OPERATION HERO MILES

This is a great idea:

Under "Operation Hero Miles," people will be able to turn their frequent-flier miles over to their airlines, which in turn will make them available to soldiers trying to get home for their brief leaves.

Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Md., said he got the idea after he visited troops passing through BWI. He began pushing in earnest in mid-month, when the House rejected an amendment to the Iraq supplemental spending bill that would have paid for troops' connecting flights home.

There are actually two good things going on here. First, a Democrat Congressman (my own rep, no less, though I didn't vote for him) wanted to help the troops get home for leave. Then, when his government-centric approach didn't pass, he got creative and came up with a citizen-private sector solution.

Delta was the first to sign up--if you have a cache of Delta SkyMiles, you may donate them to returning troops here. The airlines will probably start allowing people to buy tickets for troops too.