World-Herald editorial: ‘Savage ideal’ is dangerous

Here are thoughts on a variety of topics in the news:

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A journalist named W.J. Cash once wrote about what he called “the savage ideal” the eager resort by many 19th-century Southerners to use violence to silence those with whom they disagreed politically. That mind-set also showed itself on occasion in Omaha and parts farther west in the old days, through the resort to fisticuffs or firearms to express opposition to someone’s political writings or speech.

This week, news reports have indicated that some Democratic members of Congress who voted for the health care legislation have received violent threats.

Not every report has been accurate. And it would be wrong to indicate that the vast majority of opponents of the legislation support violence.

Still: Any American who adopts the thuggish mind-set of using violence, or the threat of violence, in any form whatsoever to attack political opponents is no better than one of Hitler’s Brownshirts or the lynch mobs who stole so many innocent lives in the outrages of decades past.

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Kudos to State Sens. LeRoy Louden and Russ Karpisek for their success in gaining support for funding, through two rounds of debate, to help address alcohol-related problems associated with Whiteclay, Neb. Several lawmakers, plus the General Affairs and Judiciary Committees, have shown commendable dedication to tackling this issue.

This issue is complex and difficult, and it makes great sense to try to address it with incremental steps. By no means are there any magical cure-alls, and lawmakers should refrain from overpromising.

As both supporters and skeptics have said, any long-term success ultimately will depend on the actions of the residents on the Pine Ridge Reservation.

But in light of the work that has been done by conscientious lawmakers and the prospects for a measure of progress, it would be irresponsible for the Legislature to do nothing. It’s time to move forward with practical, incremental action.

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The opposition against State Sen. Tom White’s proposal to kill the sales tax on the Omaha sewer work did a good job in one respect: cogently and clearly explaining the tremendous fiscal challenges that lie ahead for Nebraska state government.

It would have helped had opponents better acknowledged the major tax burden that’s about to fall on Omaha residents and businesses.

But those lawmakers did a strong job in citing a series of sobering challenges that lawmakers will face next year and well beyond in meeting financial obligations for needs such as school funding and Health and Human Services, let alone trying to avoid cuts so severe that they would undercut the ability of state agencies to deliver needed services.

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