisweek_index.html

DECEPTION 101

A new U.S. Army War College report provides an introduction to the
practice of deception as a tactic in military and political conflict.

The report, which does not represent official Army policy, surveys a
variety of past and present instances of deception and proposes some
broad general principles.

See "Deception 101 -- Primer on Deception" by Joseph W. Caddell, U.S.
Army War College Strategic Studies Institute, December 2004:

http://www.fas.org/irp/eprint/deception.pdf

F.D.A. to Create Advisory Board on Drug Safety
By GARDINER HARRIS
The Food and Drug Administration is responding to the
widespread criticism of the government's handling of drug
safety problems.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/16/politics/16fda.html?th

Transit Agency Seeks Other Bids on West Side Site
By CHARLES V. BAGLI
Plans for a stadium were jolted when the M.T.A. said it
would use open bidding for the rights to the West Side
railyards.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/16/nyregion/16stadium.html?th

Former Priest Is Sentenced to 12 to 15 Years in Rape
By PAM BELLUCK
Paul R. Shanley was sentenced on Tuesday for raping a boy
20 years ago in the suburban Boston church where he was
pastor.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/16/national/16shanley.html?th

Boy Who Took Antidepressant Is Convicted in Killings
By SHAILA DEWAN and BARRY MEIER
A teenager who blamed the antidepressant Zoloft for his
violent behavior was convicted Tuesday of killing his
grandparents when he was 12.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/16/national/16zoloft.html?th

Professors at Harvard Confront Its President
By SARA RIMER
Some professors expressed strong dissatisfaction with
Lawrence H. Summers's leadership and charged that he was
damaging the institution.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/16/educatio...harvard.html?th

Utah Bill Mounts Challenge to Federal Education Law
By SAM DILLON
The Utah House of Representatives approved a bill requiring
state officials to give higher priority to local
educational goals than to those of the federal law.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/16/national/16utah.html?th

Mixed Feelings as Kyoto Pact Takes Effect
By MARK LANDLER
The Kyoto Protocol, which requires 35 nations to cut their
greenhouse gas emissions, takes effect on Wednesday amid
worries about its fairness.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/16/business...16kyoto.html?th

Spruced Up, Qwest Looks at Its Options
By KEN BELSON and MATT RICHTEL
Without a clear path for acquiring another company, Qwest
Communications has to gauge whether it can grow on its own
or whether it must fix itself up to be sold.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/16/business/16qwest.html?th

..................

Laurels for Giving the Internet Its Language
By KATIE HAFNER
The Association for Computing Machinery plans to announce
that Vinton Cerf and Robert Kahn will receive the 2004 A.
M. Turing Award for creating the underpinnings of the
Internet.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/16/technolo...nternet.html?th

Two George Patakis
Gov. George Pataki, Northeastern moderate Republican and
advocate of change in Albany, sometimes seems to have a
shadowy twin.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/16/opinion/16wed2.html?th

Sanity on Visas for Students
The State Department has injected some sense into the
security checks imposed on foreign students and scientists
who come to this country.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/16/opinion/16wed3.html?th

--------------------
Judges Say Reporters Must Name Sources in CIA Case
--------------------

The appellate panel ruling may bolster an effort in Congress for a journalists' 'shield' law.

By David G. Savage and James Rainey
Times Staff Writers

February 16 2005

WASHINGTON — News reporters do not have a 1st Amendment right to refuse to testify about their conversations with government officials, a three-judge panel of a U.S. appeals court said Tuesday, upholding a judge's order that could put reporters from Time magazine and the New York Times in jail.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/na...0,4391199.story

THE PROGRESS REPORT

by Christy Harvey, Judd Legum and Jonathan Baskin with Nico Pitney and Mipe Okunseinde

February 16, 2005

HIGHER EDUCATION
Academic Freedom Under Attack

Conservatives in the Ohio State Senate are considering a bill that would prohibit public and private college professors from introducing "controversial matter" into the classroom and shift oversight of college course content to state governments and courts. The language of the bill comes from right-wing activist David Horowitz's "Academic Bill of Rights," which recommends states adopt rules to "restrict what university professors could say in their classrooms" and halt liberal "pollution" on campus. The bill is both redundant and misleading -- most colleges already have rules ensuring free expression (political and otherwise) and Horowitz and his supporters have been able to offer scant evidence of widespread political bullying. Nevertheless, a variation of the bill was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives and has made inroads in six states. For a chance to fight back against the growing influence of the right wing on campus, and to help strengthen progressive student voices, check out American Progress's brand new website, Campus Progress.

