THE AWARD OF AWARDS
Almost a year ago THE SCRAPBOOK took genuine pleasure in noting the award of the Library of Congress's first John W. Kluge Prize for the Study of Humanity ($1 million) to historian John Hope Franklin, author of the classic From Slavery to Freedom: A History of Negro Americans (1947). This award, as we noted, could be added to a "hundred-plus honorary degrees, organizational presidencies, visiting lectureships, and appointments to advisory boards, delegations, and commissions" for Dr. Franklin, as well as a bewildering array of prizes, gold medals, and professional citations.
Frankly, our intent at the time was to drop a not-so-subtle hint to the Nobel Peace Prize people over in Oslo that Dr. Franklin, then 91 years old, was not getting any younger, and surely was past due for the honor accorded Jimmy Carter, Le Duc Tho, and Rigoberta Menchú. We regret to say that the folks at Nobel headquarters chose to ignore our advice, but THE SCRAPBOOK's disappointment is alleviated, to some degree, by the news (announced in the Washington Post last week) that this year's recipient of the Records of Achievement Award, given by the Foundation for the National Archives, and sponsored by the Boeing Company, is--yes, John Hope Franklin.
The award is described as "a celebration of history and those who preserve it," and Dr. Franklin now joins an honor roll of distinguished past recipients, including our particular favorite, Tom Brokaw (2005). THE SCRAPBOOK's congratulations to all involved.
But all these cheerful tidings got us thinking. Surely there must be some official recognition somewhere for distinguished Americans, like Dr. Franklin, who are officially recognized on a regular basis. Alas, our researches have turned up no such meta-award, to recognize distinguished Americans who have been officially, and repeatedly, recognized for their distinction. Sort of a Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for intellectuals.
So without further ado, let us propose one: We would favor joint government-corporate sponsorship, a framed citation or cut-glass bowl (perhaps both), a check, and a gala banquet covered by C-SPAN or PBS during Pledge Week. We would suggest naming this award for the sort of distinguished American bound to receive it, Dr. Franklin being a natural choice.
An obvious first recipient would be, say, Fr. Theodore M. Hesburgh, former president of Notre Dame, who holds the Guinness Book of World Records title for Most Honorary Degrees (150). Another inescapable choice would be poet Maya Angelou, whose official website describes her as "a remarkable Renaissance woman who is hailed as one of the great voices of contemporary literature," and recipient of dozens of prizes, citations, medals, Woman of the Year awards, and (by THE SCRAPBOOK's count) 35 honorary degrees--as well as, perhaps you saw this coming, the 2006 John Hope Franklin Award.
Well, maybe we'll call it the Father Hesburgh Award.
IRAQ VIGNETTES
Willy Stern, an old SCRAPBOOK friend, has just returned after a stint in Iraq embedded with the First Cavalry Division out of Fort Hood, Texas. His embed was cosponsored by two running magazines, Runner's World (U.K.) and Marathon & Beyond. But he emailed us a few observations:
Should We Trust Gen. Petraeus? I spent two and a half hours with General David H. Petraeus, commander of the U.S. forces in Iraq. I met him at his Baghdad residence. (I can't disclose the location for security reasons.) We went for a 5.7-mile run and then did a 90-minute workout together at an improvised gym next to his office. We talked of many things--his family, his years at Princeton, the novels of David Ignatius, his favorite run at Fort Leavenworth, the proper technique for push-ups, the building of the Panama Canal, his philosophy on management and hiring, the time he got shot through the chest, his fastest marathon (sub-3 hours). . . . That story will appear in one of the magazines that sent me to Iraq. But I can say this: Like many of you, I've [watched] MoveOn.org, Rep. Lantos, Sen. Biden, et alia, desperately and crudely try to impeach the credibility of Gen. Petraeus.
I understand the peculiar and mean-spirited nature of partisan politics and posturing as well as the next guy. Nonetheless, these attacks are just plain wrong. They say more about the attackers than the attacked. Petraeus has his faults; he is off-the-charts competitive, way too intense, and focused in the extreme. But he is a man of uncommon integrity. He could no more lie or deceive Congress than he could rob a bank. I asked him, in front of several senior members of his staff, when was the last time he talked to his wife. "It's been a few weeks," he said, clearly sheepish at the lack of communication. But he told the truth. That's who he is--rock solid and honest to the core. Anyone in the U.S. Congress who thinks Petraeus is capable of deceit either doesn't know the man or is willfully lying. (Petraeus did say he was in daily email contact with his better half.)
Who Says Public Service Is Dead? It's 2:17 A.M., and I am in a holding area at a military base in Baghdad, waiting to ride in a Rhino (essentially an armored bus) to take me down to the International Zone. I fall into conversation with a reservist, an enlisted man, who helps the U.S. Embassy do projects with the locals. I need help figuring out how to open and prepare an MRE, the "meals ready-to-eat" that soldiers subsist on in the field. He recommends the chicken, since they are best to "rat-f--." That's the Army term for combing through the MRE contents and picking out the best items. The chicken MREs have both M&Ms and pumpkin bread. Some hour into our conversation, he lets on that in civilian life, he is an attorney with a fairly powerful job in Washington, D.C. He volunteered for the gig in Iraq. "Nobody at the State Department would take it. Too dangerous. I thought it was the best way to serve my country." He rides around in the back of an armored Humvee and gets shot at sometimes.
Media Bias in Iraq? I'm Shocked . . . The two journalists are from the Daily Telegraph in London. It's 4 in the morning and we're waiting for a C-130 transport. They have a swagger about them that comes from having done three earlier tours in Iraq. The shooter is chain-smoking something that smells nasty, but he doesn't say much. The British scribe is talkative. He's explaining how to manipulate the PAOs, the Army personnel tasked with looking after journalists. "We're here to show that the surge isn't working. But we tell the PAO that we want an update on the surge. So he'll get us some colonel who will feed us the party line. We smile and write it down. Then we'll embed with a unit for a few days, do a patrol and get the quotes we need from the front-line soldiers. It's an easy story."
A STAIN ON THE JUDICIARY
THE SCRAPBOOK was saddened to learn that Custom Cleaners, the drycleaning establishment sued by Washington, D.C., judge Roy Pearson for $54 million after it lost a pair of his pants, is closing its doors because of lost revenue and escalating legal fees. Before they were sued by Judge Pearson, Jin and Soo Chung owned three drycleaning facilities; now they're down to one.
Claiming "mental suffering, inconvenience, and discomfort," Pearson's lawsuit was blown out of the water by a fellow judge, who ruled that "nothing in the law" supported Pearson's frivolous suit. The case has become a showpiece for tort-reformers, who took up the Chungs' cause, citing it as the epitome of a lawsuit-happy judicial system run amok. In response to Custom Cleaners' closing, Institute for Legal Reform president Lisa Rickard said the "abusive lawsuit is a sad reality and another reminder of the real effect that frivolous lawsuits have on businesses across the nation."
With any luck, the Chungs won't be the only ones out of work; the Washington Post is reporting that Pearson, who fell under the scrutiny of D.C.'s inspector general last month after public outrage mounted, will soon be removed from his position as an administrative judge. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy.