I wrote recently concerning the power of two words: THANK YOU! Further, this is an attitude that makes life better for ourselves, our family and those with whom we come in contact. And, this grateful attitude needs to prevail, not just at Thanksgiving, but throughout the year. Finally, this is not just a matter of opinion but one that has a scientific basis.

Now for the twist: Recently a columnist for the BCV, referring to President Bush wrote, “A well-trained parrot could do a better job, and speak the English language better than him as well.” Duh! I think your slip is showing.

Like a horsefly, this columnist buzzes around our heads, not hurting, but annoying! Annoying because he fashions himself as a great iconoclast who is going to rewrite American history and expose our fatal flaws and usher in peace and prosperity and universal health care and state sponsored gambling and abolish our military. Annoying because he ignores Bobby’s corrections and keeps going blithely along making additional errors in fact. Annoying because he criticizes the grammar of our President in a grammatically incorrect sentence.

This columnist says we should have universal health care because we are the wealthiest nation in the world. Ignoring the fact that our federal government is notorious for ineptness in the administration of most federal initiatives, except the collection of taxes, he seems to think that by waving a magic wand, we will all be covered by this medical insurance and live happily ever after. Please consider the following as an example of what we might get ourselves into with universal health coverage.

Thomas Wagner writing for the Associated Press says: A shortage of National Health Service dentists in England has led some people to pull out their own teeth, or use super glue to stick crowns back on, a study says. Many dentists abandoned Britain’s publicly funded health care system after reforms backfired, leaving a growing number of Britons without access to affordable care - Trying to find good NHS dentists is like trying to hit the lottery, because the service is under-funded.

Then this columnist blackguards America in his August 2nd column by listing all of the times in recent years when the US has used force in another nation, imply that we were villains in every situation, suggesting that our real purpose is to “Conquer the World, One Nation at a Time.” He mentions nations such as Libya, Sudan, Serbia, Somalia, and Haiti, along with Afghanistan and Iraq twice. Giving him the benefit of the doubt, I can see how Afghanistan and Iraq could be listed as nations where the US has invaded, although Afghanistan is funding its war with poppies so that the flower girls can blow smoke rings at the ceiling and losers can shoot it up. But, Somalia?

I am under the impression that the military presence which we had there was to stabilize a government that was fighting Terrorists; the Terrorists got the upper hand, shot down some Blackhawk helicopters, killed some American Air Force, and dragged their bodies thru the streets. And, President Clinton withdrew our presence.

Perhaps this columnist who claims the US is out to conquer the world has sources of information that give him inside information, but I doubt it. Sounds more like a video game to me or a left wing blogger or a history professor that is high on marijuana. Certainly the mix and mingling of nations where we have had a presence and the fact that they are not in chronological sequence reduces this information to the horsefly genre.

But, then I notice that he is teaching at Highland Turner - “student teaching” - I assume, and I wonder if he is teaching his students his version of history. But before we relegate him to the horsefly heap, I call the readers attention to his column on October 4th.

He describes a project of teaching students at Highland-Turner to do a power point demonstration: The sixth grade class demonstrated some of the best Power Point skills I’ve ever seen. The students were helping one another left and right. I have never seen a group of students bind together and work toward a common goal like this before. They absolutely loved this project.

It is easy to discern from this column that this young man is enthusiastic, creative, energetic, and has all of the makings of becoming a credit to the teaching profession! I am thankful that we have young persons, who like this young man, are willing to challenge the status quo: probing, questioning, trying new approaches to teaching and learning. Although I disagree with him strongly on his interpretation of history and his political orientation, I will defend ‘till hell freezes over his right to his opinion.

Happy Thanksgiving, ALL!