Geoffrey K Pullum has a delightful article tearing Strunk and White's prescription and examples to pieces. While there's some truth to the advice, it is often simplistically presented and ludicrously overapplied (uh, I mean, "style guides often present it simplistically, and editors often overapply it"). There's plenty of room for the passive voice, and even more so when you consider what Strunk and White consider to be passive even though it isn't.

http://chronicle.com/article/50-Years-of-Stupid-Grammar/2549...