There is a scene in the excellent movie Taking Chance where Kevin Bacon, playing Marine LtCol Michael R. Strobl, studies casualty lists during the height of Operation Iraqi Freedom. That resonated with me because I did the same thing, as did many others during that time. Each name represented a shattered life and a heartbroken family back home. It was an emotionally draining experience. Over the years, the number of names decreased and today, very few people outside of the military and veteran communities give a second thought to the fact that thousands of young lives are still in harm’s…

Sometimes art needs to be looked at closely to really appreciate it. Remember the famous scene in Ferris Beuller’s Day Off when Cameron stares at the George Seurat’s painting “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte”? (Editor’s note: I’m not an art geek. I googled it.) Well this poster art by Ray Alma of MAD Magazine fame needs to be looked at in detail to really appreciate the whole thing. In case you were wondering, the poster will be used to promote the fourth annual Wyakin Warrior Guardian Ball on December 5th in Boise to make it…

We live in a special place, safely tucked within the borders of this incredible country. One glance at the headlines, however, tells the story of a world in turmoil just outside the gates. Benghazi, Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq…the list goes on and on. Brutality against mankind has become commonplace. The world has gone crazy. As we look around, it is only natural to yearn for easier times, to wish for things to return to normal. But that is the rub, isn’t it? I submit to you that violence, war and atrocities are not deviations in the human story. They are the…