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Last night on the national NPR show All Things Considered Jessica Jones of WUNC reported,

A North Carolina family is having a difficult holiday season as it mourns Army Staff Sgt. Misael Martinez, who died in Iraq during his third tour of duty. A bomb exploded near the 24-year-old's vehicle in Ramadi. Martinez joined the military after finishing high school, hoping to attend college later. But even as the family grieves, it is preparing for another son to leave for Iraq on his first tour of duty in January.
- Having Lost a Son, Family Sees Another Go to Iraq

It's especially notable how honorably these sons of immigrant parents are serving the nation, even while the nation does a great disservice to the millions like them who have come here to help build the country.

Wednesday's Daily Tar Heel has a front page story about John Edwards called "Edwards on the Road.” It has a big map of the USA plotting Edward's public travel schedule. The story comes to the conclusion that he is campaigning for President in 2008. Shocked? Not I.

Is John Hood an expert on John Edwards? I wondered this because the story quotes him about the nature of Edward's activities. Hood is President of the John Locke Foundation, a well known conservative think tank here in North Carolina - hardly an unbiased expert on the subject of liberal politicians.

Here is one definition:
"A public space or a public place is a place where anyone has a right to come without being excluded because of economic or social conditions." [Wikipedia]

That last part is important, "without being excluded because of economic or social conditions". The economic part means that a public place ideally should not charge anything, money or services, in return for the use of the space. No entrance fees, no minimum purchase, no reservation fee, etc. The social conditions part encompasses a lot. Mainly it stipulates that no one can be barred from entering or using a public space because of their race, appearance, movements, gender, political affiliation, loudness, hair color, clothing choices, etc.