One Lucky Dog

Meet Molly, a west highland white terrier, also known as "the Flying Dog." Sitting in her restrained portable pet carrier, Molly often would ride with her dad as he piloted a helicopter for the morning news show.

Yesterday at around midday, her dad - for whatever reason - decided not to take her along for this particular helicopter ride.

Her dad, Craig Smith, never came back. He was one of the two pilots killed in Phoenix yesterday.

Tragedy in Phoenix

The images on the left will be burned in my memory forever, I'm sure.

Yesterday, all five of Phoenix's news helicopters, along with one police helicopter, were monitoring the pursuit of a stolen vehicle. Then tragedy struck. Two of the choppers - one from KTVK (Channel 3) and KNXV (Channel 15) collided in midair and plummeted into a park below.

Each chopper carried a pilot and a photographer - all four were killed. Our local media was dumbstruck as this news story involved their own.

Ironically, no one on the ground was hurt. That is no small miracle when you consider this incident took place in central Phoenix, over and in a park surrounded by high rises and residential areas. The area's light rail is being constructed on Central Avenue along the park's western boundary. There is a hotel on the western boundary, a high school on the northern boundary. And to the east is the VA Hospital.

Eventually, the suspect involved in the stolen vehicles (he stole two) was arrested after barricading himself in a home on the far west side of Phoenix. He may possibly be charged on four counts of manslaughter.

The park and streets around it are currently closed. The NTSB is now conducting their investigation. Debris is scattered as far as 200 yards from the crash site. As far as the FAA can tell from the radio transmissions, the pilots were following procedure. But perhaps the helicopters were too close to each other. Monsoonal winds can be erratic, even when the weather is good (which it was). Some witnesses said it appeared that the two helicopters got "sucked in toward each other."

It doesn't appear that there has ever been an incident involving media-operated helicopters like this before. Kind of surprising when you consider how these choppers seem to flock together when there's a major news story. In Phoenix, if you see five choppers, you know it's big. To me, this seems to have been accident waiting to happen. The fact that it hasn't until now is a testimony to the skill of these pilot/journalists. I suppose now the FAA will be rewriting the rules on this.

I am rather familiar with Steele Indian School Park. It is where our church - in conjuction with two others on Central Avenue - hold its Easter sunrise service every year. I've also met with my Stephen Ministry care receiver there - it's a nice oasis in the middle of the city.

I wonder if my attitude toward that place will change, too.

There is so much regarding this story, so here a just a couple of additional links:
Story
Photos

Favorite Quote of the Week

"We had Lindsay Lohan booked on the show tonight, but apparently she was already booked."

- Jay Leno, The Tonight Show, July 25, 2007

2007 NBA Championship - San Antonio Spurs *

Now that former NBA referee Tim Donaghy is under investigation for betting on NBA games - including those he officiated - it could be very interesting as to what comes out of this mess.

It's bad enough that Phoenix Suns fans think they got hosed by horrible officiating in their playoff series against the Spurs. The fact that Donaghy called game 3 only adds fuel to the fire. And if others were involved in the Spurs' championship run this year? There will be hell to pay.

Lot's of folks would love to see Donaghy dead. I say place him under witness protection at least until the FBI gleans every bit of information they can (I think torture is justified since he was - after all - an NBA ref). Fine him an amount equal to whatever salary he made while he was gambling and give the proceeds to NBA charities. Then quietly take him out of protection so his mafia buddies can take care of him.

If it is found that other referees were involved, then obviously the NBA has some very serious problems.

First (but probably the least of their problems), is that the legitimacy of this year's NBA title is questionable at best. Perhaps they would have to add an asterisk next to the Spurs. Or better yet, just strip them of the title altogether (and to be truly fair, just don't give it to anybody).

Second, David Stern would need to resign as commissioner. Or face impeachment by the NBA owners.

Third (and probably the most serious), the NBA will have to struggle with their image and credibility. TV networks, sponsors, and fans will probably be more hesitant to dole out cash. If that's serious enough, the NBA could face extinction.

Pretty serious stuff.

Finally Some Relief

The monsoon has struggled to get started this year, but it was sure here this week. We'd been experiencing quite a number of 110°+ days right into mid-July, but this past week has been a different story. We've actually had some rather inclement weather. We even had two rainy afternoons to watch out our window at work. Cool! Really, it has been noticeably cool(er). Even on sunny days the temperature has struggled to reach 100°. In fact, with the humidity out there, this is probably the moistest monsoon I can remember for a long time.

Freedom Is Not Free

I think the inscription on a wall at the Korean War Memorial in Washington says it all - "Freedom is not free."

Let us not forget that our own country's fight for independence continued for another seven years after we declared it. And even then, the British came back again in 1812 to try and take it away.

Let us not forget the gargantuan issues our country faced for decades until it was finally resolved in violent struggle. The Civil War was nearly America's undoing; instead, an entire segment of the population was liberated, and we became a stronger nation.

Let us not forget the juggernaut of Nazi Germany and its evil Axis of fascist allies who sought to shape the world in their twisted image. The struggle was monumental - and came at a very high cost - but it was necessary.

The struggle against Communism and it oppresive ways has manifested in many ways. One of the most visible ways is in Korea, where many perished as two mighty powers vied for control of the peninsula. Even today, the struggle remains an unresolved stalemate as both sides stare at each other across a 54-year-old cease fire line.

We went into Vietnam hoping to stem the tide of Communist agression; failing this mission would start a domino effect of losing the rest of southeast Asia. We flinched. Vietnam fell. So did Laos. And Cambodia. And Burma. In Cambodia, some one to two million people were eliminated in the killing fields by that murderous regime.

So what about Iraq? Are we going to flinch there, too? Granted, the war has proved difficult. Probably because we're playing too nice, too politically correct. But this war has not been any more difficult than any previous struggle.

I admire my fellow Americans for wanting peace. It is a good cause. It is just. It is honorable. But peace - like freedom - is not free.

We are dealing with an enemy that thinks America has gone soft and are more than willing to prove it. They don't understand the freedoms we enjoy. They have no Bill of Rights. They are intolerant of any religion other than their own. Whether you are Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu, something else, nothing else, or even some sort of Muslim, you are on their hit list.

This is a small but tenacious enemy. They must be dealt with over there or we will be dealing with them over here. Perhaps it's already too late. But we must be prepared to struggle.

Freedom is not free. That's not a suggestion. It's a fact. Let's not forget that.