Tag Archives: heroism

medical news, national news

Crisis producing a new level of heroism

The coronavirus pandemic is producing an entirely new level of heroism all around the world.

Let’s ponder what we’re witnessing in real time as the coronavirus infection scores new hits every minute.

  • Hospital workers are donning makeshift masks and are wearing garbage bags on their bodies to protect themselves against infected patients. They lack the protective gear they need, but they stay on the job.
  • Police officers and firefighters are falling ill because they lack the appropriate personal protection equipment to stave off infection.
  • Children are singing to patients, seeking to cheer them up as they fight for their lives.
  • Neighbors are helping neighbors cope with their formerly “routine” errands.
  • Teachers are crafting in-home study plans for students who’ve been banned from classrooms because governors are closing schools.
  • Building maintenance crews are working day and night to disinfect structures, exposing themselves to infection.
  • At least one naval officer, the captain of the USS Theodore Roosevelt — a nuclear-powered attack aircraft carrier — has decided to allow most of his crew off the ship to deal with infection; four of his crew members have died.
  • Cruise ship crews are battling infection among passengers.

I hope you understand my point here. This pandemic is producing the very best in many of us. The United States does not lack heroes, people who do extraordinary deeds under great duress. Indeed, nations on every continent on Earth are discovering heroes among their midst as well.

None of this will lessen the pandemic by itself. That lessening will occur over time as we continue to practice “social distancing.” Meanwhile, researchers are working 24/7 in laboratories searching frantically for drugs they can use to inoculate human beings against the ravages of this “invisible enemy.”

Many of us are distressed. Our lives are being disrupted beyond measure. I just want to offer a heartfelt expressing of gratitude for all the heroes out there who are stepping up in this time of dire peril.

national news

Heroes accomplishing their mission

I cannot say this enough, so I’ll repeat myself gladly.

The heroes who answered the call in California can all but declare they have accomplished their mission: The deadly Camp Fire is now 100 percent contained.

Those heroes happen to be the firefighters who risked their lives trying to save the lives and property of others. They battled the deadliest fire in state history. They report now that they have surrounded the blaze and have been able to contain it. Yes, it’s still burning, but now the firefighters can continue their work to extinguish the blaze.

Texas firefighters hustled out west to help their California colleagues. Indeed, firefighters from several states rushed to aid the beleaguered heroes in California. This is what they do. They rush courageously into the flames, working day and night to quell the inferno. This longtime Texas resident is proud of the contributions made by my fellow Texans to aid those stricken by this horrifying event.

They are heroes. Each of them perform heroic deeds. I am so proud of them and the service they deliver to those who need it in the most desperate conditions imaginable.

Roughly 14,000 homes have gone up in flames. Many thousands of people are going to rebuild their lives, either where their homes were incinerated or somewhere else. Our prayers go out to them.

The Camp Fire, to be sure, is just one of several fires burning in California. This one is the largest. It needs to be quelled for keeps, but the heroes have at least cleared a major hurdle by surrounding the fire. It’s contained.

Thank you so much for the heroism you have displayed.

military news

Tragedy reveals tale of heroism

The word “hero” arguably is one of the most abused words in the English language. We hang that description on athletes and actors.

Word has come out about the truest form of heroism. It came in the actions of U.S. Navy Fire Controlman First Class Leo Rehm Jr., who saved the lives of 20 of his shipmates before drowning in a tragic collision in the Sea of Japan.

Rehm was one of seven sailors who died when their ship, the destroyer USS Fitzgerald, rammed a merchant ship near the Japanese coast.

The Fitzgerald was struck below the water line. It took on water rapidly. Rehm managed to get 20 of his mates out of danger, and then went back down — only to have the hatch closed behind him as the crew sought to prevent the ship from sinking.

That’s when Rehm died along with the six other sailors.

Rehm was slated to retire soon from the Navy. He would return to his home state of Ohio.

This information is heartbreaking in the extreme.

The Daily Beast wrote extensively about Rehm and his actions aboard the stricken warship. Read the full piece at The Daily Beast.

Heroes are among us. They serve in many capacities. They are first responders. They are Good Samaritans who run to aid others in need. They wear our nation’s military uniforms.

They are men like Leo Rehm Jr.

media news, political news

Yes, John McCain is a hero

I think I’ve officially heard all there is to hear.

Of all the things that have poured out of Donald Trump’s mouth, he finally said more than most Americans can handle.

He actually said that U.S. Sen. John McCain does not qualify as a war hero. He really and truly denigrated the service McCain performed for his country.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/donald-trump-attack-on-john-mccain-war-record-is-new-low-in-us-politics/ar-AAdbgjc

Is there anything that Trump will not declare off limits? Has this political buffoon said enough?

I am not a political fan of Sen. McCain. I do not like his world view. I didn’t vote for him when he ran for president in 2008. But as God himself is my witness, I truly admire this man’s service. I consider him to be a heroic figure.

And for Trump to ignite the firestorm that he’s ignited through utterly careless musings about someone who — in what passes for his political judgment — criticized him for earlier statements, well, that goes so far beyond the pale it defies Americans’ ability to express their rage in harsh enough terms.

Not only that … yes, there’s more, Trump did not serve in our nation’s military. He obtained student deferments during the Vietnam War. By my standard, Trump qualifies as a “chicken hawk,” who has zero standing to comment on someone who did serve — and did so with remarkable valor and, oh yeah, heroism.

McCain never has leaned on his service during the Vietnam War to promote a political cause. He was shot down over Hanoi in 1967; he suffered serious injuries as he parachuted into a lake in the middle of the city. He was taken captive, thrown into a cell, beaten nearly to death, suffered other forms of torture. He was placed into solitary confinement, brought out, beaten and tortured some more and then returned to solitary.

He was given a chance for an early release as a POW; the North Vietnamese thought they could get political mileage out of releasing young McCain early, as his father was a senior naval officer who helped shape U.S. war policy in Vietnam. McCain declined to be released. His payback for refusal? More torture.

That doesn’t qualify him as a hero?

Donald Trump has lost his marbles.

Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, another GOP presidential candidate and an Air Force veteran, said Trump’s attack on McCain is a “new low in American politics” and demanded that Trump “immediately withdraw from the race for president.”

Aww, heck. Trump ought to stay in the race — and keep shooting off his mouth.

International news

This guy's an authentic hero

The term “hero” is one of the most overused — and misused — in the English language.

We attach the word to men who can hit baseballs long distances, or run fast on a football field, or win basketball games with last-second shots from mid-court.

Kevin Vickers, though, at age 58, is the real deal.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/22/world/canada-shootings-hero/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

He is the sergeant-at-arms of the Canadian Parliament who this week took down a gunman who was terrorizing the seat of government in Ottawa, Ontario.

Vickers shot the gunman, who reportedly was launching some sort of “jihad” against the Canadian government in the wake of that country joining with other nations in the fight against the Islamic State.

The shooter entered the building and began blazing away, killing a constable.

Vickers was carrying a firearm as well and he used efficiently.

Canadian authorities haven’t yet confirmed what everyone in the building apparently saw with their own eyes, that Vickers acted heroically to stop the killer from doing even more damage.

So, today he received a standing ovation from members of Parliament who resumed their business.

And what does a hero say about his deed? Vickers said this: “Yesterday, during extraordinary circumstances, security personnel demonstrated professionalism and courage. I am grateful and proud to be part of this team.”

Heroism is alive and well.