Bless ‘Em All, Bless ‘Em All

I tend to rag on the Kootenai County commissioners.

Maybe it has something to do with the relationship between government and the Fourth Estate.

But there’s one thing they’re doing that’s very right. They honored veterans with the unveiling of a memorial at the new courthouse annex.

And they have plans to do more for the men and women who laid it all on the line to win the freedoms that some of us still cherish.

Next on their agenda will be a plaque that lists the name of every Kootenai County resident who died during World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. As I looked at the names Monday in Commissioner Ron Rankin’s office, I realized I was standing on holy ground.

I moved here in 1984, long after they all had died. Yet, their names live on in families who have roots deep in North Idaho soil - Acre, Damiano, Nipp, Watson, Wolters, Wise. And that’s just some of the Vietnam War dead.

I was surprised to see only three had died in Korea - Ernest P. Cuddeford, Stanford I. Hoff and George W. Otto. I asked Rankin why the toll was so low. “Because,” he said, “they’d all been killed during World War II.

He wasn’t exaggerating much.

During WWII, 110 Kootenai County men and one woman (Joan Corey) died fighting for this country - 92 Army, 11 Navy and eight Marines.

They should be remembered.

And commissioners from the other four North Idaho counties should follow Kootenai County’s lead in making sure that they are.

Et tu, Hayden Lake fire commissioners?

Hmmm. So, the Hayden Lake fire commissioners dumped Fire Chief Wayne Syth, and they’re not willing to say why? Wayne Syth? The man who built the department from a group of volunteers into the professional unit it is today? Good grief! The fire commissioners owe their district an explanation. And the one offered by Deputy Fire Chief Mark Dennison won’t cut it. What does Dennison mean when he says the district wanted to “facilitate a different style of the district’s management.” You suppose the district didn’t like Syth arriving first at fires, improving training and being widely respected by volunteers and paid firefighters alike? The “explanation” offered by Wayne Johnson, chairman of the board of fire commissioners, was equally bad: “Things just weren’t working out. Honestly, there is not one specific reason.” Bad form, Hayden Lake fire commissioners.

, DataTimes MEMO: D.F. Oliveria’s “Hot Potatoes” runs Tuesdays and Thursdays. You can comment on the items by calling (800) 344-6718 or (208) 765-7125, or by sending e-mail to daveo@spokesman.com.