Casper Star-Tribune from Casper, Wyoming • 6

A6 Casper Star Tribune Sunday, Jdiiujry 23, 2005 OPINION Editorial editor Phil tlhworth can bo reached dtiU) 266060b, (800) YWJ6i 1 Casper SlaKIYibune 170 Star ane, Box 80, Casper, WY 82602 (307) 266 0500 or (800) 559-0583 'Hie Casper Daily Tribune: Est. Oct. 9, 1916 by J.E. Hanway; The Casper Star: Est. in 1949 2004, Casper Nathan Bekke, publisher; Clark Walworth, editor (J AGENDA A I IU I 0 I A I- Wyoming citizens deserve stronger campaign disclosure State needs to improve citizens' access to election data roposed changes in Wyoming's campaign disclosure law are far from ideal, though they may be better than we mistakenly thought last week.

Photos pack powerful emotion Wednesday's editorial regarding candidate disclosure Photographer Dan Cepeda told me: "We shouldn't always shy away from images thai make us uncomfortable, and sometimes that might mean showing a dead person. Strong, sensitive photography is a tool that can tell the story of real human tragedy in a way that words simply can't." 1 -Jul Clark Walworlh BETWEEN THE LINES Do me a favor. If I invite you over for breakfast, please avoid bringing snapshots of dead bodies. I'll do the same for you. The way I see it, the Casper Star-Tribune is a daily breakfast guest at thousands of Wyoming homes.

So I've always been reluctant to publish photos of the dead. We did print one last year. At a memorial service for a Wyoming Marine killed in Iraq, our photographer encountered an open casket, with part of the man's face clearly visible. We published the photo, and no one complained. The reason, I think, was context.

The photo captured the solemn respect of a military funeral, and no one was offended. But other circumstances are more challenging. Natural disasters such as the Asian tsunami pose a dilemma: How much of the grim reality should we show? It's a tricky question. On the one hand, our job is to tell the truth. On the other hand, is there such a thing as too much truth? Can't people understand the tragedy without seeing the bodies? Looking for help on that question, I queried mem- laws contained an error.

House Bill 81 would not lengthen the grace period for late filers. Our comments, unfortunately, relied on an erroneous news story from the Associated Press, which we failed to verify on our own. We're grateful to Wyoming Secretary of State Joe Meyer for taking the time to set us straight. Nonethless, we still think Wyoming's law on campaign finance reporting could stand to be a lot tougher than House Bill 81 would make it. Under existing law, candidates are required to file a preelection report no less than seven days before an election.

Under HB 81, a candidate who fails to meet that deadline could be subject to a civil penalty of $1,000 plus up to $500 in attorney fees. The trouble is, that fine isn't automatic. HB 81 as it was crafted states, "An action to impose a civil penalty may be prosecuted by and in the name of any candidate adversely affected by the violation, any political party, any district attorney or the attorney general." We see no reason that the state should expect others to enforce its elections law. By leaving the possibility that a violator might not be punished, the state sends a message that campaign disclosure laws are important only if the interested parties think they are. If the state can't impose an automatic fine, members of the public should be included in the bill as potential plaintiffs, so that they along with watchdog groups and the press can ensure that candidates adhere to disclosure laws.

Wyoming shouldn't deter people from becoming involved in the political process locally, however. If possible, disclosure laws should set a higher penalty for legislative and statewide candidates than for a school board candidate, for example. And we see no reason the state can't implement some form of electronic filing that's accessible online. The state already provides online access to thousands of documents in various departments. Is it really too much to ask that we have access to the campaign receipt and expenditure forms for candidates seeking to fill 60 House seats, 30 Senate seats and five statewide offices? Over time, the state could phase in a searchable system that improves citizens' access to the data contained in the candidates' reports.

That could be done between now and the 2006 budget session, so the system could be in place for the 2006 election. Wyoming is fortunate to be faced with a budget surplus of nearly $1 billion. If the state won't take steps to create an electronic campaign finance reporting system when it's flush with cash, it never will. Barnett noted that photos of grieving families can be every bit as moving as photos of death. By the same token, they can be just as offensive if handled badly.

In every case, photographers have to be sensitive about the photos they shoot, and about the way they interact with the people involved. I have faith in the judgment and decency of the Star-Tribune's photographers. So I won't hobble them by banning all photos of death. But I'll promise you this: You'll see such photos rarely, and only after careful thought and discussion. Have a question or a comment for Editor Clark Walworth? Send e-mail to clark.

or call (307) 266-0545. Or just jot a note on your subscription renewal notice. broadcast journalists. Television images are vivid, but they're also brief and fleeting. They don't sit on the breakfast table, drawing your eyes to a moment frozen in time.

The same intensity that can make a photo offensive can also make it powerfully compelling. Cepeda made this comment about tsunami coverage: "It's very difficult to grasp the human tragedy simply by reading the numbers. We told the reader what happened. How do we make himher FEEL it? We do this by publishing intense, emotional images." But some photos clearly don't belong in print. Barnett said she wouldn't support publishing grisly, gory pictures such as last year's photos of a beheading by terrorists.

(We likewise avoided gory photos of tsunami victims.) bers of our photo staff. Their advice was to avoid firm policies. Instead, they told me, we should analyze each situation and each picture on. its own merits. Photographer Dan Cepe-da told me in an e-mail: "We shouldn't always shy away from images that make us uncomfortable, and sometimes that might mean showing a dead person.

