¢ Newspapers and the blog world were busy talking about possible presidential hopeful Fred Thompson’s selection of Bill Lacy to lead his yet-to-be-official campaign. Lacy, who led Thompson’s 1994 senatorial campaign in Tennessee, is taking a leave of abscense from KU’s Dole Institute of Politics to take the post.The New York Times blog The Caucus says Lacy’s appointment raises new concerns because he’s the third leader of a campaign that isn’t even official yet.A blog devoted to supporting Thompson also outlines Lacy’s connections to Thompson, including this quote from Lacy that ran in the Knoxville News-Sentinel:_ “He hasn’t been around as long and proven himself as much,” Lacy wrote of Thompson. “He needs a solid team with national campaign experience to craft strategy, do the planning and execute the myriad tasks such a large undertaking entails. He does have a Senate voting record, which will be scrutinized, and like all first time presidential candidates, he faces a challenging vetting process. He has no national campaign experience and hasn’t been through that large-scale rough and tumble.”_Another blogger, David Oatney of Tennesee, also praises the choice of Lacy._Mr. Lacy knows how to lead underdogs to victory, and his depth of experience should be seen as a sign that Fred Thompson is ready to wage a come-from-behind effort to win the nomination if that is what is needed.__Just when I was prepared to say it was getting too late for Fred Thompson, he doesn’t hire a Big Gun-he hires the political equivalent of a B1 Bomber. There is little doubt at this point that Fred Thompson is running for President-the only question now is whether he will wait too long to make it official._¢ A Eudora girl on Wednesday got her wish to spend a day with a baby elephant at the Louisville Zoo, the Louisville Courier-Journal reports. Elaney Pickering is 13 and has a congenital heart defect. The trip was part of the Make-A-Wish program._Elaney is no stranger to animals — she has nine at home: two dogs, three cats, two birds and two rabbits. She has also helped out with her local Humane Society for the past seven years, walking and washing animals with her mother, Rebecca Pickering.__In 2006, she was named the Junior Volunteer of the Year at the Lawrence (Kan.) Humane Society._