Editor’s Note: “If You Had Read the Paper…” is a new feature in which every day a member of the AltDaily team reads The Pilot, The Daily Press, and other local news, and gives you links to–and his or her take on–that day’s most interesting news.

Delegates table bills to cap out-of-state enrollment

A House of Delegates subcommittee tabled four bills to cap out-of-state enrollment at state schools on Monday, likely preventing them from advancing to the General Assembly. The measure would have required four major state universities–UVA, William & Mary, JMU and Tech–to enroll at least 75 percent of their students from in-state. The points for and against the bills are compelling.

As Del. Timothy Hugo, R-Fairfax County, who introduced the matter, argues, out-of-state applicants taking advantage of the high quality and lower costs of these schools have made it more difficult for Virginia students to attend them. And yes, it would be a very sad fact if Virginia’s high school students cannot get into these excellent, nearby schools.

However, when it comes down to it, tuition from out-of-state students help keep the schools’ budgets balanced. Plus, the competition helps make them the world-class institutions that they are. And finally, plenty of in-state students (who already make up 62 to 71 percent of these schools’ student bodies) don’t really seem to be having so difficult of a time getting in on their own merit.

We say leave it as it is.

HRT to ask Beach council to pony up for light-rail study

Sigh. If you’ve read enough of AltDaily, you know how much in favor I am of getting light rail built from the Oceanfront to Norfolk. But with the drama that’s gone on recently in accomplishing this has made me weary.

According to The Pilot, it seems that the first order of business from HRT’s new president, Philip Shucet, is to ask the Virginia Beach City Council today to help pay for the $6.6 million study of light rail in the city. Not only do I think Virginia Beach will back off from their recent support of the project–even with a mayor who has been a steadfast proponent of light rail, I’m not sure HRT is in a position to meet their part of the deal, which is to pony up an estimated $240,000 (20 percent of a $1.2 million federal grant HRT received in December). Shucet will certainly have to lay out HRT’s plan to raise those funds, and generally be more transparent about the overarching plan to build the line.

If by some miracle Virginia Beach gets on board to match the $240,000, HRT had better keep their word–or else, I’d imagine, we’ll have millions of dollars of groundwork laid for a rail line going nowhere.

I will give HRT and Shucet this one note of acknowledgment, however: Way to own up. They’re realizing they can’t do this on their own. Mistakes have been made. It’s time to ask for help.

Virginia last on list of road projects ready for stimulus money

Another sad sigh. In this case, if you’ve read our coverage of high-speed rail to Hampton Roads, you already know that Virginia has been asleep at the wheel (pardon the pun) when it comes to getting our state the federal transportation funding that we deserve. We missed out when the interstate highway was built. We’ll have just an afterthought of a spur from the high-speed rail line that will directly link nearly all of the East Coast. And even on this most basic level, we are dead last on the list when it comes to states making use of federal stimulus money for transportation improvements.

Hey, idiots over there at the DOT: Wake up! Get it together! Make a plan for chrissakes. Any plan. This is getting really embarrassing already.

Va. Senate approves job protection for gay state workers

This is a huge step in the right direction. The Pilot reports that yesterday the State Senate passed a measure to include a category of sexual orientation to the state’s non-discrimination employment policy, alongside race, religion, gender and disabilities. Honestly, religion is a choice (which of course should be protected by our most basic laws). But sexual orientation, like gender and race, is not a choice. And none of these things, which have no bearing on how well a candidate can perform their job, should affect employment.

Much props to Suffolk Republican Frederick Quayle, who broke ranks with his party to support the bill, saying, “I just thought it was the right thing to do.” It was. Thank you.

Ensnared in hazing scandal, sailor relieved to tell his tale

In a retirement pay hearing for Senior Chief Petty Officer Michael Toussaint, one of the key players in a hazing scandal originally investigated three years ago, the court ruled that Toussaint retire at his current rank. Though the matter still has to come to a final decision, supporters feel that the ruling was a vindication of Toussaint, and I agree it was–an unjust, unearned vindication.

The defense, rather than attempting to prove that Toussaint did not commit the atrocious acts of which he is accused, instead poked holes in the testimonies against him. Toussaint was accused of leading several incidents of hazing that include, among many, one female soldier’s being chained naked to a bed (after testifying, she killed herself), and a gay soldier being forced to simulate oral sex. Though that soldier has admitted he exaggerated the number of times that happened, wouldn’t we agree that once is enough?

The clincher for the verdict seems to have been the defense’s replaying of a heroic scene in which Toussaint killed two enemy fighters in Afghanistan (though the hazing incidents took place in Bahrain) to protect his fallen comrades.

Here’s my opinion about it all: Every military member I have ever spoken to (dozens, at least) have admitted privately that they have either been a part or victim of a hazing ritual, or witnessed one. I don’t know if it’s because of our human tendency to feel more connected to someone when we’ve seen them at their lowest, or because of the military’s inherent issues of masculinity, power and hunger to prove one’s self, but we have all silently come to terms with the fact that it happens all the time. And I don’t think anyone doubts that some kinds of misdeeds occurred in this case.

Ultimately, it’s sad to me that Senior Chief Toussaint has been all but exonerated because in a totally different situation he proved courageous by effectually just doing his job, what he’s trained to do. What this means for every soldier whose life is entrusted to someone who has at another time enforced some act of violence, degradation or humiliation against them…well, it means that at this point they will have to continue to endure it.