Strong, sensitive photography is a tool that can tell the story of real human tragedy in a way that words simply can't." Cepeda's colleague Sarah Beth Barnett offered a hypothetical example. If a child drowns, a powerful, moving photograph might cause readers to take safety precautions. Sometimes I think the choices are easier for Fewer Wyo lawmakers at 2nd inaugural Kslimales pegged the cost of the inaugural, including the nine halls, at $40 million. This is million less than I'residenl Ceorge II. Hush's first inauguration.

Editorial roundup Juan Hai ion STAR-TRIBUNE George Bush in 1989. The cheapest was former President Jimmy Carter's bash at $11 million, according to Newsweek Magazine. Four years ago, the Republicans were pumped over taking back the White House after eight years of Bill Clinton. This year in the post-911 world, the glitz is off and Iraq is a cloud. Four years ago, 11 legislators flew off to Washington, D.C., for the first inauguration of President George Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.

This year, only three lawmakers made the trip: Sen. John Barrasso, R-Casper, and Reps. Kermit Brown, R-Laramie, and Frank Philp, R-Shoshoni. Philp also attended the inauguration in 2001. The legislators were excused from the session so they could attend the festivities, but they can't collect their $150 per day salary.

Four years ago the legislative salary was $125 per day. The three lawmakers still will collect their $85 per diem. Four years ago, legislative per diem was $60 per day. Democratic Gov. Dave Freudenthal also attended.

Instead of the state plane, the governor took a commercial flight to D.C., accompanied by his wife, Nancy, and a security officer. The money for the trip will come from the governor's out-of-state travel budget. Four years ago, all five elected state officials attended the first inaugural for George W. This year, state Treasurer Cynthia Lummis is the only other one of the five elected officials to make the trip. Secretary of State Joe Meyer and his wife, Mary, good friends of the Cheneys, skipped this year's inaugural and substance abuse.

Fisher countered that she is married to a railroader who travels a lot. Railroad employees, she said, may have an even higher divorce rate than law enforcement officials. Later, during an interview Watt said, "The Torrington people have no idea what they're asking for." Officials in Rawlins and Carbon County understand the problems facing corrections officers and their families and have a support system to deal with it. Rawlins and Carbon County also have additional law enforcement personnel as well as more deputy county attorneys because of the prison presence. When inmates at the WSP were transferred out of state, 50 families also left Rawlins, an official said during the hearing.

Noting that some of his best friends are family members of inmates, Watt said these families also have some special needs, including financial needs. "Their problems go with them. Their breadwinner is in prison. They're trying hard to keep their families together and I respect that," Watt said. Capital bureau reporter Joan Barron can be reached at (307) 632-1244 or at Opinions and WMI) Jan.

16, Journal Star, Tvo-ria, Nearly two years into the war to rid Iraq of its alleged "weapons of mass destruction," the Bush administration officially called off the search for them last week. "Based on what we know today, the president would have taken the same action (to invade) because this is about protecting the American people," said White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan. "Protect them from what?" would be a fair question, given that no such WMDs were found and that the president made those WMDs the primary justification for his decision to preemptively attack. To be fair, Bush's predecessor also believed Iraq had WMDs, and Saddam did a pretty good job of pretending, too. Beyond that, the American people have already issued their judgment.

Global opinion does matter, maybe not today or tomorrow, but someday when we're staring down another potential menace perhaps one far more potent than Saddam and we ask for the world's help. What kind of "moral authority" will America have then? It's another fair Abu Ghraib Jan. 17, The Watertown (N.Y) Daily Times: Spc. Charles Graner, the alleged ringleader of rogue guards at Abu Ghraib, has been convicted on all 10 counts under five charges: assault, conspiracy, maltreatment of detainees, committing indecent acts and dereliction of duty. He was sentenced to 10 years in military prison by a jury of four Army officers and six senior enlisted men.

Mr. Graner, 36, an Army reservist from Pennsylvania, will be dishonorably discharged after completing his sentence. He has been demoted. The reservist, who was shown smiling next to human pyramids of naked prisoners and, in one case, beside a dead Iraqi, maintained he was just following orders. He said intelligence agents at the prison ordered the abuse of prisoners to make them easier to interrogate.

So far, authorities have not uncovered a wider network of abuse or found evidence to validate Graner's explanation that he is being made a scapegoat. Four soldiers have pleaded guilty in the case. Bringing the offenders to justice shows the world that the United States does not tolerate such misconduct. It is the right thing to do and the right message to send. because of the timing, the cost and the bills he has before the Legislature.

Meyer said he and his wife attended Cheney's Cleveland debate, the New York convention and to D.C. on election night all on their own dime. He said he saw Cheney about 10 days ago in D.C. and told him he and Mary would not be attending. Meyer said Friday.

The inauguration ball tickets cost $350 apiece, or $700 for a couple. With all the security, it was unlikely the Meyers would have gotten to spend much time with the Cheneys in any event, he said. They do regret missing the Wyoming party, an event where all these people in D.C. withties to Wyoming get together. They are many.

Estimates pegged the cost of the inaugural, including the nine balls, at $40 million. This is $3 million less than President George W. Bush's first inauguration. The most costly gala in the last 30-plus years was the party for first President Rep. Steve Watt, R-Rock Springs, believes the state owes the City of Rawlins and Carbon County some loyalty for accepting the Wyoming State Penitentiary (WSP) and dealing with the unique problems that face a prison community.

During the House Judiciary Committee's marathon six-hour hearing on the bill to locate a new medium-security prison at Torrington, Watt asked a supporter if she was sure she wanted the facility in her town. "Yes," was the firm reply of Marilyn Fisher, a Torrington certified public accountant. She said her office is located 30 feet from the detention center, but that doesn't bother her. Watt, a former highway patrolman who is a DARE officer in the schools, pointed out that people in law enforcement and corrections have high rates of divorce.