Uncle George Wants You

The lead USA Today editorial today attacks President Bush for being a lackluster military recruiter. It’s a novel, but sensible, notion -- that the commander in chief should be out there trying to address the Army’s recruitment problems. The editorial notes that Bush’s speech at Ft. Bragg on Tuesday evening did mention that a military career is a noble calling, but it adds: “Bush’s leadership on the recruiting shortfall needs to go well beyond one line in one speech.” USA Today is not opposed to the military having access to educational records and other student databases, arguing that the term “all-volunteer” military is already a sham. It’s more like the “all-recruited Army.”

Under the provocative “Have You Been Stolen?” headline, the Washington Post editorializes today that businesses will take your privacy concerns seriously enough only if they are made liable for the consequences of your records being stolen. Regulators, the editorial argues, need to create the incentives that will compel companies to take such precautions as encrypting personal data before shipping it.

Over at the Wall Street Journal, an editorial today ridicules Democrats critical of the president’s Iraq policy for failing to come up with alternative proposals of their own.

The New York Times favors adjustments made to the design of the ground zero “Freedom Tower,” including that it’s now slated to stand as tall as the twin towers once did. In Texas, home to the second mad cow, the Dallas Morning News says the U.S. should embrace routine testing of every cow, estimated to cost consumers a dime per pound of beef.

Andres Martinez