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More than Meets the Eye

September 29, 2005

 

There is no journey quite as satisfying as the one you experience on the road to truth.  In this case we are not only defining truth as what is indeed true, but also as it applies to reality over perception.  Confused?  Yeah, me too.  Let’s just say this column started out to be one thing, then suddenly became another.

 

When I began doing research on the Senate Committee for Commerce, Science, and Transportation, I noticed a very familiar name in the position of committee co-chair.  That name was Daniel Inouye, senator from Hawaii.  If that name sounds familiar to you, it should.  Inouye served on the Watergate Committee in the 1970’s and most recently (and most memorably) as the chairman of the Iran-Contra Committee in 1987.  As a dumb kid of 14 when the hearings began, I quickly identified the Democrat from Hawaii as the chief villain out to get my guy, President Ronald Reagan.  I could hardly contain my glee as Reagan’s guy, Oliver North, laid waste to the smug Democrats out to pin the Iran-Contra mess on the President. 

 

The thought of Inouye as a partisan heavy out to ruin my favorite President has been the lasting image in my mind of the man.  It was the first thing I thought of when I saw his name on the roster of the Senate committee holding hearings on steroid legislation.  Once again, I could hardly contain myself as I prepared to throw Inouye on the fire next to my arch-nemesis (I wonder if McCain realizes he has become my arch-nemesis…), John McCain.  But as I was doing my research on some of the committee members, I found out that my only impression of Daniel Inouye did not come close to doing the man justice.

 

Daniel Inouye was the son of Japanese immigrants, born and raised in Honolulu.  When he was only 17, Inouye was the member of a first aid team working in the bloody aftermath of the attack on Pearl Harbor.  At 18, Inouye enlisted in the U.S. Army.  He was a member of the 442^nd  Regimental Combat team, and he began his service in combat in the campaign in Italy.  Inouye spent three months with the U.S. Fifth Army in Italy before being moved into France’s Vosges Mountains.  There his unit would spend two weeks rescuing the famed “Lost Battalion”, which was surrounded by German forces.  Inouye would be awarded the Bronze Star for his actions in what Army historians regard as one of the most significant battles of the 20^th century.

 

Inouye would eventually find himself stationed back in Italy.  During the latter stages of World War II, Inouye would exhibit “extraordinary heroism” while leading his platoon against enemy forces.  He would single-handedly take out two machine gun positions while taking a sniper’s bullet.  Inouye would also receive significant damage to his right arm from a grenade, damage which would ultimately cause him to lose his right arm.  For his heroic efforts, Inouye would be awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, which would later be upgraded to a Medal of Honor.  It would be part of 15 total medals and citations he earned during World War II.

 

Inouye would return home, graduating from the University of Hawaii and George Washington Law School.  He began his career as a Deputy Public Prosecutor for the city of Honolulu, and he got his start in politics with an election to the Hawaii Territorial House of Representatives.  Inouye was the elected to the Territorial Senate, and in 1959 when Hawaii gained statehood, Inouye was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.  He was not only Hawaii’s first Congressman, but also the first Japanese-American to serve in either House of Congress.

 

At 14 I only had perception.  At 32, it was still just perception.  Now, after actually moving down the road towards truth, I know the reality.  Daniel Inouye might not be a man I would like.  He may not be a man whose politics I agree with.  But he is certainly not a man worthy of my disdain; instead he deserves my respect and that of every other American.  The life story of Daniel Inouye shows me that sometimes we have to lift up the veil of personal bias and dig deeper to find the truth.  In a culture where partisan politics often threatens to completely divide the country, perhaps it is high time we all took a closer look at the guy across the aisle.  He just might be someone worthy of our respect, and he might find us our worthy of his.  That common ground alone is a good start in putting ourselves together.

 

Of course, that being said, and with my admitted respect for John McCain’s service and sacrifice for this country on the record, I am not quite through with the senator from Arizona…Stay tuned…

 

 

More biographical information on Senator Daniel Inouye can be found at http://inouye.senate.gov.

 

 

 

Contact The Chief Justice at chiefjustice@thehighcourtofsports.com.