Pirate's Cove

Why is this an outrage?

For sale: The funeral flag of the first U.S. servicewoman killed in Afghanistan.

And her dog tag. And her military medals. Even the Gold Star banner given to her family after her death.

The price: The Northwest Indiana businessman who now owns many of the late Marine Sgt. Jeannette Winters’ personal effects isn’t saying, but he’s sure that he’s not just going to give them away — to Winters’ family or to the homeless shelter in Gary named after her last week.

”This is how I make my living,” said Mark Perko, of Hobart. ”This is how I feed my kids.”

It’s a damned shame that he couldn’t find it in his heart to give all those important mementos to the family, but, well, here’s where I stop before I use extremely derogatory language that could get me sued.

Update, via Gitarcarver’s comment: Perko relented, while still being a complete jerk

“I’m just going to cut my losses on this stuff,” said Perko, a used furniture salesman who purchased the contents of the Winters’ family storage locker four years ago. “They can have it back if they want it.”