Editorial
Profiles in courageousness
The inexorable decline of Western civilization marked another modest milestone Friday. The would-be word courageousness found its way into the pages of the Times.

Editorial
Covering drugs and the future
After years of empty promises, Congress has rolled out two Medicare prescription plans, one from House Republicans and the other from Democratic Sens. Bob Graham of Florida and Zell Miller of Georgia. The Democratic plan provides for retirees' real needs, while the Republican proposal contains a gap in coverage that would fall short of protecting many beneficiaries. Neither party, however, has come up with a plan to put Medicare on a strong financial footing, and any expanded coverage will move up the day of reckoning.

Editorial
Tallahassee snookers
Sneak-attack techniques are being used to add questionable provisions into legislation. Lawmakers should take the time to undo the mischief.

Letters
Open debate is scarce on campuses
Professor Kathleen Ochshorn's essay in the May 5 Times (Cautionary tale of past USF censure) fails to recognize that the American Association of University Professors long ago stopped "advancing academic freedom." Since the politicization of university faculties during the Vietnam War, there has been no "open debate about the most controversial topics" on college campuses even though, as Ochshorn rightly points out, it is the essence of academic freedom and "is essential if real learning is to take place."

Adam Smith
Missing girl is reminder of old problems, but won't hurt Bush
Florida loses a 5-year-old girl in its care, and bureaucrats remain oblivious for 15 months. Headlines across the country herald the governmental ineptitude, and the political buzz starts: Here's a scandal that could rock Gov. Jeb Bush's re-election campaign from now until November.

Curtis Krueger
DCF could use help rather than another dose of reform
MIAMI -- Child abuse disasters strike Florida nearly as often as hurricanes smash into our shores. Both types of tragedies bring new names to the headlines: Andrew, Bradley, Elena, Kayla. And for Floridians who have lived here long enough, each name evokes a sharp memory.

Martin Dyckman
Retiring comptroller shows the way to inspire loyalty is to reciprocate it
TALLAHASSEE -- Jeb Bush has spent a lot of money on children's services and his fact-finding commission will likely encourage him to spend more. But I doubt that money alone, or any organizational flaw, fully explains why the agency that was supposed to protect kids still couldn't even keep track of them.

Philip Gailey
Buzz over senator doesn't go deep
Political reporters find a "fresh face" more irresistible than a "fresh idea" in presidential politics. They've already found a rising star -- not just a fresh face but a pretty face -- two years out from the 2004 election. He is Sen. John Edwards, a North Carolina Democrat serving his first term in the U.S. Senate. Edwards, a former trial lawyer who made his fortune suing doctors and health care organizations for malpractice, has some Democrats and reporters in a swoon.

Bill Maxwell
Poll shows desire for fairness in Mideast
A new national poll indicates that the bellicosity of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and the U.S. Congress' saber-rattling support of Israel's policies and the Jewish nation's military stance against the Palestinians do not reflect the sentiments of most American citizens.

Robyn E. Blumner
Civic program teaches students the meaning of citizenship
Imagine 1,200 students competing, not over who can hit a ball farthest or run fastest, but over who has the greatest depth of knowledge and understanding in our constitutional democracy.