From a window overlooking the St. Jones

    Another Memorial Day come and gone, and again we heard the sincere commitments across the land to remember those who have made it possible for us to continue living in a free country.

    Indeed we should remember and thank and hold in the highest esteem those who have sacrificed for us. We should really do it every day, of course, because our freedoms exist every day.

    Close to home, we remember the servicemen and servicewomen in all braches of the armed forces, including the National Guard and Reserve personnel, not forgetting for a minute the personnel at Dover Air Force Base who daily make it possible for our overseas military people to carry out their assignments.

    Mary and I were not at one of the local celebrations of the day but we watched the moving 90-minute production from Washington, D.C., that saluted all the military branches and portrayed in particular the sacrifices of the families which support those in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

    Those in the war zones depend on and receive the backing of their families and friends. This contribution of support of all kinds makes a huge difference.

    President Barack Obama and Secretary of Defense (although I believe he terms his title as secretary of war) Robert Gates have a special deep feeling about the day because it reminds them that they are the ones making the critical decisions about sending American fighting forces to the field of battle.

    We can pray for them as well as for those in direct harm’s way.

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    For many years now I have attended the annual May dinner meeting at which the Central Delaware Chamber of Commerce announces which members of the chamber have been singled out for recognition.

    Thursday night Bill Strickland of L&W Insurance Co. was declared the Small Business Person of the year. Because he was sick, his son Justin came in his stead.

    Dennis Klima, president and CEO of Bayhealth, was named to represent the Corporation of the Year. Alex Vaughn of Alex Vaughn Mobile Entertainment won as Entrepreneur of the Year.

    For many years the Dover Post has played a role in the annual dinner by presenting engraved gifts to the three winners. Tom Quinn, publisher of the Post, handed out clocks to each one.

    My reason for not being there was that it also was the night of the graduation of a grandson from Milford High School. Patrick Clifton is the youngest of the seven children of Ruth and Don Clifton and it was an occasion important for Mary and me to attend. I’m glad we did. The stands and sidelines at the football field were filled with enthusiastic friends and family. There were 233 members of the senior class.

    The impressive football field, by the way, has artificial turf and cost more than $1 million.
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    At times in the past I have suggested the government of Kent County, which has the responsibility for all the county’s unincorporated land, change its name. As matters stand, the county government is called the Levy Court, a designation that goes back 354 years. It is not a court at all, of course, it was created to levy taxes. Today its responsibilities are much larger but the old designation remains.

    Some of the current members of Levy Court, but not all, would like to not only change the name to “council,” in keeping with the names of the county governments in the other two counties, but to cut out its Board of Assessment as well as two row offices in the interest of saving some $250,000.

    Times change. So do the responsibilities of county government. All seven members of Levy Court should petition the state legislature to put in motion the legal process to change things.

    Since Kent’s Levy Court is the last one in the nation, perhaps its members could dangle the possibility of a national television news story before the major TV outlets. The word “unique” is often incorrectly used to indicate something unusual or special. In the case of the name of Delaware’s middle county government, this old fashioned name is actually in the unique category.

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    Talking about making a legal change, I wonder how many TV viewers are sick and tired of hearing the pleas of law firms to come to them for business, whether it is fighting the IRS, fighting the Medicare or Medicaid agencies, or simply getting huge settlements for accident or malpractice cases.

    It used to be that some lawyers were referred to as “ambulance chasers” because they wanted to be the first on the scene to get the legal business of representing persons injured or killed in accidents. But at that time members of the legal profession were not allowed to advertise.

    Now lawyers can advertise, and that is certainly their legal right. But the kind of advertising which flows to TV stations in particular is often beyond the pale.

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    Two hunters were in the woods when one collapsed. His companion looked at him closely. He didn’t appear to be breathing. His eyes were glazed.

    The hunter used his cell phone to call 911. “I think my friend is dead!” he told the dispatcher. “What can I do?”

    The operator said “Calm down. First, let’s make sure he’s dead.”

    There was a brief silence. Then the dispatcher heard the sound of a shot. The guy came back on the phone and said: “Okay, now what?