A memorial service today made me sad and happy at the same time.

The service — at Polk Street Methodist Church — honored the memory of Walter Johnson, who I knew as a fellow member of the Rotary Club of Amarillo. He was, as Jon Mark Beilue noted in his blog today, larger than life.

It is hard to stifle a smile when thinking about Walter. He had a unique way of communicating — usually via e-mail. I will not attempt to mimic his style here. Suffice to say that, by definition of the term “unique,” Walter’s way of method of communication cannot be replicated.

Walter had whipped the cancer that nearly felled him. Then, just three days after Christmas, he suffered a massive heart attack — and died.

Thus, I am saddened.

Walter’s memorial service was full of humor and good tidings, which is so like Walter. He always — always — had a good word for those he met. And he didn’t need to know someone to extend a heartfelt greeting. That’s how he lived. That’s also how he was remembered today.

Indeed, that’s how he always will be remembered by those of us who loved him.

God bless his joyous spirit.

I’m glad Rush Limbaugh is recovering nicely from whatever ailed him while he was vacationing in Hawaii. The country needs him.

Why? One reason — other than the obvious, that I don’t wish him harm — is that we all should hear his skewed view of the world to remind us of how life really is for those who aren’t as privileged as he has become by virtue of his big mouth.

Daddy Dittohead proclaimed the other day that because of the health care he received in Hawaii that there is nothing wrong with the nation’s health care system. We have no need to reform it, he said.

So, there you have it: wisdom from a gazillionaire who can afford to pay for first-cabin health care, unlike, oh, 40-plus million uninsured Americans who don’t have access to anything approaching the health care available to the likes of Rush Limbaugh.

Yes, there is plenty wrong with the health care legislation being considered now by Congress. It’s too costly; I’m dubious of the requirement for all Americans to have health insurance; I’m suspicious of any program that requires more government participation, given that the feds manage to make hash out of just about everything they touch.

But we don’t need to take seriously any proclamation from Rush Limbaugh about the state of health care in the nation. It needs repair.

Limbaugh needs to go back to commenting on matters about which he knows something — although I’m unsure what that would be.

Happy New Year, y’all.

The one that has just left us kind of sucked — nationally, at least.

Although for me personally it was most gratifying and fruitful. Its highlight was a magnificent four-week journey in May and June through Israel with four of the most outstanding young people I’ve ever met. The Rotary Foundation Group Study Exchange experience would change my life, I was told over and over. Man, did it ever. So, my eternal gratitude goes to Fernando, Katt, Shirley and Aida for making me proud and for representing West Texas so beautifully on our shared sojourn through the Holy Land.
http://www.amarillo.com/opinion/MEJ.shtml
http://www.amarillo.com/staging/johnkanelis_slideshow.html

I turned 60 just a few days ago in the Caribbean with my wife and sons. That, too, was an unforgettable experience. The idea of swimming in the ocean on my birthday — four days before the official start of winter — never entered my mind until my wife informed one day about mid-2009 that we were going to St. Lucia in December.

What lies ahead? Well, I don’t predict anything these days, given that I’ve gotten so bad at it.

OK, I’ll take a stab at one thing: The race for the Texas House District 87 seat being vacated by David Swinford, R-Dumas, will be one of the more invigorating legislative races in memory. Who knows? It could turn into one of the marquee races in Texas this year. It will be fun to watch this one unfold up close.

It’s still too early to call the Rick Perry-Kay Bailey Hutchison race for governor. But if you put a gun to my head and told me to call it, or else, I would have to say it’s still Perry’s to lose. He is the incumbent and he does have considerable support among his Republican base. But mind you, I’m not predicting he’ll win it. He just might find a way to fritter this primary nominationg prize away. Waiting in the wings will be Democratic challenger Bill White, the soon to be former mayor of Houston.

The past year was full of downers. Job losses mounted. Companies in Amarillo laid people off in droves. The media business seemed to be battered throughout the year all across the nation. It became depressing. I hope we’ve bottomed out and are finding our way back to a new form of prosperity.

I’m glad people are still reading us in print and I’ve found that this blogging business is a whole more fun than I ever imagined. I’ve enjoyed the comments from readers, even those who have challenged my intelligence. Indeed, that goes with the territory. For more than three decades, hardly a week has gone by when someone hasn’t suggested that I’m not nearly as smart as I think I am. These good folks keep me humble.

