Saturday, March 13, 2010
Editorial: Short takes
Quick views on some of the week's news.
From the RoundTable blog
Read the latest entries
The seed of a new tradition?
When Alexandria Del. Adam Ebbin, who is Jewish, invited a Northern Virginia imam to say the opening prayer for Thursday's House of Delegates session, hundreds of calls and letters flowed into legislative offices urging delegates to boycott.
The protesters claimed Imam Johari Abdul-Malik preaches violence, though Ebbin said the Islamic cleric has issued a fatwa against it. In appearances on "The O'Reilly Factor" and other TV shows, he has condemned violence and Osama bin Laden.
Still, the Virginia Anti-Shariah Task Force, which claims about 500 members, the Traditional Values Coalition and Act for America said they would protest outside the state Capitol.
"All they're doing is showing that racism still lives in the Old Dominion," Abdul-Malik told reporters. "But at the same time, there's a new Dominion. That's what we're going to show people."
Which they did.
Only five people turned out Thursday morning to protest in Capitol Square. Later, the imam opened the House session with an invocation about love, compassion and the strength "to go beyond tolerance to understanding." For whatever reason, about 10 Republican delegates didn't show.
Slick politics and offshore drilling
Gov. Bob McDonnell this week signed into law two bills intended to bring Virginia closer to offshore oil and gas drilling -- indeed, closer to becoming the "Energy Capital of the East Coast," as he puts it. But there still are two flies in the oil.
One piece of legislation says the Old Dominion is ready to drill, baby, drill along its Atlantic coastline. Just as soon as the federal government OKs the sale of offshore leases for exploration that could lead, eventually, to drilling. Washington appears to be in no hurry on the lease sales. That's the first fly.
Another state law would direct oil and gas royalties from drilling off its coast back to Virginia, with 70 percent to go into a transportation trust fund. Just as soon as Congress passes a law that similarly directs a share of any royalties back to the state. Last year, Congress declined. And it doesn't appear to be in any hurry to share. That's the second fly.
Offshore drilling is supposed to be a key piece of the pavement on the governor's tax-free road to solving the transportation funding crisis. Virginia shouldn't count on spending the money anytime soon -- or even during this administration.
A flag on the field of play
Taking hits on the field is part of playing team sports, and playing hurt can be taken as a test of courage: Don't let down the team, the coach, yourself and, if you're a kid, Mom and Dad -- up in the stands, glowing with nervous pride.
Virginia lawmakers have sent the governor a bill this session that would take some of the pressure off student-athletes who might be tempted to shake off invisible head injuries and get back in the game. S.B. 652 requires any athlete thought to have suffered a concussion to be removed from play for the day and not be allowed to play again till a licensed health professional says it's OK.
Gov. Bob McDonnell would be wise to sign it.
Posthumous research on brain tissue of retired NFL players who suffered multiple concussions in their careers suggests severe and long-lasting damage. The bill's sponsor is Sen. Ralph Northam, a Norfolk Democrat who is a pediatric neurologist. He says the goal is to raise awareness about how to identify concussions and the seriousness of failing to treat them properly -- a potentially life-altering lesson for young athletes.
Leadership to be ashamed of
Lawmakers this session have put Virginia in the lead among states charging backward on health care reform. This week, the General Assembly passed, and the governor pledged to sign, a bill that, in theory, would shield Virginians from paying a penalty if they refuse to comply with any federal law requiring them to pay for health insurance.
The action is symbolic: The principle that federal laws supersede those of states is well-established. If Washington manages to pass health reform, though, the sponsor of the state legislation, Del. Bob Marshall, expects Virginia to defend it all the way to the Supreme Court.
Let's hope it would be yet another of Virginia's lost causes.
