Two Stories
chea...@home.com
Many years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago . Capone wasn't
famous for anything heroic. He was notorious for enmeshing the windy
city in everything from bootlegged booze and prostitution to murder.
Capone had a lawyer nicknamed "Easy Eddie." He was Capone's lawyer
for a good reason. Eddie was very good! In fact, Eddie's skill at
legal maneuvering kept Big Al out of jail for a long time.
To show his appreciation, Capone paid him very well. Not only was the
money big, but Eddie got special dividends, as well. 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.
Eddie lived the high life of the Chicago mob and gave little
consideration to the atrocity that went on around him.
Eddie did have one soft spot, however. He had a son that he loved
dearly. Eddie saw to it that his young son had clothes, cars, and a
good education. Nothing was withheld. Price was no object.
And, despite his involvement with organized crime, Eddie even tried
to teach him right from wrong. Eddie 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; he couldn't pass on a good name or a good
example.
One day, Easy Eddie reached a difficult decision. Easy Eddie wanted
to rectify wrongs he had done..
He decided he would go to the authorities and tell the truth about Al
" Scarface " Capone, clean up his tarnished name, and offer his son
some semblance of integrity. To do this, he would have to testify
against The Mob, and he knew that the cost would be great. So, he
testified.
Within the year, Easy Eddie's life ended in a blaze of gunfire on 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 could ever
pay. Police removed from his pockets a rosary, a crucifix, a
religious medallion, and a poem clipped from a magazine.
The poem read:
"The clock of life is wound but once, and no man has the power
to tell just when the hands will stop, at late or early hour...
Now is the only time you own. Live, love, toil with a will.
Place no faith in time. For the clock may soon be still."
STORY NUMBER TWO
World War II produced many heroes. One such man 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 looked at his fuel gauge and realized 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 was speeding its way
toward the American fleet.
The American 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 to 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 caliber's 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 his ammunition was finally spent.
Undaunted, he continued the assault. He dove at the planes, trying
to clip a wing or tail in hopes of damaging as many enemy planes as
possible, rendering them unfit to fly.
Finally, the exasperated Japanese squadron took off in another
direction.
Deeply relieved, Butch O'Hare and his tattered fighter limped back to
the carrier.
Upon arrival, he reported in and related the event surrounding his
return. The film from the gun-camera mounted on his plane told the
tale. It showed the extent of Butch's daring attempt to protect his
fleet. He had, in fact, destroyed five enemy aircraft
This took place on February 20, 1942 , and for that action Butch became the
Navy's first Ace of W.W.II, and the first Naval Aviator to win the Medal of
Honor .
A year later Butch was killed in aerial combat at the age of 29. His
home town would not allow the memory of this WW II hero to fade, and
today, O'Hare Airport in Chicago is named in tribute to the
courage of this great man..
So, the next time you find yourself at O'Hare International, give
some thought to visiting Butch's memorial displaying his statue and
his Medal of Honor. It's located between Terminals 1 and 2.
SO WHAT DO THESE TWO STORIES HAVE TO DO WITH EACH OTHER?
Butch O'Hare was "Easy Eddie's" son !!!
Two Stories BOTH TRUE - and worth reading!!!!
Piper
Piper
<chea...@home.com> wrote in message
news:0q-dnfQc940cyKPW...@giganews.com...
Prai Jei
space-time continuum:
> STORY NUMBER ONE
>
> Many years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago . Capone wasn't
> famous for anything heroic. He was notorious for enmeshing the windy
> city in everything from bootlegged booze and prostitution to murder.
>
> STORY NUMBER TWO
>
> World War II produced many heroes. One such man was Lieutenant
> Commander Butch O'Hare.
Brought a few tears to my eyes. Thanks for bringing life to a moribund
newsgroup.
Now where is everybody?
--
ξ:) Proud to be curly
Interchange the alphabetic letter groups to reply
Pauline
Pauline
<chea...@home.com> wrote in message
news:0q-dnfQc940cyKPW...@giganews.com...
PPPG
> I got 17, I thought that was pretty good for an Aussie.
Much better than I'd get for an Aussie version.
TTFN
Scott