The great American portrait photographer, Richard Avedon, left us an incredible, unfinished portfolio called “Democracy 2004.” It’s in this week’s New Yorker and it knocks me out.
David Boyles
Dave pulls up in what he calls his “Thunder chicken,” a cool black 1996 Thunderbird. The bumper stickers announce, “Defeat Kerry and Vietnam Veterans will get the parade they never had.” And something like, “US Marine Terrorist License,” which looks like a hunting or fishing license and carries the ID number, 091101. Big ‘Nam Vets for Bush bumper stickers. Dave called me from the road and I invited him to rest here on his trip back to Florida from his hometown in Ohio.
Dave went to Viet Nam when I started going to Broward Community College. He spent two years in the Marines, six months in ‘Nam. He told me the pack he grunted weighed about a hundred and twenty pounds. I told him about Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried.” One-twenty is on the extreme heavy side, if I recall from O’Brien’s wonderful story. He must have been packing a lot of heat. Dave was one of my two main friends approximately between our ages of ten and sixteen, the years leading into high school.
As we were leaving for breakfast, I noticed a four-inch, round circle sticker with the W logo done in American-flag chic affixed to one of our outdoor garage lights. When we returned I noticed another on my mailbox, to complement our Kerry yard sign. I told Dave I was not amused and he should remove his littering graffiti at once. He did.
When he left to hit the road again, I noticed another sticker on the circuit-breaker box in the garage. Will probably find more.
Vote Bush or I’ll kill you, boy's ultimatum to girl
Thanks to Bexx for the link.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-pscrewdriver28oct28,0,7776269.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines
