Roses & raspberries

By: The Californian Opinion Staff | Thursday, March 1, 2007 9:42 PM PST ∞

A rose ---- the "Making a Difference" award ---- to Charlotte Freeman, the widow of a Temecula Army Reserve captain killed earlier this year in Iraq, for following through on her late husband's final mission ---- getting a young Iraqi boy to the United States for life-saving heart surgery.

Capt. Brian Freeman met Ali and his father during his travels. Freeman helped raise thousands of dollars to get Ali and another boy to America, where they could get the medical treatment they needed. The day Freeman was killed, in a brazen raid by insurgents disguised as American troops, the reservist learned that Ali had been approved for the trip.

After Freeman was killed, members of his unit and his widow contacted the international aid organization Gift of Life to make sure Ali would still get the trip. Then, as if to underscore the relationship between her husband and the boy, on the day Ali was having surgery, Charlotte Freeman received her husband's effects in the mail from Iraq. Those included a hand-held video game that Brian had played during down time in the desert. Earlier this week she flew to New York and presented Ali with the game, forever cementing the personal connection between Ali and her husband.

Capt. Brian Freeman represented the best that the American presence in Iraq has to offer. It's sad that had he not been killed, his role in helping save a young Iraqi boy's life might never have become so well-known.

A rose ---- the "Seeing the Light" award ---- to the California Transportation Commission, which saw the error in its initial plan to hold back about one-third of the money voters authorized spending on the state's freeway system last November. This week, the commission allocated the full $4.5 billion, which included $192 million for Riverside County and $432 million for San Diego County.

The Riverside County numbers are a mixed blessing ---- a far cry from the $951 million the county had requested, but a significant improvement over the paltry $38 million the commission's staff initially recommended the county get. Riverside County's share will go toward widening Interstate 215 through Murrieta, a long overdue step, and adding a car-pool lane to Highway 91 (a portion of Orange County's funding will also go toward Highway 91, giving county commuters an added bonus).

With much of San Diego County's share going to the car-pool lanes on Interstate 15, local long-distance commuters might actually see some relief to the daily grind in their lifetimes.

A rose ---- the "Seeing the Light II" award ---- to the Lake Elsinore City Council for putting aside its last-minute objections to a regional animal shelter and becoming the last piece of the puzzle necessary to get the shelter built ... give or take a couple of burrowing owls. Lake Elsinore council members were disturbed that their share of the shelter costs is greater than that of some of their larger neighbors.

But that is a function of the fact that more of the animals in the present shelter come from Lake Elsinore than anywhere else. As Councilwoman Genie Kelley, who reluctantly voted for the deal, noted, the city can reduce its share with some well-placed efforts to reduce the number of strays.

This region has grown exponentially since the aging and run-down trailers were put up by what was then known as Lake Elsinore Animal Friends, and far too many dogs and cats are having to be euthanized. While the cost of this new shelter ---- $13.5 million ---- is daunting, it is necessary. Lake Elsinore is to be commended for "taking one for the team."