Memorial Day tribute to fighting men

I was out running early and caught a piece of a radio advertisement referring to a television show, Flags of My Fathers, and I thought to myself, "That's odd. I thought the title was Flags of Our Fathers. They must have changed it for television. Hmm. Not a very good change."

Flags of Our Fathers, of course, is a wonderful book by James Bradley, son of John Bradley, one of the men immortalized by the Iwo Jima flag raising. A true work of art and good history.

Now, just a moment ago, I heard the full commercial that I had caught only a part of earlier. Turns out I misheard it; it's Faith of My Fathers, the title of John McCain's I'm-a-Vietnam-War-Hero-Vote-for-Me-I'm-Running-For-President trade piece. They're using for some idiotic puff piece on John McCain on A&E. You know, Vietnam worked so well for John Kerry, it doesn't surprise me that now they're going to try it for McCain. It's pretty pathetic that that's the title they came up with, but that McCain so tritely trades on the good title of a highly successful work of art pretty well captures McCain's contemporary character, whatever his merits may have been 35 years ago.