story number 1. many years ago, AL Capone virtually owned Chicago, Capone wasn't famous for anything heroic. his exploits were anything but praiseworthy. he was, however, notorious for enmeshing the windy city in everything from bootlegged booze and prostitution to murder. Capone had a lawyer in Chicago nicknamed "Easy Eddie". he was his lawyer for a good reason. Eddie was very good! in fact, Eddie's skills at legal maneuvering kept bi AL out of jail for a long time. to show his appreciation, Capone paid him very well. not only was the money good, but Eddie got special dividends. for instance, he and his family occupied a fenced-in mansion with live-in help and all of the conveniences of the day. the estate was so large that it filled an entire Chicago city block. yes, Eddie lived the high lives of the mob and gave little consideration to the atrocities that went on around him. Eddie did have one soft spot, however. he had a son whom he loved dearly. Eddie saw to it that his young son had the best of everything: clothes, cars, and a good education. nothing was withheld. cost was no object. and, despite his involvement with organized crime, Eddie even tried to teach him from right from wrong. yes, Eddie tried to teach his son to rise above his own sordid life. he wanted his son to be a better man than he was. yet, with all his wealth and influence, there were two things he couldn't give his son; two things that eddie sacrificed to the Capone mob that he couldn't pass on to his beloved son: a good name and a good example! one day, easy Eddie reached a difficult decision. offering his son a good name was more important than all the riches he could lavish on him. easy Eddie wanted to rectify wrongs he had done. he decided to go to authorities and tell everything h knew about "Scarface" Capone. he would try to clean up his tarnished name and offer his son some semblance of integrity. but to do this, he would have to testify against the mob, he wanted to be an example to his son. so, he testified. within a year, easy Eddie's life ended in a blaze of gunfire in a lonely Chicago street. but in his eyes, he had given his son the greatest gift he had to offer, at the greatest price he would ever pay.
story number 2. world war II produced many heroes. one such was lieutenant commander butch o"hare. he was a fighter pilot assigned to the aircraft carrier Lexington in the south pacific. one day his entire squadron was sent on a mission. after he was airborne he noticed that someone had forgotten to top off his fuel tank. he would not have enough fuel to complete his mission and get back to his ship. his flight leader told him to return to the carrier. reluctantly, he dropped out of formation and headed back to the fleet. as he was returning to the mother ship, he saw something that turned his blood cold. a squadron of Japanese aircraft were headed toward the American fleet. the fighters were gone on a sortie, and the fleet was all but defenseless. he couldn't reach his squadron and bring them back in time to save the fleet. nor could he warn the fleet of the approaching danger. there was only one thing he could do. he must somehow divert them from the fleet. laying aside all thoughts of personal safety, he dove into the formation of Japanese planes. wing-mounted 50 calibers blazed as he charged in, attacking one surprised enemy plane and then another. butch wove in and out of the now broken formation and fired at as many planes as possible until all of hi ammunition was gone, undaunted, he continued his assault. he dove at the planes trying to clip a wing or tail in hopes of damaging as many enemy planes as possible and rendering them unfit to fly. he was desperate to do anything he could to keep them from reaching the American fleet. finally, the exasperated Japanese squadron took off in another direction. deeply relieved butch O'Hara and his tattered fighter plane limped back to the carrier. upon arrival he reported in and related the events surrounding his return. the film from the gun camera mounted on his plane told the tale. it showed the extent of Butch's daring maneuvers to save the fleet. he had in fact destroyed five enemy aircraft. this took place on February 20, 1942, and for that first naval aviator to win the congressional medal of honor. a year later butch was killed in an aerial combat at the age of 29. his hometown would not allow the memory of its very own son to fade. today, O'Hara airport in Chicago is named in tribute to the courage of this great man. so next time you find yourself at O'Hara international, five some thought to visiting Butch's memorial displaying his statue and his medal of honor. it's located between terminals 1 and 2. do these two stories have anything to do with each other? yes! butch O'Hara was easy Eddie's son. many lives were ultimately saved due to the important lessons of character that easy Eddie conveyed to his son. and once again, truth is so much more interesting than fiction!
No comments:
Post a Comment