World Series coming up. Red, white, and blue bunting hanging over the stands. The ritual torture of the National Anthem by the celebrity singer du jour. The trappings of patriotism and rituals of sports. Same as it has been since Cy Young threw the first pitch to Ginger Beaumont at the Huntington Avenue Grounds in 1903. The big game, writ large on America's sports pages and on the air.

There is another big game underway. It features a team defending modernity, and one fiercely opposed to it. The games are played out in the hills of Afghanistan and the back streets of Baghdad, and often do not seem to result in a clear cut winner. But we have a team we can be proud of, one that exhibits the basic decency and courage that remains after lesser things are set aside.

You can reduce some very special things to the point of trivia. Turn them into bumper stickers, country songs, or rousing political speeches. So, let's just leave it at this. As the World Series starts there are some great men and women in places we wouldn't want to go, enduring things we can't imagine. I hope they get to enjoy the World Series, and even more that they will come back safely to enjoy seeing one in person soon.

Our thoughts and our thanks go out to "the home team".