Hi Frank. I came across your blog while perusing Allison's. As I read this post, I thought, I should tell Frank about the article I just read in the New Yorker that begins by telling a story of a younger soldier who figures out he has to point his gun at the ground as a gesture of respect, and looky here, it's the very same article. I think you're smarter than me, and that's not because I'm drinking the last of a bottle of chianti, minus the fava beans and liver, mind you, while watching the AKC Eukanuba Championship, which is probably something that would make you writhe in agony. I feel inclined to add that I thoroughly enjoyed the bit you read on Friday night. I also feel inclined to add that I have never actually used the phrase "I feel inclined to add" until just this moment, and it is scaring me. See you Wednesday. Oh, must add this, which might make you laugh. My two lovely children just came downstairs after rifling around in one of their closets, where they found two small plastic cauldrons that they were given on Halloween. They are wearing said cauldrons on their heads, and they very politely asked, Mom, can you please fix the string on my closet light so we can make a fort in there? I said, Can't you just stand on a stool and pull the little chain? And they said, in unison, No, we're just a couple of little potheads. Oh, I have to go, I just peed in my pants laughing. Does this have anything to do with what you posted? No, not really. I'll give you this-there is plenty of evidence that our world is changing for the better. There will always be horrible people and horrific events that are caused by those people. That will never change. However, and I can only say this because I am in this weird phase of pre-middle-age weirdness, those who are younger will eventually become old enough to vote, to work, to run for office, and to serve in the military, and with any luck the best and brightest of those will make the biggest difference. How likely is this? Well, considering that we've been inundated all weekend with the smirk of the freshly sentenced Spc., now Pfc. Charles Graner, and not many of us have heard the story of a soldier who was smart enough to think on his feet and essentially prevent what could have been yet another American embarrassment, I guess not that likely. That wasn't exactly helpful, was it? Okay, must go. Joe Perry, of Aerosmith, and his wife and son, are now being interviewed on the AKC Eukanuba Dog show, and I have to go throw up.