Contrary to what many of you among my readership might feel in light of yesterday’s news of the divestiture of Messieurs Nardizzi and Giordano, I feel no vindication or joy. Perhaps a sigh of relief that funds donated to Veterans might now make their way to those intended is uppermost in my mind.

There can be no joy in Mudville when things like this occur. That it continued for seven years is merely an anomaly. Egregious behaviour doesn’t escape notice forever. Sunshine is always the best disinfectant. That Dean Graham and I chose to shine a bright light on this and protest was inevitable. That we were sued for slander was, too. I was more than willing to admit my error. My attorney had to teach me the proper way to do so. I suspect Dean was equally admonished by his leagle beagles on the proper way to do this henceforth.

No one benefits from their removal besides the post-911 Veterans. It will have no effect on all of us who served prior to September 11th, 2001. I suspect the ones who will breathe the largest sigh of relief are Col John Melia Sr. (USA Ret.) as well as his sons. The stain of the sin tended to reflect on them simply as guilt by association. He conveyed to me the mortification they all felt as the WWP metamorphosed from a caring, meaningful endeavour into what appeared on its face to be a self-centered, narcissistic one.

We can all use this as a teaching moment to understand what avarice can do to us. Truly disabled Veterans are akin to an endangered species and need protections. I always point to some of the larger outfits like Fisher House as exemplars of what can happen when devotion to this concept is followed and personalities are set aside. Remember, this isn’t about the organization or its logo-it’s about the Veteran. If you lose sight of that, your precept for existence has no grounding.

Mostly, I have no desire to learn how to rappel down bell towers in Colorado.

And that’s all my attorney will let me say about that.