N.E. Editorial Roundup
The Hartford Courant, Hartford, Conn., Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009:
Two years ago, the Dalai Lama the Tibetan Buddhist leader was awarded Congress' highest civilian honor and met with President George W. Bush at the Capitol. Times have changed. For the first time since 1991, the international human rights icon was not greeted by the sitting American president while in Washington.
President Barack Obama delayed a face-to-face meeting until after next month's U.S.- China summit. It will be Mr. Obama's first trip to China, and he doesn't want to upset a government that is notoriously touchy about allegations of Chinese human rights violations in Tibet.
Members of the Dalai Lama's office in exile say they are scheduling a meeting for later in the year. Still, Mr. Obama's snub is a personal slight and a missed opportunity.
It's true that Western countries are downplaying human rights concerns in their dealings with China because of Beijing's economic and diplomatic power. But Mr. Obama could have used a meeting with the Dalai Lama to announce that the human rights issue is still on the table. China's leaders wouldn't have been pleased, but they're realists, too. It's unlikely that what has become a ritual greeting of the Dalai Lama would have plunged the relationship between the United States and China into a deep freeze.
The snub is also contrary to Mr. Obama's frequent campaign orations on the importance of human rights and his pledge to talk to anybody, friend or foe. In this instance, he should have had more courage.
The Day, New London, Conn., Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2009:
Pfizer will soon complete its $60 billion acquisition of fellow pharmaceutical colossus Wyeth. For the merger to make business sense the new, larger Pfizer will have to close redundant facilities and eliminate superfluous jobs, with industry analysts predicting 19,000 layoffs worldwide.
It takes cold calculation in the midst of a recession to dismiss as surplus some of the world's best-trained research scientists, decimating local economies in the process. But corporations are beholden only to the bottom line and shareholders.
This does not mean, however, that state and local officials must sit back and wait to see where the ax may fall. Since the announcement of the planned merger months ago, there has been speculation that cuts will come locally at Pfizer Global Research and Development, with its research campus in Groton and offices in New London.
Some industry watchers consider the research headquarters in New London to be particularly vulnerable. With their unwillingness to comment on any post-merger changes, Pfizer executives have fed suspicions.
The governor's office and state Department of Economic and Community Development need to reach out to Pfizer leadership with a willingness to discuss what the state might be able to do to move the New London and Groton facilities up the priority list when it comes to deciding what jobs and facilities to preserve.
The region benefitted from past mergers, with the Groton facility absorbing about 1,000 jobs when the corporation closed its Ann Arbor, Mich., research campus. It cannot count on such good fortune again.
It is also not too soon to consider alternative uses for the New London offices, should Pfizer choose to close its operations there. The city must avoid a nonprofit use of the space that would strip it from the tax rolls.
As an incentive to build its research headquarters in New London, Pfizer received a 10-year tax abatement that expires after 2011. Pfizer is only paying property taxes based on 20 percent of the assessed value of its New London property, but still is the top taxpayer, generating $1.3 for the city this year. Pfizer has to maintain at least 1,000 jobs at the facility to keep the tax break. About 1,400 employees now work there.
In 2012 Pfizer begins paying the full load, about $6.1 million based on the current tax rate.
Given the jobs, the potential impact on tax revenues and the economic implications, wait and see is not sufficient. If Pfizer announces a closing, it will likely be too late to act. Make the calls now.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
