Good luck to WHS baseball

The News Virginian
Published: June 5, 2008

THUMBS UP: A photograph on the front of The News Virginian sports section Thursday was telling. It shows Waynesboro High School baseball coach Jim Critzer with a hand on first baseman Josh Craig, the former with his head tilted to the side as he makes a point to his ballplayer. The fiery coach again has molded another winning club. For the second consecutive year, the Little Giants have advanced to the state Group AA Final Four. They face Powhatan this morning seeking a shot at the state title Saturday. The club features an abundance of stars, including base-stealing wizard Terrell Thompson, pitching phenoms Drew DeMoss, Joseph Lucas and Jeremy Hahn and a host of others. But the driving force is the man in the dugout. His players recognized as much Tuesday, dousing the skipper with a bucket of ice water after disposing of Abingdon in the state quarterfinals. Having fallen short a year ago in their state title run, the Little Giants vow this year will be different, that they will finish with a championship. In the meantime, it’s worth acknowledging that the status quo so far wears a shine. Whatever the outcome today or tomorrow, the Little Giants have had a season to savor. Caps off to Critzer’s crew, and best of luck.
THUMBS UP: President Clinton in his first inauguration speech committed a rare act of profundity: “There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America.” David Woodard is an example of the latter. The Stuarts Draft High School graduate and Army first lieutenant is laboring to walk again after a roadside bomb penetrated his Humvee and shrapnel tore into his legs while traveling to a Baghdad checkpoint last month. From Walter Reed Army Medical Center, he sent a message through The News Virginian’s Alicia Rimel: “I have a whole platoon of guys over there that are still fighting the fight. ... [T]hey’re not complaining. ... These guys want to stay there and finish this fight so we don’t have to go back.” We are among those who have questioned America’s entry into war in Iraq, but we recognize what many war opponents do not: Victory there is essential. A negotiated withdrawal is impossible. This means America must win or risk the lives of thousands of troops. The dedication of soldiers such as Woodard and his platoon of fighters is reason to believe that the mission can be accomplished in reality rather than as a mere photo opportunity. Here’s to Woodard and those who battle deadly enemies far from home in hopes of keeping them there. We live thankfully in the security our soldiers provide.
THUMBS UP: Concluding three weary months of partisan infighting, Kurt Michael’s final day as Augusta County Republican chairman comes Saturday, when the 6th District Committee will gather in Lexington. He and Larry Roller have spent much of the last 60 days tussling over that title, after the latter launched an ostensibly successful takeover bid in April during the county GOP’s mass meeting. Roller won the vote that appeared to matter, but district and state party officials said he and his backers violated meeting rules. Providing the heat for the simmering tensions is an abiding feud between state Sen. Emmett Hanger, R-Mount Solon, and Michael, who supported Hanger’s opponent, Scott Sayre, in the GOP primaries last year. Michael sought to cool those tensions in a letter to Republican blogs earlier this week: “With my resignation, I am offering an invitation to Sen. Emmett Hanger and his followers to come back into the Republican fold and focus on the true challenge of the fall elections.” Hanger, to his discredit, is disinterested. In quietly relinquishing his position, Michael has acted for the good of his party as well as those who have tired of this saga, the comic relief of which has faded into tedium. Now is the time for all to move on.