My regular readers might notice it’s been a little less divisive here as of late. I have no idea yet which presidential candidate will provide me a better America, and there’s only so much you can say about Mike Huckabee, “religious” political action groups, and other such nonsense. Plus Vinny over at Insignificant Thoughts has been dishing out some heavy political commentary lately, and even if I disagree on some takes I enjoy reading his stir of issues.

Last year I posted a short brief on Karla Comfort’s trek across America in her airbrushed Hummer - in support of our troops. In my post I wrote that a Hummer is a universal symbol of U.S. greed and excess, and seen as integrally tied to oil in the middle east macro view. To use it as a rolling MEMORIAL is ridiculous. What’s wrong with a Harley? On par with the rest of the U.S. populace my comments were split 50/50, half agreeing with the ridiculous irony and the other half calling me an unpatriotic jerk.

I received an email this week from Barbara, who like this commenter who mistook me for Neighborhood Flix, thought I was Karla Comfort. Karla’s presence, and her Hummer, is being requested at the Roseville California Springtime Extravaganza. With another airbrushed Hummer mom believe it or not.

Now - since this fell into my lap, I have to say I don’t feel tributes to our fallen servicemen and women have any place at county fairs - sharing space among window companies, RV and spa dealers, funnel cone stands, and radio station tents. If this was a true old timey county fair with local crafts and the 4H club selling chickens that might be different, but I don’t think those even exist anymore. At least not in central California. Now these events are simply conduits for local advertising - and I don’t find them a respectful venue for the most solemn of tributes.

I don’t feel that memorials should be relegated to city parks and Veteran’s Day parades, but they shouldn’t be an afterthought pocketed into other events. And most of all not used to bring in traffic as a promotional gimmick. My uncle, (my dad’s older brother,) died following injuries sustained in a WW2 plane crash. Portraits of him in his gunnery bubble and in his fatigues at his base hang in my living room. I’d be mortified if I ever saw his face on a Hummer, or on a balloon at a county fair.

Being a good net citizen I attempted to give the organizer Karla’s actual site and contact info, but damned if I could find it among the right-wing blogs supporting her. I did send Barbara a note saying that I wasn’t Karla, so if need be they can get in touch. If anyone is attending the Roseville Springtime Extravaganza please send me an update…

Speaking of respectfully disagreeing; last summer I wrote about why seven year Jason Rinkel should abstain from getting a medical assistance dog for his type 1 diabetes. This story was the best of local news sap, but like most local TV news stories it faded away quickly. I detailed my experiences as a type 1 diabetic, and wrote about why an assistance dog would PREVENT Jason from living a normal life, which is perfectly possible with diabetes.

Jason’s older brother Mark was nice enough to post a note thanking me for plugging his site, even if I think the idea is completely unnecessary. Turns out Jason and Mark DID raise enough money, and are getting their dog in a few weeks. I suggested to Mark that he and his brother start a blog about how their new companion works out in relation to Jason’s diabetes. I truly am interested in how well this ($25,000) dog functions with Jason’s diabetes.

Even though I still disagree with the medical necessity of using a dog for blood sugar detection I think that Jason is extremely fortunate to to have Mark as an older brother - and I wish them the best.

My original post, and Jason and Mark’s site at pawsoflife.net.

One more: Read the current Bus Radio discussion and ensuing comments, then read Katy’s comment at #14. No adult should ever dismiss the views and opinions of the younger generation, when Katy’s clear and logical points far outshine the verbal chaos and cluttered prose spewed out by the parents that also commented. The chasm of clarity is astounding.

Weekend dispatch complete. It’s a sunny 55 degrees here in Denver and I’m off to go biking.