Winners

Assuming it doesn’t come at the expense of other school programs, the Iowa House did the right thing by approving a bill that requires all Iowa school districts to offer a minimum of 10 hours of preschool each week. The bill has to pass the Senate and the governor, but if passed it would afford low- and middle-income parents the opportunity to send their kids to a decent preschool. Though 10 hours is a drop in the bucket for dual-income families who have to find care for their children the remaining 30 or more hours during the week, it’s a move in the right direction. Countless studies have sung the praises of early child education. If naysayers think the bill’s $15 million price tag is too high, it pales in comparison to the expensive problems children who don’t go to preschool create later in life — costs paid for mostly by taxpayers.

Steve Alford’s longtime detractors are finally having their day in the sun after years of scolding from fellow Iowa Hawkeye fans who were blinded by rose-colored glasses and failed to see or chose to ignore Alford’s glaring shortcomings as coach of the Hawkeye men’s basketball team [on and off the court]. Now that Alford has bolted for New Mexico, talks have turned to finding a coach who will unite the Hawkeye nation. We think that’s a good thing. But let this be a lesson to the mainstream media, particularly The Des Moines Register and local radio and television sports reporters who were too soft on Alford during his eight years for fear of alienating customers and advertisers. There is no point in jumping on the bandwagon of tough talk after the fact as evidenced by the recent barrage of media attacks against Alford. He’s gone. You had your chance and you blew it. Here’s some advice: grow a pair and get a clue so that the next time this happens you might better reflect public opinion and, perhaps, help prevent such a thing from happening again.

This may sound harsh, but convicted sex offender Robert Putney Jr. of Urbandale did society a favor when he gassed himself with chemicals in his car after being questioned by police about an investigation into his alleged involvement with child pornography. The 40-year-old registered sex offender reportedly told police earlier this year he had no intention of returning to prison. His suicide saves the taxpayers money and parents the fear of having another pervert on the streets.

Losers

This hasn’t been a great year for Joe Six Pack thanks to Democratic lawmakers. The Democrats are raising the price of his cigarettes by $1 a pack and his truck license fees by hundreds of dollars. They’re making him pay union dues even if he doesn’t belong to a labor group. Now there’s talk of not allowing him to smoke while drinking beer at the bar. Then there’s the whole issue of the school he sends his kids to possibly distributing condoms for free — that is if they don’t get kicked out for saying “that’s so gay.” Makes you wonder if Joe Six Pack votes Republican next time.

Another Major League Baseball season is underway, which means it’s time for all the flag-waving, wait-till-next-year, mouth-breathing Chicago Cubs fans who still think Kerry Wood and Mark Prior will lead the way to a World Series championship to monitor their progress in the minor leagues. Wake up Cubs fans and face the facts. Wood has never won more than 13 games in the big leagues and Prior, with the exception of the 18 he won in 2003, has never won more than 11. So before you clear a space on your wall of fame for another three-day poster spread by The Des Moines Register celebrating their rehabilitation starts in Des Moines, splash some cold water on your face and stop praying to the media-created altar of this oft-injured, unreliable duo. If that doesn’t work, talk to a White Sox or Cardinals fans and have them explain to you how quality pitching wins championships.

We’re not sure what it takes to convince those who don’t believe that global warming is real. Perhaps the findings of a study by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will open their eyes. This winter, it reports, was the warmest on record worldwide for combined land and ocean temperatures from December through February. Temperatures were 1.3 degrees Fahrenheit above average when compared with all figures since 1880, when record keeping began. The report also says that global temperatures have increased about 0.11 degree per decade for the last century, but that increase has been three times larger since 1976. Most scientists attribute the rising temperatures to greenhouse gases. CV

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