As the week draws to a close and we come to grips with the horrific shooting at the Holocaust Museum, a letter in today’s Washington Post reminded me of the amazing capacity we as humans have to find meaning, inspiration and hope in the face of tragedy:

James W. von Brunn — racist, domestic terrorist and anti-Semite — never knew that when he and his then-wife sold their Lebanon, N.H., home in 1982, they sold it to a Jewish family.

The von Brunns had moved to Maryland before we looked at the house, and he was incarcerated when we bought it, imprisoned for attempting to hold hostage members of the Federal Reserve Board. When we moved in, we realized we’d bought it from an anti-Semite survivalist because he’d left behind several boxes of anti-Jewish books. We immediately added them to the trash.

Anyway, James W. von Brunn, we want you to know we took great pleasure in living there despite the hate-filled man who occupied it before we did. We celebrated Passover Seders, exchanged Hanukkah gifts and raised two wonderful Jewish children there.

GAIL CHADWICK

Wonderful, non? Irony is a wonderful, wonderful thing.

Never thought you would hear those words come out of my mouth, eh? Well watch this clip of Shep Smith summing up with unbelievable brevity and clarity in three, little words why we DO.NOT.TORTURE.

That’s right. We are America. End of story.

And also, I just really enjoyed the added florish of the f-bomb.

Well, no one can argue that the Obama administration is not a resounding success in at least one area: pirate killing.  Check it out:

Take that, Taft!

Source.

"The body of U.S. Air Force Staff Sergeant Phillip A. Myers, of Hopewell, Virginia is transferred upon arrival at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware late on April 5, 2009."

I hate to begin the week on a somber note, but I think this is too important not to mention. For the first time in 18 years, the media was allowed to capture the “dignified transfer” of a solider killed in combat as his or her remains are returned the family.  According to the Washington Post:

Air Force Staff Sgt. Phillip A. Myers, 30, of Hopewell, Va., who was killed in Afghanistan on Saturday in the explosion of a makeshift bomb, became the first service member welcomed home publicly in 18 years. Myers, who was attached to the 48th Civil Engineer Squadron based in England, was awarded a Bronze Star last year for his service in Iraq, according to the Air Force.

Myers’s wife and other relatives attended the 17-minute ceremony, which began shortly after 11 last night at the Air Force base. Except for the command “Present Arms,” it was conducted in silence.

“It doesn’t matter what the conditions are like — cold, wet, sunny,” said Sgt. James Rhett of the Army’s Old Guard. “They’re a fallen soldier, and they deserve the highest respect and honor we can give.”

The images are simply incredible.  Alternately beautiful in its pageantry and unbearably heartbreaking, I would argue it is the duty of every American to view these photographs and spend a few moments reflecting on the ideas of duty, honor and service to one’s country.

Living in the Northeast, I find I am largely insulated from the those serving in the Armed Forces and thus have very little sense of the sacrafice these men and woman and their families have made.  This really brought it home, if only for a brief moment.

View the Washington Post album here.

It’s dreary and rainy here in New York, and boy do I need a pick-me-up.  Luckily I came across this image, which instantly brightened my day:

C'est Magnifique!

Two beautiful, independent, no-nonsense, fashion-forward women and the men who adore them.  I get tingly just looking at this picture.

Oh, to be Michelle or Carla!  I will just have to admire from afar.

*le sigh*

Money quote from John McCain’s speech at the Heritage Foundation yesterday:

Over 50 million people voted for me and Sarah Palin—mostly for Sarah Palin.

That’s a huge slice of humble pie there for the Senator.

Source: Washington Independent

Stunning

Michelle Obama choose a black Michael Kors shift dress for her official White House portrait, which a little birdie tells me is:

…is a black bonded jersey tank gown, a version of Look 73 from the Spring collection.

Simple but sleek, I think it was a stunning choice that played-up her best asset: her arms. Ms. O has some great guns!

Liberal or conservative, political conventions are always a comedy goldmine.  Picture the dopiest, most ardent, most fervent and most delusional party devotees gathered in one room. Now sprinkle that with a dash of crazy, and I present to you CPAC, the Conservative Political Action Committee. Just how right-wing nutty are these folks? Well, when President Bush arrived to give an address at last year’s annual meeting, he was greeted with chants of “FOUR MORE YEARS!”

Yeah.  These people are “special.”

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I will admit that after following the ’08 election obsessively for two plus years, a large part of me is burned out on politics.  That being said, I managed to watch President Obama’s address last night, but turned off the television for Gov. Bobby Jindal’s response.  Apparently, I missed the most interesting part of the evening. And by interesting, I mean insane.

The liberal and conservative blogs were atwitter this morning discussing how bad Jindal was.  The common theme seemed to be comparisons to Kenneth the page on NBC’s 30 Rock.  Well, I do love me a good train wreck, so I watched. OH.MY.GOD.  If you have not seen it, watch and be amazed by the awkward delivery, the inept arguments and the general crazy.  The Katrina section is especially brutal.

Let me say this with the utmost honesty: the Republican party’s descent into ultra-conservatism in the wake of their defeat in the past two election cycles and their posturing response to the stimulus package has me concerned.  Contrary to what many people think, I do not revel in the GOP’s absolute disarry at the moment.   While my politics are decided liberal, I personally do not think a two-party system in which one of the parties is a big, hot-mess of dissension and anger is the way to go.  To me, a strong Republican party means a strong Democratic party and vice versa.  They serve to keep each other honest and transparent.

In any case, I will leave the more nuanced analysis to David Brooks, conservative writer at the New York Times. If you have four minutes, I highly recommend you watch.  It’s nice to hear a moderate voice in the the conservative wilderness.