Cheers: To Billy Butz. After resting for decades in a grave for unknown soldiers, the remains of U.S. Army Pfc. William R. Butz have been returned home to Clark County. Butz, who at 17 lied about his age to enlist, was killed in Korea on Dec. 12, 1950. His body was unidentified and was interred in Hawaii until modern technology allowed for positive identification.
The body was flown to Portland, escorted by a local chapter of Patriot Guard Riders to Vancouver, and on Friday was buried with full military honors. Betty Hein, Butz’s sister, still lives in the area. The story is a poignant reminder of the sacrifices military members and their families have made in defense of this nation.
Jeers: To convoluted bureaucracy. C-Tran officials have decided to eschew a $310,000 federal grant that was earmarked to help pay for new surveillance systems at transit centers, Park & Ride lots, and other facilities. The reason: The agency could not find a manufacturer that met the grant’s requirement of products made entirely in the United States.
The federal government should, indeed, attempt to support American jobs and manufacturing. But if the product in question is not available in this country, then it’s not available. Rather than hampering local agencies with restrictions, the federal government should work to solve the dearth of U.S. manufacturing.
Cheers: To Ichiro. Seattle’s favorite Japanese import reached a remarkable milestone as he recorded the 3,000th hit of his major-league career. More than 18,000 people have played in the major leagues since the founding of the National League in 1876, and only 30 of them have achieved 3,000 hits. What makes Ichiro’s feat even more amazing is that he didn’t come to the United States until the age of 27 — well past the age when most stars reach the major leagues.
Ichiro spent his first 11 1/2 seasons in the United States playing for the Seattle Mariners, but from the beginning he was embraced by fans throughout the nation for his exciting and unique style of play. He since has played for the New York Yankees and now is a member of the Miami Marlins, but fans in the Northwest always will think of him as a Mariner.
Jeers: To homemade flamethrowers. From the “Don’t Try This At Home” file: A Centralia man recently sparked a small apartment fire with a makeshift flamethrower. The reason for the conflagration: He was attempting to kill cockroaches.
We’re no fans of the creepy six-legged crawlers, but it’s safe to say we would never consider using bug spray and a lighter to try and zap them. The blaze was small and had been extinguished by the time firefighters arrived, but the most telling part of the saga comes from the Associated Press account: “It’s not clear whether any cockroaches were actually killed in the process.”
Cheers: To changes in the state’s driving test. Washington’s Department of Licensing is expanding the written portion of the requirements for a driver’s license. The test will grow from 25 questions to 40 questions, with much of the change focusing on the relatively new dangers posed by smartphones and legalized marijuana. For example, one new question is: “If you are under 21, you can be arrested for a THC/marijuana level of.” The answer, of course, is anything more than 0.00, because marijuana remains illegal for those under 21.
Other questions will help raise awareness of the dangers of texting and driving. Considering that a recent study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that teen drivers spend nearly one-quarter of their driving time distracted, the new test can hopefully make drivers think twice and make the roads safer for everybody.
