Related story: These officers will be assigned the impossible

By Bob Kerr
Journal Staff Writer

OK, so I'm a local columnist, dealing with the small stories of people in Rhode Island and, occasionally, the zany escapades of politicians. Iraq doesn't quite fit.

But one of the things I've always appreciated about the way editors apparently view this column is the leeway I'm allowed to occasionally write about things that extend beyond the usual borders but still have a close-to-home connection. I know I can't do a steady diet of this kind of thing, but there are times when I think I have something to offer

And this was one of those times. Obviously, I hate the prospect of war in Iraq. I think it's total madness, more a product of national fear than national resolve. But I can't just write that kind of thing because it would mean joining a large pack of howling war protesters and adding nothing new to the mix.

So I looked for a way to come at it that might offer a different perspective and make use of some personal experience. I remember the stories during the Vietnam years of those officers and non-coms who had the duty of going to the homes of those killed in the war and telling the family the news. Some family members really did refuse to open the door once they saw the man in uniform coming up the walk. I once met an Army major after I got out of the service who told me he had had the duty for six months and couldn't shake the memory of some of the faces he had looked into as he brought word of a death in the family.

That image of the officers at the door seemed a good way to go because it speaks to the bottom line of any war -- death and the heavy duty of bringing the word to the front door. So I took it and used it to say what I think of still another war that we don't really know the why and the reason for.

And while I do appreciate the kind words from the Journal's writing committee, I will have to say that the column I wrote in that same time period about the guy who helped track down the man who shot and paralyzed him was a much better example of the local column.

I don't want to sound ungrateful here, but I can't help but think that my political stance in the war column might have had as much to do with my winning as the writing. And maybe that's not such a good way to make the choices.