I’ve been out of the national news loop for about a week. Just too much going on. (See my son’s birthday story for excuses.)

So, it wasn’t until Patrick Murfin sent me this press release announcing a 10:45 Sunday morning (today’s) memorial service at the Woodstock Congregational Unitarian Church that I learned of the two murders July 27th at the Knoxville, Tennessee, Westside Unitarian Universalist Church, one of his church’s affiliates.

Whether one attends the memorial service or not, everyone reading this knows that it is unacceptable behavior to shoot people for their religious or political beliefs.

That might be acceptable behavior in Iraq, but it isn’t in the United States of America.

Here we argue and write nasty anonymous comments under articles on the Northwest Herald web site.

Of course, we are periodically reminded everyone doesn’t buy into the American political tradition of tolerance for beliefs and speech.

Homicidal maniacs pop up occasionally to prove that wrong.

The time before the Knoxville killings I remember was at the Colorado Springs New Life Church on December 9, 2007. Two people were killed there, too. The same guy earlier that day shot two other people at the church’s Denver-area missionary training center.