With the 40th anniversary approaching on June 17th, The Washington Post has published an article titled "Woodward and Bernstein: 40 years after Watergate, Nixon was far worse than we thought." Its an unsettling read as it brings back memories of unfinished business, lost opportunities, and the subversion of fairplay and justice. It also gives rise to the question: Is the current ship of state in any better condition or repair and staffed by those heeding a higher call?

Whenever I see Henry Kissinger or Patrick Buchanan getting some air time as a talking head, a reported expert, or some sort of elder statesman, I cringe. It is my opinion that neither deserves to be afforded any such dignity; neither has, to my knowledge, ever acknowledged the crimes in which they participated or with which they were associated. P. Buchanan has more than once passed his involvement with the Nixon white house off as little more than high school sophomoric hijinks.

Then there is an article in today's local newspaper with a brief account of the return of the remains of Lt. William Swanson, a Navy pilot lost over Laos in April 1965. Yes, Richard. Yes, Henry. Yes, Patrick. There are grave consequences of our decisions and behaviors. Tragically, it is often from others that the consequences of one's behaviors are extracted and at great price. I know that Richard Nixon was not the president in 1965; I am not suggesting that this triumvirate was personally linked to Lt. Swanson's death. In June 2012, these events are linked; one celebrates its 40th anniversary in ignominy, and the other marks a long delayed burial at Fort Snelling National Cemetery.

(I am certain there is more to this bit of history in which Lt. Swanson was a central figure. His aircraft was lost in April 1965, seven months before the official start of the Viet Nam War on November 1, 1965.)