News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News

11/20/2008

Editorial: Clinton(s) not right for State
The biggest problem choosing Hillary Rodham Clinton as his Secretary of State is obvious: With the Clintons, you always get two for the price of one. Could President Obama trust her? And would foreign leaders know there was no distance between them?

Editorial: Measuring Craddick challengers
The contest for Texas House speaker has become a horse race. Handicappers are raising the odds against a fourth term for Midland's Tom Craddick – an outcome that could pay off for Texas' population centers.

Editorial: Pass the Colombia free trade pact
Make no mistake; Colombia still has much room for improvement. But a sustained campaign of U.S. engagement has undeniably transformed that country. A free trade accord is the surest way to keep Colombia engaged and moving in the right direction.

11/19/2008

Editorial: Fighting pirates' fire with fire
The Saudi Arabian company negotiating with Somali pirates who brazenly captured the biggest prize in modern history does the world no favors. This global problem needs a coordinated, global response.

Editorial: Protest and civility in a democracy
Does violence at abortion clinics win sympathy for pro-lifers? Are environmentalists who vandalize car lots and housing developments changing their opponents' hearts and minds – or hardening them? Gay rights extremists should ask themselves the same question.

11/18/2008

Editorial: Time to end straight-ticket voting
State Rep. Joe Straus is proud to be a Republican but doesn't vote for every R on the ballot. Political heresy? No, common sense. Not all candidates on either party slate deserve to be elected, he says. We wholeheartedly agree.

Editorial: A good place
Thousands of hard-looking men and women make Dallas' streets their home. Many would tearfully welcome an alternative, if only they could see a way out. Six months ago, community leaders lit a new beacon of promise in a corner of downtown, known as The Bridge.

Editorial: Getting real with DISD's culture of chicanery
OK, let's see if we understand this. The Dallas school district knowingly used faked Social Security numbers to make the paperwork for some foreign-born hires go through more smoothly. We'd all like to see innovation in DISD, but that's not the way to do it.

11/17/2008

Editorial: Mark Cuban and illegal insider trading
It's hard to believe a man as smart and as rich as Mark Cuban would risk so much to save $750,000 dumping stock, as the government alleges he did. (Mr. Cuban denies the accusation). But Martha Stewart was just as rich and just as smart. Greed can make you stupid.

Editorial: Releasing criminal immigrants
Hundreds of illegal immigrants charged with felony crimes – murder, rape, drug dealing and child molestation – were freed in Harris County because federal immigration authorities didn't complete the paperwork to hold them for deportation.

Editorial: Shaping parental involvement in the classroom
Parents appear apathetic when they're actually unsure. Classroom problems fester. Children become discouraged. That's why we're excited that the Dallas Concilio recently expanded its nine-week parent training program to nearly all West Dallas schools.

11/14/2008

Editorial: Cornyn's chance to rise above partisanship
With Barack Obama coming into power and George W. Bush leaving town, perhaps no Republican finds himself in more unexplored terrain than John Cornyn, the Texas senator who won a second term on Nov. 4.

11/16/2008

Editorial: Religious freedom and human dignity
It was rather rich to see Saudi Arabia sponsoring a United Nations conference last week on religious tolerance. This from an Islamic nation that maintains a national police force to enforce strict Wahhabi orthodoxy. As one dissident Saudi Shiite Muslim put it, that's like having a U.N. conference on racial harmony put on by apartheid-era South Africa.

11/15/2008

Editorial: DISD bangs the drum for veterans
Veterans, of course, are the focus of any Veterans Day event. But the drums and the trumpets and the tubas and the drums – they give the day a powerful beat, a strong and steady pulse. The wreath ceremonies, the roll calls, the flyovers – they are all vital parts of a day set aside to express our gratitude to those who have protected our nation. But these tributes would be lacking without the bands.

Hits and Misses
Global meltdown, but maybe some local relief

11/14/2008

Editorial: DISD trustees should postpone extending terms
We're open to Dallas school trustees being elected to four-year terms. One of the more compelling reasons is the argument that Dallas Independent School District trustee Jerome Garza offered last week: With their current three-year stints, trustees don't get a feel for what's going on in the district until that last year.

Editorial: Reasonable parole limits
Texas' parole system regarding sex offenders provides a way to set conditions of release that can protect the public.

Editorial: Erosion of Afghans' basic rights
Sometimes it's hard to identify the gains secured in Afghanistan since the 2001 U.S.-led invasion. Peace has been fleeting. Drug trafficking is rampant. Central government authority barely extends beyond Kabul's city limits.

Editorial: Paulson's financial pivot
Problem: The world economy is in crisis.

Editorial: Ussery's Dallas Housing Authority challenge
The choice of Terdema Ussery as chairman of the Dallas Housing Authority board is an intriguing one.

Editorial: Don't greet Schlosser's release with outrage
It would be an unfortunate oversimplification to say that Dena Schlosser killed her baby and got away with it.

09/02/2008

Editorial: We recommend Adams, Lewis, Creuzot in Criminal District Court
Democrat Don Adams has been an effective and fair judge in this court; even his Republican opponent agrees. ... Gracie Lewis earns our nod based on 13 years of juvenile bench experience and passion for the law ... John Creuzot has earned a national reputation as an innovator who brings an approach that is both fair and creative to the courtroom.

Editorial: Republicans lag among Latinos
John McCain can hardly afford a huge drop-off among Latino voters. That this dramatic decline appears wrapped up in the immigration debate makes it an ironic, unfair blow.

10/08/2008

Editorial board recommendations for 2008 election
Links to all Dallas Morning News editorial board election recommendations published to date for the Nov. 4 election. (Early voting begins Oct. 20.)