Balance and restraint take nothing away from fierce advocacy and debate; in our culture of commercials, con artists and come-ons, an earnest whisper often commands more attention and respect than a scream.

I close with the cautionary tale of Cindy Sheehan, whose 24-year-old son Casey, like Capt. Khan, was killed in action in Iraq in 2004. Sheehan got a meeting with then-President Bush, but later pitched a tent on a road outside the President’s Texas ranch home to protest the war.

What began as a solemn vigil became a cottage industry for Sheehan, who now roams the fringes of the political landscape. She has called the killing of Osama Bin Laden a hoax; mounted unsuccessful runs for Congress, governor and vice president; authored books attacking President Obama as a war criminal; and wrote a recent posting on her blog that “the U.S. military is a brutal institution” for which no one should volunteer.

So let us wonder, and worry, about the parents whose grief is being magnified and manipulated to score political points. We should urge them to avoid soiling the memory and meaning of their sacrifice.