MUMPER'S MOTIVATION: Ohio Senate Bill 24 was introduced late last month by State Sen. Larry Mumper ®, who says it is necessary because "80 percent" of college professors "are Democrats, liberals or socialists or card-carrying Communists" who attempt to indoctrinate students. When asked how he came to his conclusion, Mumper said he had been "investigating the issue for months," but cited just one instance when he had "heard of an Ohio student who said she was discriminated against because she supported Bush for president." He added that "anti-American" professors were a threat to young people and said he didn't think it was right for college campuses to teach students things their parents might disagree with.

OHIO FIGHTS BACK: Last week, the Ohio University student senate passed a resolution against the bill -- the latest in a string of college students and administrations to register their opposition. One "senate commissioner" pointed out the college handbook already mandated similar rules and "suggested that the Ohio Senate should be concentrating on more important issues in education" (of which there are many). A political science professor at Ohio-Wesleyan said the law could stifle debate, and Kenyon College President S. Georgia Nugent called Horowitz's thinking "a severe threat" to academic freedom. Two conservative students from Ohio State wrote in an editorial that they did not think "government should...be involved" in policing academic debate. They also pointed out that if Horowitz "were a professor under his own bill, he probably would violate it."

DAVID HOROWITZ, CHAMPION OF OPEN DEBATE: Horowitz, who has been the driving force behind the movement for "academic freedom" in Ohio and other states, has a distinguished history of intellectual defamation, historical inaccuracy and political bullying. He has freely compared American liberals to Islamic terrorists, slandered the Democratic Party and John Kerry for criticizing the war in Iraq and made a habit out of accusing his detractors of racism. Most recently, when African-American historian John Hope Franklin questioned Horowitz's 2001 claim that black people benefited from slavery and owed a "debt" to white America, Horowitz responded by calling the eminent historian "a racial ideologue rather than a historian" and "almost pathological." Horowitz has no academic credentials and routinely distorts facts -- exactly the crime he accuses "liberal" professors of committing -- to fit his political bias. (Share your thoughts on David Horowitz at ThinkProgress.org)

WHAT LIBERAL CAMPUS?: Horowitz claims his bill is necessary because college campuses are a "hostile environment" for conservatives, but as American Progress's Ben Hubbard and David Halperin point out, "Increasingly, it is the conservative movement that sets the agenda." Over the past 30 years, "the right has built a powerful campus machine. A dozen right-wing institutions now spend $38 million annually pushing their agenda to students. Conservative foundations channel tens of millions more for academic programs" which "buff an intellectual sheen over conservative ideology." Groups like Young America's Foundation, which spent more than $10 million on campuses in 2003, have no progressive counterpart. The ultra-conservative Leadership Institute -- boasting prestigious graduates such as disgraced fake White House reporter Jeff Gannon -- claims it has trained more than 40,000 college students to become "conservative leaders" since 1979.

THE EMPTY DATABASE: Horowitz's best attempt to prove liberal bias on campus is his "Academic Freedom Abuse Center," housed on the Students for Academic Freedom (SAS) website. But the database, which invites students to report having their "rights abused" in class, only looks impressive until you start reading the actual claims. Some highlights: One student complains because her professor suggested men and women might see colors differently. Another is offended she was asked to watch an "immoral Seinfeld episode." The latest entry in the database as of Tuesday afternoon was from an Ohio State student who claims he got a bad grade on an essay because his English professor "hates families and thinks it's okay to be gay." One of the complaints comes from an Augustana College senior who is upset her school used "funds from Student activity fees to bring in the one-sided speaker David Horowitz."

GLOBAL WARMING
Bush's Head in the Sand

The good news: today the first major international effort to curtail global warming -- the Kyoto Protocol -- goes into effect. One hundred forty countries have signed and ratified the agreement. The bad news: the United States, which produces about one-quarter of the greenhouse gasses that cause global warming, is on the outside looking in. More bad news: the Kyoto Protocol, especially without the United States's participation, is only a small step in addressing the global warming problem. The accord has the potential to eliminate "only one-tenth of a projected 30 percent rise in worldwide emissions between 1990 and 2010," and expires in 2012. American Progress co-sponsored the International Climate Change Taskforce -- co-chaired by Sen. Olympia Snow (R-ME) -- which recently issued a report outlining series of concrete, practical steps on how the whole world can move forward.

