Bleeding Arts.(A)(EDITORIALS)

Government: It's being reported that the budget crises in the states are threatening publicly funded arts programs. Could such good news be true?

It's possible. We've seen stories in the U.S. media that several states, most prominently Arizona, are considering cutting their arts budgets because of their grim fiscal conditions. Even the sophisticated European press has picked up on the news.

"Culture in the United States is in acute crisis," writes David Usburne in Britain's Independent, "as state governments across the country ponder eliminating funding for the arts entirely to help bridge some of the worst budget deficits."

Usburne carries his …