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I got a press release in the mail today. Guess it had to happen sooner or later. I just don’t envy the person who answers the call — the empty shoes that he or she will have to fill are enormous. Apparently the Victor Republican Committee is looking for candidates interested in running for “the vacant Town Justice seat left after the death of longtime Judge Edward ‘Marty’ Lyng.” “Longtime.” The word doesn’t even begin to cover it. My first encounter with Judge Lyng was at the close of a case involving an autistic student who faced charges resulting from a difficult experience at Victor High School. It was the first time I was actually impressed by a judge — in fact by anyone connected with the court system. He was smart, he was humble, he was informed, he was decisive — he seemed to be a man with a moral compass, a human being with both a mind and a heart. And neither got in the way of the other. Then I got to meet his mentor, Charlie Rose. (Double my awe.) He, too, seemed ...

Even in life’s brightest and best moments, some people still find a way to act stupid. I covered Victor’s commencement ceremony last Sunday and it was a wonderful celebration for grads and their parents. Seniors crossed their high school finish line and stepped out into the world. Parents ushered their kids into the next phase of their lives with pride, nostalgia and a lot  of eye-dabbing. The grads behaved well. No one pulled any pranks or launched beach balls over the crowd during the ceremony. It was a good day. Then came the parking lot. Steamy heat from a blazing sun compounded the tension as parents, grandparents, grads and siblings packed into their cars, trucks and vans. A thicket of vehicles edged in the direction of the exit. As I slowly inched my way down the access road toward freedom, I paused long enough to let a car slip in line ahead of me. Why not? We’re all hot. We're all anxious to get out of here. And being polite doesn’t cost anything — i...