And another thing …

A quick thank you. Many families will gather around a table today and give thanks for the meal they are about to devour. If the stuffing isn’t from inside the turkey, you might also want to pay homage to Ruth Siems.

The creator of Stove Top stuffing died on Nov. 13 at the age of 74 in her hometown of Evansville, Ind. The former home economist for General Foods came up with the quick and easy version in 1971.

On behalf of the millions of cooks who have neither the time nor the inclination to stuff a turkey, thank you, Ms. Siems. You truly made a difference.

A senseless sentence. In September 2004, two Seattle brothers with murder in their hearts drove across the state into Idaho and killed University of Idaho football player Eric McMillan in cold blood, each shooting him once, after Eric answered his apartment door.

They wanted to send a message to Idaho athletes not to mess with a nephew who was planning to attend nearby Washington State. They did. The message? You can gun down a young man in Latah County, Idaho, plead guilty, and be free in as little as eight years. That’s the ridiculous sentence that 2nd District Judge John Bradbury imposed on Matthew R. Wells, 28, and James Wells, 26, plus 12 years indeterminate. The defense counsel asked for four years fixed.

Incredibly, Prosecutor Bill Thompson Jr. wanted only 10 years fix, for what he called “one of the most senseless and incomprehensible tragedies Latah County has ever experienced.”

In the same vein, friends and fans of the slain player can call the terms given the Wells brothers among “the most senseless and incomprehensible sentences Latah County ever experienced.” What a miscarriage of justice.