THE NEED TO ACT: The purpose of the Taskforce recommendations is to prevent global average temperatures from rising more than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels. At that point rising temperatures would pose a severe danger to the world's population. If global warming is not curtailed, expect a rash of droughts, floods, wildfires, severe weather and disease. The recommendations of the Taskforce include: taking greater advantage of existing low and zero-carbon technologies, creating a global emissions trading market and, for G8 countries, producing 25 percent of energy from renewable sources by 2025.

ADMINISTRATION INACTION: In the face of clear danger to the American people, the Bush administration continues to twiddle its thumbs. President Bush -- reversing an explicit campaign pledge in 2000 -- now vehemently opposes any mandatory limits on carbon dioxide, which causes global warming. In fact, the White House won't even admit there is a problem. Ignoring the overwhelming scientific consensus that "climate change is a serious and growing threat," White House spokesman Scott McClellan defended the administration's inaction yesterday, saying "we are still learning about the science of climate change."

EXCUSES, EXCUSES, EXCUSES: The White House claims its resistance is grounded in a concern for the American economy. James Connaughton, head of the White House Council on Environment Quality, said that President Bush "strongly opposes any treaty or policy that would cost a single American job." (Tough talk from an administration whose first term job record was the worst since Herbert Hoover.) A new report by U.S. PIRG examines the economic impact of two simple policies that would go a long way to curb global warming: requiring the U.S. to generate 20 percent of its electricity from clean energy by the year 2020 and shifting existing fossil fuel subsidies to renewable energy. The study found such policies would: 1) create a net annual average of 154,589 jobs between 2005 and 2020; 2) Increase wages by $6.8 billion in 2020; and 3) Save consumers $16.2 billion on electricity bills in 2020. So if it isn't jobs, what is the reason the administration opposes serious attempts to curb global warming? One explanation: the administration allows corporate lobbyists representing America's biggest polluters to write our environmental laws.






Under the Radar

PLAMEGATE -- TALK UP OR LOCK-UP: Two reporters suspected of having been leaked the name of a covert CIA officer by vindictive Bush administration officials have for months refused to discuss the case before a grand jury. Now they're being ordered to spill the beans or face up to 18 months in prison by a federal appeals court. The reporters, Judith Miller of the New York Times and Matthew Cooper of Time magazine, have fiercely resisted divulging their sources on free speech grounds, arguing the precedent would dry up reporters' access to sources and erode freedom of the press. Notably, neither the Bush administration leak (who likely violated the Intelligence Identities Protection Act) nor serial bloviator Bob Novak, the only reporter who actually made public the leaked information, have been threatened with prison time. Indeed, Novak has refused to speak about his sources while hypocritically calling for others to do so.

JUDICIARY -- ANOTHER UNFIT NOMINEE: Two days after the president declared that he had fulfilled his "constitutional responsibility to nominate well-qualified men and women for the federal courts," the Department of the Interior's inspector general has uncovered stunning new information about another of the judicial nominees. According to a two-year investigation, William Myers, who is currently nominated for "a lifetime appointment on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals," knowingly turned a blind eye to the actions of a well-connected Wyoming rancher named Frank Robbins. During Myers' tenure, Robbins enjoyed "virtually carte blanche authority to violate federal grazing laws" and Myers seemingly did everything in his power -- circumventing normal procedure, shutting other officials out, ignoring Department of Justice concerns -- to let the behavior continue. This announcement only further calls into question the attempts by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, to speed the Myers nomination through without any hearing whatsoever.

ADMINISTRATION -- FECKLESS FDA SEEKS SAME: In response to decreasing citizen confidence in "the government's handling of drug safety problems," the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the formation of an advisory board to monitor drugs on the market and keep patients informed about dangerous drugs. But as revealed by Dr. Sidney Wolfe, director of the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, the move is just "a substitute to fundamental change in the Office of Drug Safety, so it's unlikely to make any difference." The board will not be independent of the FDA -- in fact, new Secretary of Health and Human Services Michael Leavitt is opposed to the suggestion -- and instead is expected to be composed of "FDA and other government officials." Furthermore, the board "will lack the authority to pull drugs or change labeling." Finally, one of the aspects of the board that the FDA highlighted in its announcement, which was combing through large health databases to find potential drug dangers, "would probably cost tens of millions of dollars each year," yet is zero funded in President Bush's 2006 budget.

