My Chin Buried in My Chest by geniusofdespair

Last night at a dinner party I was asked whether there was anyone I admired. I mentioned Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. I thought again about it, after writing the previous post about Cody: About lawyers who are able to take both sides in a heartbeat. Do I have a more current hero? One living perhaps.

There was a lawyer I much admired for years in Florida who worked for the Federal Government. He was handsome, thoughtful, well-spoken, gentle and so idealistic. I was proud to count him as my friend.

He started working for the dark side and last time we talked, he talked about how he was helping a very important economic engine and how the County would virtually collapse if rock mining was stopped. The phone was to my ear but my chin dropped so low, it was buried in my chest. I was in despair. I soon hung up the phone a hero wrenched from my being. I felt like saying to him: BUT AT WHAT COST: OUR CHILDREN'S FUTURE? WHAT DO WE GIVE UP FOR ECONOMICS and the comfort it brings? And I thought also about his comfort: New family, new life, have to make a living yadda, yadda.

I have a rock I took from a rock mine from Western Dade County and it is filled with little shells, beautiful miniature shells cemented together. When I look at it I think: Are we not strip mining? Can anyone put all those little shells back on earth? Let’s just grind the shells down for more road beds for more developments.

Back to the dinner party: I now see a new hero emerge - one living - to take the place of the one I lost on the phone that day: Federal Judge William Hoeveler. Why do I keep picking Federal Judges as my heroes? Maybe it is because they can be purer of heart. They don’t have to worry about who butters their bread and what is best for the economy. They can figure out what is wrong and right based on truth. I have been in Judge Hoeveler’s Court Room. He is a towering man. A giant among men. I wish everyone could have such a hero.