Mark’s Musings – June 4, 2014
Mark Fortune
So much to do in Coshocton County! And this is one of those months that provide something for people of all ages and all ranges. Let’s review for a moment; Hot Air Balloon Festival this weekend with launches slated for Friday evening, Saturday morning, Saturday evening and typically the same time slots on Sunday.
Next up on the agenda is the 5K Indian Mud Run – which is June 21st. This is an event that has raised the awareness of our community to hundreds of non-residents. Let’s put our best foot forward, so to speak.
Let’s turn our attention to bicycling. Hundreds of cyclists will descend on Coshocton County June 16, 17 and 18 – and many volunteers have poured countless hours into making this a safe and fun stop on the Great Ohio Bicycle Adventure (GOBA). So watch out for bicyclists in a couple of weeks.
Piled on top of these unique events for our community are the various family reunions, Farmers Markets, ball games, gardening and other summer activities and you have a community that is alive with activity.
That’s what makes us different I believe. Sure, you might not want to participate in the Mud Run but you can root someone special on. You may not ride a bicycle or remember how – wait, you never forget right? – but you could set up a really cool lemonade stand along the route. I have heard that the cyclists enjoy being lightly misted with a garden hose as they cruise by. I hope I am correct on this one – I did not write “sprayed with a fire hose” – I wrote “lightly misted”.
Now, let’s review for a moment the world stage. Because, as much as I would not like to – sometimes you have to bring attention to bear regardless of all that is good in Coshocton County. There are various weather events wreaking havoc across the globe, trouble in the Sudan – again – and the trouble in the Ukraine is not going away (Vladimir Putin has to pay for the Olympics somehow) and ongoing persecutions of Christians in several countries.
In our own country we have ongoing issues with the VA – now let’s keep this one realistic. Not that the national conglomerate media would skew anything out of proportion but we could probably surmise that many thousands of Veterans have received excellent care at a VA medical facility. Unfortunately we live in a society and age where problems arise to the surface quickly. And getting rid of the person in charge of a several thousand employee agency and hoping that fixes the problem is like thinking one dam on the Mississippi River can stop spring flooding. It can’t and it won’t. The problem obviously goes much deeper than the former head of the VA.
Of course, with it being a huge government entity – the problem wouldn’t be too much bureaucracy and policies getting in the way of people getting their job done to the best of their ability would it? That is, taking care of our veterans who sacrificed for the rest of us. Let’s get them taken care of.
Category: Mark's Musings
