A Tale Of Two Heroes

                It is something that great movies are made of....but Hollywood missed this one....two men....heroes as Marines in Vietnam....and both become prominent in politics....on opposite sides. Brad Pitt could have played the one....and Matt Damon the other.
                The first that I'll describe was born and raised in a military family....went to Annapolis....graduated at the top of his class....went to Vietnam....was awarded a Silver Star....two Bronze Stars....two Purple Hearts....and the Navy Cross! Later in life he was an author and filmmaker and taught at the Naval Academy and at Harvard. He was a United States Senator....2007-2013....from Virginia...a Secretary of the Navy...and an Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs. He has authored more than a half dozen books....mostly novels....and one bio....most of which I had read and also enjoyed....he was mentioned as a possible Vice-Presidential candidate for Barack Obama in 2008....and ran for President himself for a brief time in 2016. He got about 1% of the primary vote as I remember it. They say that Joe Lieberman who just died was the last of the moderate Democrats....but this man is still here.
                 OK....the second man....also born to a military family....and also attended Annapolis....at the same time....and went to Vietnam....and was awarded a Silver Star....a Bronze Star w/valor....and two Purple Hearts. He narrowly lost an election to the Senate from the same state of Virginia. He also was a prolific author and remained in government....being a staff member on President Reagan's National Security Council! He has been a radio talk show host....founded the Freedom Alliance....and was President of the NRA.
                  The first man is former Senator and presidential candidate James Webb....and the second man is conservative icon Oliver North. They are both heroes in an America of the past....from opposite sides of the political aisle....but not opposite sides in defense of America! I don't think that they liked each other....although that may have changed over the decades.
                  Here's an interesting anecdote....both men boxed in the ring for Annapolis....both were middleweights....and they fought each other in the brigade championship match! Webb was the heavy favorite! I have not been able to verify when this happened but I distinctly remember seeing Jim Webb box on television on a Saturday afternoon sometime in the mid-60s. He was a lefty....and he won....and he was very good....that is why I remember that match....but Oliver North somehow pulled off an upset when the two of them met in the ring.
                   There are so many anecdotes that I cannot list them all but I will add this....both were involved in controversies. As For Jim Webb....he wrote a magazine article in 1979....and in it he said that...."women can't fight".....and described the military academies as once being institutions that trained men for leadership....but with the addition of women were now just excellent educational institutions! Whoa....he is still having to defend himself on that!
                    Oliver North's controversy was known about all over the world as he was a key figure in the Iran-Contra scandal. Hollywood would love this....had it not turned out the way that it did. The Democrat House of Representatives called him in to testify and planned on skewering him all day....for days on end actually as his testimony lasted a while.....but lo and behold.....the American public watched this man in a Marine uniform with medals all over it....standing straight and tall....and as John Wayne or Jimmy Stewart would have done in film....win the day....and also win over the hearts of tens of millions of Americans!
                     So tell me....you don't think that this is blockbuster Hollywood stuff? And Oliver North is an evangelical. I deeply admire both of these men! How much more though than a Hollywood movie....I would that both men were representing us in the upper echelons of our government.