Here’s to the start of the second decade of the 21st century. Man, even that seems weird.

Those who deny the existence of global warming continue to amaze me.

It’s not about their belief, per se. It’s more about the reasoning that accompanies it.

We’ve been through a prolonged cold spell in the Texas Panhandle. They had snow in Houston a few weeks ago. Remember? All this bundling up against the bitter cold north wind that blows across the High Plains this time of year has affected people’s ability to think clearly.

The mail I’m getting suggests that, given the cold weather we’ve had in our little corner of the planet, global warming is all a commie/socialist plot to destroy our capitalist way of life. Science has told us quite categorically that the polar ice caps are melting; it has shown us all high-resolution pictures taken by weather satellites orbiting high above the earth that the world is warming up.

The debate shouldn’t be about whether the world is warming up. It is. The debate should be about its cause and what, if anything, we mere human beings should do to correct it.

And I just wish I could be spared the nonsense from those who suggest that a few days of snow, biting wind and cold temps mean that all this scientific stuff is a hoax.

Alas, that won’t happen.

Victor Leal has announced his candidacy for the state House District 87 seat being vacated by Rep. David Swinford, R-Dumas.

But his announcement isn’t what raised my eyebrows. It was the endorsement by at least one elected House member, Warren Chisum of Pampa. Why the raised brow? Well, it seemed a bit premature for a Republican lawmaker to endorse a fellow Republican — before the primary field is officially complete.

It’s more common for officials of one party to refrain from endorsing candidates in their party. Such endorsement can have a divisive effect on a primary campaign, particularly if other strong candidates emerge to run the party’s nomination. Chisum, though, attended Leal’s coming out party today in Amarillo, signaling an endorsement of his candidacy.

Chisum is running for re-election in neighboring District 88. He is unopposed as I post this blog.

Chisum and Leal might know something no one else knows, which is that no other candidates will file for the District 87 GOP primary. But until that issue is settled, premature endorsements can end up biting the endorser — and the endorsee — 0n the back side.

My friend Roy had it pegged. We spoke early today about the suspension of Texas Tech head football coach Mike Leach. Ever the loyal Red Raider, Roy said, “I think it’s a pretext to fire him. He’s never gotten along with (athletic director Gerald) Myers and I think Myers is just looking for a reason to get rid of Leach.”

Before lunch today, bingo!, Leach has become the former coach at Tech.

Why fire the coach? Well, he allegedly took a player who reportedly suffered from a concussion and locked him in a shed. That player, Adams James, happens to be the son of ESPN analyst Craig James.

I don’t know the particulars and I haven’t heard the entire story, but at first blush it appears that Tech did the right thing. Coaches never should abuse players who are injured, period. Adam James doesn’t appear to be a malingerer and although I don’t follow Tech football as closely as many others throughout the Panhandle, I am baffled by the coach’s punishing of the young man in such a manner.

So, the question is this: Are there other instances of abuse that could come to light now that Leach is gone?

This story might not be over by a long shot.

Good call, Roy.

All day long, with the TV news channel blabbing in a corner of my office, I’ve been listening to comments about how strict the Israelis’ airport security has become.

No kidding?

I know what they mean.

This past June, I departed Israel and witnessed first hand just how airport security ought to be while the civilized world is at war with international terrorists. David Ben-Gurion International Airport, just outside Tel Aviv, has this security thing down to the letter.

I had been in the country for five weeks, touring it as part of a Rotary International Group Study Exchange team. My wife joined me for a week of vacation at the end of the tour. We spent another few days enjoying the sights and sounds of Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Tel Aviv, Masada and the Dead Sea.

Then we got to the airport. We were told to get there three hours early. We arrived nearly four hours ahead of time. We needed all of it.

We were greeted by a young airport security officer, who quizzed us thoroughly: Why were we there? Who did we see? Where did we go? How long were we in Israel? He took our luggage and ran it through an enormous scanner. Then we were told to show our bags’ contents to another agent. We answered more questions.

All this took about an hour

Then we got to the ticket counter. We showed our passports and then went through the routine security check at the gate. Full disclosure here: I mistakenly left a Swiss Army knife in my carry-on bag. The young security officer took it from me. Darn!

