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Short takes
Quick views on some of the week's news
Kurd risks life for U.S., called a 'terrorist'
Saman Kareem Ahmad risked his life for nearly four years working as a translator for U.S. forces in Iraq. He earned two medals -- the Navy-Marine Corps Achievement Medal and the War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal. Had it not been for the daily death threats and wanted posters, Ahmad might still be in Iraq helping Marines there rather than training them here.
Read more.

Va. can look to coal, or to a clean-energy future
Eleanor Whitaker
Whitaker, of Alexandria, is a retired nurse practitioner.
In early April, Dominion Power hopes to break ground on a new coal-fired power plant in Wise County. Also in early April, Sen. John Warner, R-Va., could cast a key vote to extend tax incentives crucial to sustaining and expanding clean energy industries. While the state seems intent on providing new energy from dirty coal, our senator might be a key vote in support of clean energy.
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Read Saturday's letters here.

What do you want to talk about today?

In case you wondered, Jerry Fuhrman at From On High doesn't always disagree with us Not always, but usually.

Cutler for the Roanoke council appointment
City council picked four fine candidates to fill a vacancy on council. Applicant Rupert Cutler stands out as the best choice.
If it seems as though Roanokers have moved easily beyond Alfred Dowe's disgraceful resignation from city council, one reason could be this: There was no shortage of qualified, outstanding people who stepped forward to serve the remainder of his two-year term. Mayor Nelson Harris and the remaining council members did a commendable job in narrowing the field of 22 applicants to the final four: former councilman Rupert Cutler, former school board member Alvin Nash, community activist Vivian Sanchez-Jones and former assistant city manager Earl Reynolds. Each has much to recommend him or her and would serve the citizens well. However, council on Monday can select just one. That choice should be Cutler.
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Nonprofit agencies can't live on pork
Lawmakers need to find a more reliable way to fund nonstate cultural and social service agencies.
Virginia's delegates and senators in the General Assembly regularly serve up the bacon. This year, the budget looks a little leaner, though those in key budget-writing positions still managed to bring home some pork.
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Virginia's prison gravy train
Ronald Fraser
Fraser has a Ph.D. and writes on public policy issues for the DKT Liberty Project, a Washington-based civil liberties organization.
In Virginia's booming prison economy there are winners and losers. Inmates face financial ruin and state taxpayers lose too -- about $29,000 per year, per inmate. Prison entrepreneurs, for whom each inmate is a government subsidized business opportunity, are the big winners.
Read more.

From anger to hope: thoughts on the Rev. Wright
Jack Good
Good is a retired member of the clergy of the United Church of Christ and now lives near his childhood home in Roanoke.
The recent flap over Barack Obama's pastor, Jeremiah Wright, has personal meaning for me. For 15 years before my retirement, I served as pastor of a congregation in the Illinois Conference of the United Church of Christ, the conference that includes Trinity United Church of Christ -- Obama's church.
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Read Friday's letters here.

Roanoke City Council will appoint a member to join them for the next two years. For legal reasons, council and not voters get this pick. Don't forget there is a race for mayor and council going on. If you want a say, and you're not registered to vote, the deadline is quickly approaching.

What do you want to talk about today?

There's a new Congressional Research Service report out explaining the federal laws that govern what a phone company can disclose from its customer records. Of course, if they have immunity from civil suits, they can tell the Bush administration anything.