Though this was apropos in light of Marc's tribute. From his Winter '06 writings:
"We talk a lot about heroes and heroism today. In doing so we denigrate the term. Heroism, properly speaking, is rare. Everybody I knew in World War II, fought because he wanted to, but of course combat duty does not necessarily involve death. That it involves the chance of death in the line of duty is perhaps commendable, but it is not heroic. The term "above and beyond the call of duty" is indefinable, since anything that you can do is what you should do. [JK: one could argue that this single sentence is the essence of David Blue's "Primal Heroic Response"]
Lord Nelson defined the heroic death at Trafalgar.
He was convinced - correctly - that his wound was mortal. As he lay there on the deck, his repeated words were "Thank God I have done my duty!" He fought because it was his duty to fight, and he died doing his duty. This is heroism. Signing up for combat pay is not.
I did not know Joe Foss [JK: see bio] during the war, but I had the honor of his acquaintance thereafter, and it certainly seems to me that Joe truly merited the title of hero. He repeatedly went aloft with what must be considered obsolescent equipment to confront enemies who overmatched him in every respect, from combat experience to retractable landing gear (!). Joe was a hero, and he deserved his Medal of Honor. We have heard no sounds from Washington about our proposal to grant remission of federal income tax to Medal of Honor winners. Possibly those in charge do not feel our standards are high enough. Frankly I do not feel this matters. The loss to the budget caused by Medal of Honor recipients would be completely negligible. Clearly there are things about this that I do not understand, but I do not intend to drop the subject."
His bit on television was spot on, too. I don't own one in my new home, except as an infrequently-used DVD player. And I don't miss it.
Heros are a different kind of animal.
The trend is generally this: the guy is a screw up. Can't balance his check book. Lots of friction with his co-workers. A misfit.
When the roof caves in he doesn't lose his cool but rises to the occasion. To the limit of giving his life.
There are exceptions. The rule however is well known.
Maybe the genetics of heros is different.
Thank you for this reminder. Since a close relative is in a risky job right now in Iraq, I'm glad to have something more to discuss with him than "...though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou are with me..."
It's not exactly a morale builder.
I'm not encouraging above and beyond heroics, but his (and others) clinical focus and calm lead me to believe odds are on his side.
I've watched "hero" get degraded for many years by the news media. Two worst examples are 1. any sports figure, 2. Comment by a friend, "....But then, not everybody gets to be a hero".
A hero is one who gives their life, health, (all their*) wealth, (all their*) possesions for the benefit of another with no expected benefit to themselves.
Don