I noticed with amusement the 7 fair photos published in this morning's Coeur d'Alene Press. All 7 had children in them. 4 of the 7 had children with animals. Back when I was the editor of The Daily Inter Lake in Kalispell, Mont., I was told by the late Publisher C. Patrick King to fire my best news photographer because he'd taken a bunch of artsy fartsy photos of the Northwest Montana Fair carnival rather than ones with children holding animals. Indeed, King was so incensed that he wanted the hard-working man, who had several children to support, to get the boot. Not only did I succeed in saving the guy's job, but also got him a dime per hour raise for the good job he did. Which was a big deal in that tight-fisted Duane Hagadone newspaper. Probably still is. Then, I made an error in judgment and told the news photographer about his close scrape. He quit a short time later to move to the Missoulian and later the Wichita Eagle.

• Cutline: Sydney Graczyk, then 7, tries to hang on while a mechanical bull spins and bucks, In this 2008 North Idaho Fair photo by Jesse Tinsley.

Question: Do you want kids and animals in all your fair photos?