ADMINISTRATION -- PUTTING IDEOLOGY BEFORE SUICIDE PREVENTION: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a division of the Department of Health and Human Services, essentially forced the deletion of the words "gay," "lesbian," "bisexual" and "transgender" from the title of an upcoming suicide prevention workshop, even though it was meant to address those particular at-risk populations, at a federally funded conference. Wielding its funding power much in the same manner as Education Secretary Margaret Spellings, the administration requested the removal of those words as well as an additional workshop "session on faith-based suicide prevention." SAMHSA has defended its actions by claiming a preference for the "inclusive" term "sexual orientation," but as one of the three outraged workshop presenters explained, "Everyone has a sexual orientation. But this was about gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgenders," who are at two to three times higher risk of attempting suicide.

MEDIA -- PROBING GANNON'S WHITE HOUSE TIES: Roll Call reports that Reps. John Conyers (D-MI) and Louise Slaughter (D-NY) have filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to determine how scandal-plagued right-wing "reporter" Jeff Gannon was cleared to cover White House news conferences while using a pseudonym. Gannon, whose real name is J.D. Guckert, is also wrapped up in the Valerie Plame leak story, according to the Washington Post. In 2003, Gannon discussed having access to "an internal government memo prepared by U.S. intelligence personnel [detailing] a meeting in early 2002" that mentioned then-clandestine CIA official Valerie Plame. House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) "has asked the special prosecutor investigating the Plame leak to include Gannon in his probe," Howard Kurtz reports.



GOOD NEWS

In an important step for women's rights -- which for years were trampled under the hardline government of the Taliban -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai announced he "is preparing to appoint Afghanistan's first female provincial governor."


DON'T MISS

DAILY TALKING POINTS: U.S. Stays Out of Global Warming Pact.

CAMPUS PROGRESS: The Center for American Progress launches a new Web site devoted to fighting right-wing spin and strengthening progressive voices on college campuses.

EDUCATION: Nicholas Kristof on President Bush's "sex scandal."

VOTING: A new study shows 1.5 million convicted felons who have completed their sentences are still denied their right to vote.

ENVIRO: The LA Times takes a dark view of Clear Skies.

EDUCATION: Showdown on No Child Left Behind in Utah.


DAILY GRILL

"If you have your rights abused in a college course (e.g. unfair grading, one-sided lectures, stacked reading lists), please report this abuse." -- David Horowitz's Academic Freedom Abuse Center

VERSUS

Description of complaint: "I know the paper was pretty much great because I spell checked it and proofred [sic] it twice. I got an [sic] D- just because the professor hates families and thinks its [sic] okay to be gay." -- Database Entry, Anonymous Ohio State Student, 2/9/05


DAILY OUTRAGE

Marian Kester Coombs has said the United States is a "den of iniquity" thanks to "its efforts to accommodate minorities," demanded white men be "racially conscious" when marrying, and referred to Muslims are "human hyenas." She's also the wife of Washington Times Managing Editor Francis Coombs, who has published at least 35 of her pieces without ever acknowledging their relationship.

The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence held its annual open
hearing today on "Current and Projected National Security Threats to
the United States."

Witnesses included DCI Porter Goss, FBI Director Robert S. Mueller, DIA
Director Adm. Lowell Jacoby, and State INR director Thomas Fingar.

Their prepared statements, which did not immediately yield any
surprises, are posted here:

http://www.fas.org/irp/congress/2005_hr/index.html

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=43211

Bush 'Fact Sheet' Today Is 'Anything But . . ."

http://www.cdi.org/program/document.cfm?Do...ge=../index.cfm

Bush should name a new Secretary of Defense

http://writ.news.findlaw.com/hilden/20050215.html

The Supreme Court Finally Steps Into the Fray between Online File Swappers and the Major Movie and Recording Studios: MGM v. Grokster
Julie Hilden

Greenspan Urges Fiscal Discipline

By Nell Henderson

Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan Wednesday delivered to Congress an upbeat assessment of the U.S. economy, but he called on lawmakers to help bolster U.S. prosperity by restraining the growth of the federal budget deficit.

To view the entire article, go to http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/artic...er=emailarticle