Albuquerque has lost two police officers to a deranged man who is also suspected in the deaths of two other men at a local motorcycle shop. It is a very sad occasion and I send all my sympathies to the families of both the officers and the other victims.
This will be the lead media story in New Mexico and especially Albuquerque for the next few days. The story will provide very big headlines and lots of airtime, and it probably should. When this kind of loss is experienced close to home then it becomes very real. It is almost as if geographical proximity increases the sense of loss. Maybe that is why media coverage of the loss of American soldiers in far away Iraq and Afghanistan seems to dwindle with the repetitive casualty reports. You can't help but notice that these stories fall further back in the front section of many newspapers. Of course when a local soldier dies in that conflict the coverage will pick up for a day or two.
One difference you will notice over the next few days is that the Governor, Mayor, Legislators and Councilors will probably attend services for these men. They will do this because they know it is important to honor the officers for the service they provided their local citizens. This kind of recognition is something we have not seen from the bush administration when their service men fall far away.
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