The Apology

Actions are immoral.  Opinions are not, and I won't apologize for mine.  Discussion is good.  And for those of us fortunate enough to be the subject of magazine articles, it may be our responsibility from time to time to raise the level of debate.

I have a younger brother named Sam.  Sam's a genius, I mean literally.  As a kid, he tested off the charts.  The first ocmputer I ever owned he built from a kit he bought with money he earned tutoring other kid sin math.  He's energetic and articulate, curious and funny.  A great source of pride to our parents.  And there's no doube he'd be living a great life right now except for that he's dead.  Because when you're 14, all you ever really want to be is your 16 year old older brother.  And in my case, that meant smoking a lot of dope.  The day I went off to college was the day Sam got his drivers liscence.  And he celebrated by going for a drive with his friends.  Drunk and high as a paper kit.  He never saw the red light he ran.  And he probably never saw the eighteen-wheel truck that put him in the side of a brick bank, either.  And I just wanted to say...I'm sorry, Sam.  You deserved better in my hands.