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For Friday: We will add our support to the effort by Sen. Edwards and Del. Shuler to allow localities to require carbon monoxide detectors in rental units.

In our Sunday NRV Current editorial, we'll urge the Giles County Schools Board to either assert control over a group proposing a fly ash dump along the New River or disavow any relationship with the group.

Virginia needs redistricting reform
A bipartisan package is advancing. What Virginia really needs is a nonpartisan reform to completely remove party interests from the process.
Against all odds, momentum for changing the extremely partisan method of drawing congressional and legislative districts in Virginia appears to be growing.
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A war without end or oversight
President Bush places himself above the law -- even ones he signed.
An honorable president would have the gumption to veto bills he found objectionable. But as Americans have learned by now, there is no room for honor in President Bush's Oval Office. He prefers chicanery in the form of "signing statements."
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We've spoiled kids rotten
Linda Whitlock
Whitlock, an adjunct English professor who lives in Salem, is a Roanoke Times columnist.
In high school, I had a friend whose parents made her pay for her own toothpaste, shampoo and other basic necessities that most parents routinely buy for their kids. Back then, I thought her parents were just being mean. Now, I can't help but wonder if today's kids would be better off if more parents did the same.
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Valley Forward's promises don't add up
Dick Howard
Howard is a former food service designer. He lives in Roanoke County.
In unveiling his group's second, revised proposal for Rockledge, the Valley Forward spokesman emphasized that the downsizing was in response to public disapproval of the amount of green space on Mill Mountain Park that would have been destroyed by the original 80,000-square-foot inn, restaurant and parking garage shown in proposal No. 1. Valley Forward stated it was able to eliminate the need for a large, concrete, costly parking garage because it had eliminated the overnight lodging.
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High Knob tower is worth the price
Duane Akridge and Joyce M. Payne
Akridge lives in Big Stone Gap and is the 2008 president of the Wise County Chamber of Commerce. Payne lives in Norton and is the executive vice president for the Wise County Chamber of Commerce.
On behalf of the Wise County Chamber of Commerce, we are writing in response to the editorial "High Knob tower isn't national priority" (Jan. 4). Your editorial referenced what you called a "lesser-known" landmark -- the High Knob Observation Tower -- and its destruction by fire on Oct. 31. Wise County is abundant with the most natural, beautiful scenery available in the commonwealth of Virginia. The High Knob Observation Tower, which was located in the Jefferson National Forest, was among the most unusual treasures available to the commonwealth for displaying such beauty. Although the tower was enjoyed and appreciated by local residents, it was valued and treasured by thousands of former residents and visitors from across the United States. Its destruction touched the hearts of tens of thousands of people.
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Thursday's letters can be read here.

For Thursday: President Bush is again picking and choosing which laws he wishes to obey. He attached signing statements to a defense bill that says he might not allow to occur key provisions - including oversight of war contractors.

Bush nails his legacy
The president's final State of the Union speech exposed the multiple failures of his leadership.
President Bush's final State of the Union address Monday captured well the seven years of his leadership. It was a laundry list of wistful wants, of hollow, shallow gestures and a lament of opportunities squandered.
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Lawmakers need independent advice
A commission on electric utilities should be free from industry influence.
The group of lawmakers that oversees electric utilities in Virginia does not want to fade away on July 1. Although the commonwealth's wild ride through deregulation is largely over, the Commission on Electric Utility Restructuring still has a valuable role to play in Richmond, just not in its current form.
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History will judge Bush harshly
Theodore Fuller
Fuller is a professor of sociology at Virginia Tech and lives in Blacksburg.
President Bush has begun his last year in office, his lame-duck year. What will his legacy be? Will his legacy be the war in Iraq -- a lasting peace, Iraq as a beacon of democracy in the Middle East? That appears doubtful.
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The cruelty of the circus
Christy Sherman
Sherman is a Roanoke resident and anesthesiologist with Anesthesiology Consultants of Virginia.
On Friday, the Kazim Shrine Circus will return to Roanoke, perpetuating an illusion of fun and lighthearted enjoyment. However, hidden behind the smoke and mirrors of the acts are significant dangers to its spectators and a grave degree of cruelty to its animals.
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Wednesday's letters can be read here.

For Wednesday: President Bush threatens to veto any appropriation bill that doesn't cut earmarks in half -- like he asked Congress to do last year. Depends on the meaning of "half." While the earmarks found in 2007 bills number 11,000, slightly fewer than the 13,000 of 2006, the actual dollar amount was halved from $29 billion to $14 billion.

For Wednesday, we're writing about the electricity. The legislative commission that oversees electricity utilities in Virginia wants to preserve its existence for a few more years. It should, sort of. There's a role for a body to assist the lawmakers on highly technical legislation, but it shouldn't be one composed of lawmakers who take huge donations from the power industry.

Driver fees won't end painlessly
Replacing the revenue should be easy, but House Republicans will make sure that it isn't.
Nearly everyone in Virginia's Capitol agrees the abusive driver fees were a bad idea. Lawmakers are poised to eliminate them, but their task is not as easy as applying Wite-Out to the law books. They must also have to figure out how to replace the money and how to deal with drivers already sentenced to pay thousands of dollars.
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Bagging Dillon's rule
The question isn't one of paper or plastic, but state or local control.
A story in Monday's edition, "Paper or plastic? Or neither?" raises the question that stores and customers are asking throughout the country: Which way of toting home groceries causes the least environmental damage?
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