What Kind of Memorial Service?

Jennifer Rubin wonders whether the planned memorial service tonight in Tucson is appropriate. As the Washington Post reported yesterday, "The service is set for 8 p.m. Eastern time at the University of Arizona's basketball arena, the school said. It will include a Native American blessing, a moment of silence, a poetry reading and the presentation of a chain featuring messages from members of the public, the school announced."

"Frankly," Rubin writes in response to the description of the memorial service, "it sounds kind of weird and unserious."

Rubin goes on to quote someone who used to work in the White House:

A Republican, a former White House official, spots a typical advance planning snafu. He surmises, "I'm sure this was the plan when the memorial service was being designed by some vice president for community affairs at the University of Arizona. Then the president decided to come, and a few hours later, a White House advance team showed up. Right now, I'd bet that advance team is insisting on the presence of a priest, a minister and a rabbi -- and is trying to figure out if they can ditch the Native American component without causing a fuss." He suspects, "They're also getting to work editing the 'chain featuring messages from members of the public.'" 

Whole thing here.