Independence Day: Not Just the 4th of July

For nearly 72 hours, from Sunday to Wednesday, I was at Camp Harvest, my church's amazing 650-acre spread in Newaygo, Michigan.

There, I had zero connection to the news, so I had a ton of catch-up to do today. I see my Red Sox have stumbled 3 1/2 games out of first place and that both Chicago baseball teams remain, amazingly, in first place.

And just about everything else seems to be about murder, in Chicago, throughout Illinois and across the globe. A notable exception was the wonderful story about the hostages freed from Colombian rebels.

Through all the pages, however, by far the most powerful, poignant stuff I came across was on today's Chicago Tribune editorial page---the photography of Chicagoans Arthur Mole and John Thomas nearly a century ago.

When I take in the stunning photographs, I wonder: would such a feat of patience and painstaking attention to detail be possible today? Or would we just settle for a computer-aided manipulation instead?

There's nothing that can come close to replicating this nation's military veterans, past, present and future. To all of you, the Baron Brood extends a heartfelt "thank you" for your service.

And to everyone else, Happy Independence Day...it's not just the 4th of July!