14 thoughts on “Gabby Giffords”

  1. “People may regard you as a hero, but it’s a simile: They’re holding you in the same esteem they would hold a hero of ancient myth. If you want to be a hero, though, you have to complete the hero’s journey.” – Richard A. Bartle, “Designing Virtual Worlds”.

  2. Suffering a stroke did not make Republican Illinois Senator Mark Kirk a hero either, but returning to work and making the admittedly symbolic climb up the Capitol steps was a heroic act. And to be greeted by Democratic Party Senate colleagues Senators Manchin, Durbin, and Vice President Biden (I think they walked next to him as he negotiated the stairs) was a gracious acknowledgement of same.

    I respect your point in that suffering a stroke is just that whereas being a victim of gun violence can elevate a person to a certain special status to advocate for policies that can affect our liberty.

    But having spent time in and around long-term care facilities and rehabilitation clinics in connection with aging family members, I have a certain respect for Mr. Kirk and Ms. Giffords.

      1. I don’t think anyone deserves to have a Navy ship with their name. But the naming of ships might be political, kind of like the naming of buildings after major donors at the U.

        I am like Congressman and later Mayor Ed Koch, who believed Israel “needs jets” (i.e. the permission to purchase advanced combat aircraft of U.S. design for their national survival), and would stand with anyone Jewish or non Jewish, Liberal or not Liberal who was for jets for Israel, and famously stood against one person of his own State of New York, Democratic Party, and faith tradition for being against the jets.

        I do think (contrary to the President in his debate with Mr. Romney) that the Navy needs new ships to protect our country. If naming the ship this way elicits the needed political support, I am all for it.

      2. If they want to use person names they should continue naming ships for famous dead sailors. Rather than US Presidents or Congresscritters or whatever.

        No US Presidents or Congresscritters which did no more meritorious acts during service than the average unnamed Joe need not apply.

  3. We haven’t had a ship named after Isaac Hull (who defeated the HMS Guerriere, among other major accomplishments) since 1983.

    We’ve never had a ship named after Navy Commander William McCool, who was pilot on STS-107, the final flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia. We do have support ships named after Alan Shepard and Wally Schirra, and oceanographic research vessels named after Neil Armstrong and Sally Ride, and a landing support ship named after John Glenn.

    We don’t have a ship named after Captain Alan Poindexter (son of Rear Admiral John Poindexter), who was pilot of STS-122 and commander of STS-131, who returned to the Navy and was killed at sea. Okay, it was in a personal watercraft accident off Pensacola beach, but it was still at sea, which should count as much as getting wounded by a nut in Arizona. Yet Giffords has a combat vessel named after her, whereas being the first American in space, the first American in orbit, the first to walk on the moon, or dying on re-entry only rates a support or cargo vessel.

    1. Then again it does make a sort of sense since littoral ships can only handle light fire. Instead of Hayes how about just the U.S.S. Dagdnabit?

  6. There used to be a tradition against naming a naval vessel after anyone still living. It probably should be reinstated.

    1. There also was a tradition of not naming a military installation after someone still alive but that was broken when Falcon Air Force Station was renamed Schriever Air Force Base. Schriever was still alive at the time.

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