The heroes

There were columns and columns of stories written, TV segments aired and live coverage of the 20th anniversary of 9/11 last weekend to bring all of the horror and disbelief of that day to the forefront.

The best review of the day, in my opinion, was “60 Minutes” which spent the ticking hour full of stories of the New York City Fire Department.

FDNY lost 343 firefighters on 9/11, from rookies to the top echelon of officers.

How do you fight a fire in the upper stories of the two 100-story plus buildings?

You drag nearly 70 pounds of hose up the stairs, that’s how. And if you’re honest with yourself, you imagine that you won’t make it back to the ground safely.

Those that were there that day noted that not one firefighter refused to head into the buildings. They all went and many perished.

For the FDNY it wasn’t just coworkers who lost their lives.

As is the case with many big city fire and police departments, grandfathers, fathers, brothers, cousins and sons were all in the mix of those who responded. And after the events of that day, other family members joined the squads.

Now, well after that fateful day, many who worked on “The Pile” of the collapsed buildings day after day looking for survivors are coming down with COPD and other diseases because of the dust and ash they inhaled during that time.

There is a federal fund set up to help those in that situation, but Congress had to almost be shamed into adding more money into the fund the last time it was running low.

Disgraceful.

There were many other first responders who lost their lives that day but of the 412 killed, 343 wore the FDNY turnout coats.

The “60 Minutes” remembrance was a fitting tribute to those firefighters.

Oh really!

Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett certainly has the intellectual firepower to sit on the nation’s high court, which is why she came under derision this past weekend for declaring the high court “not composed of a bunch of partisan hacks.”

Methinks she protests too much.

"My goal today is to convince you that this court is not composed of a bunch of partisan hacks. Sometimes, I don’t like the results of my decisions. But it’s not my job to decide cases based on the outcome I want,” Barrett said.

She said this, wait for it, at a political gathering where she was introduced by Sen. Mitch McConnell, who moved heaven and earth to make sure Barrett got a seat on the court.

Barrett certainly should have been smart enough to realize she’d come under attack for her remarks, especially after the court has made some political rulings, most recently allowing Texas’ anti-abortion restrictions to go into effect.

The court has also taken to making rulings based on the “shadow docket,” ruling on cases which haven’t been argued before the court.

There’s a real easy way to have people not think of you as a political hack. Don’t be one.

Wowser Bowser!

The insurance policy for our little villa in Arizona came the other day and I was intrigued by changes to one part of the policy.

It seems the insurance company was cutting back on what it would pay out in liability if you had certain breeds of dogs that have historically behaved badly.

All of the regular guilty parties were there — Dobermans, German Shepherd, pit bulls, rottweilers, Akitas — but then the policy said any dog that was partly any of those dogs.

One wonders what percentage of dogs in humane societies across the country fall into that rubric. How many “mutts” owe some of their lineage to the shepherds or pit bulls?

There was no penalty for little ankle biters, the Yorkies and Chihuahuas of the world. Better get one of them or a purebred not on the list to keep your policy in good stead.

Kendall P. Stanley is retired editor of the News-Review. He can be contacted at kendallstanley@charter.net. The opinions expressed in this column are those of the writer and not necessarily of the Petoskey News-Review or its employees.