But the point is this: The Israelis are very careful with every passenger who enters the airport departure terminal. They take no chances. And who can blame them? They’ve been through hell with terrorists since the nation was created in 1948. They know how to protect themselves against these madmen.

In the wake of the near-tragedy involving the Nigerian Muslim fanatic who came within a whisker of blowing a Northwest Airlines jet to bits, perhaps every airport in the world ought to adopt the Israeli method of securing air travel. So what if it makes air travel even more unpleasant that it has become since 9/11?

It works for them.

David Swinford makes it official on Tuesday. He won’t seek re-election to the Texas House of Representatives. It marks the end of quite an era in Panhandle politics.

I’ve called our Panhandle legislative delegation The Three Amigos for some time now. Swinford, along with fellow Republicans John Smithee and Warren Chisum comprised quite a troika for the Panhandle in the House. During the 2007 session, all three filled key committee chairmanships, courtesy of the generosity of the Man of the House, then-Speaker Tom Craddick of Midland, who took good care of his three on the High Plains. Craddick was replaced in the 2009 session by San Antonio Rep. Joe Straus, who removed Chisum and Swinford from the Appropriations and State Affairs committee chairs, respectively. Smithee kept his Insurance panel chairmanship.

Prior to Craddick’s tenure as speaker, the three of them buddied up to Pete Laney of Hale Center, Craddick’s predecessor in the speaker’s office. Even though Laney was a Democrat, he took care of his Republican pals, believing that the Panhandle deserved to have a seat at the grownups’ table. He, too, worked with them on key legislation.

The Three Amigos almost always announced their re-election campaigns together. They virtually campaigned together and, for the most part, managed to scare off credible challengers.

Swinford now plans to spend more time with his children, grandchildren and his wife, Joyce. Good for him. He’s earned a break from the legislative donnybrooks. He plans to remain in office until the end of his term, at the end of 2010.

I knew Swinford only by reputation prior to 1995. I have gotten to know him pretty well since my arrival in the Panhandle in January of that year. It’s just going to seem strange to witness a legislative session without The Three Amigos locking arms and standing up for the Panhandle.

No doubt about it. An era is coming to an end.

Republicans have been adamant: Democrats’ plans for reform of health care are doomed to fail. They insist they are right and that Democrats are wrong.

I’ve lost count of the statements that have come from Clarendon U.S. Rep. Mac Thornberry and U.S. Sens. John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchison pillorying their “friends on the other side of the aisle” for shoving this health care reform idea down everyone’s throat.

But I have this question: What might they say if the program actually works? I’m not predicting it will. I don’t know enough about the particulars to be able to predict the outcome of this titanic battle and the legislation that appears headed for law in early 2010. And I surely share their concerns about the cost of this bill, even though its supporters insist it will reduce the national deficit over time.

But again, what if it works?

Given the intense antipathy that Republicans harbor toward Democrats in Congress — and surely the one in the White House — I’m having a hard time believing that they’ll find anything good to say about health care reform, even if it delivers on the immense promises that Democrats have attached to it.

Who knows? We just might have to find a new definition for “sour grapes.”

There’s a lot of things I don’t understand, but that long list just added one more item.

A report in the paper today said that Amarillo lawyer David Duncan, who’s in a heap of trouble with the law, is facing a charge of assault with a deadly weapon. He allegedly used the “weapon” during an altercation in August 2008 at PetSmart, on Soncy Road in west Amarillo.

And just what is the “deadly weapon” he employed? The concrete floor at the store, according to Randall County prosecutors. Huh? What the … ?

Randall County DA James Farren wants to revoke Duncan’s probation — Duncan already has pleaded guilty to injuring a man in a fight at the store — alleging that he violated the terms of his sentence. So, he’s in effect facing the same charge all over again if the court revokes the probated sentence.

I won’t debate the merits of the revocation request. But I’m having trouble grasping the notion that a floor is a “deadly weapon.” The law is a complicated matter, which is why it’s best left to “experts” to sort out.

Still, it all kind of reminds me of the punchline (no pun intended) that declares that someone struck another person’s fist with his face.

As Denzel Washington said in the film “Philadelphia” — in which he portrayed a lawyer — someone’s going to have explain that one to me like I’m a 5-year-old.