True courage is not the brutal force of vulgar heroes, but the firm resolve of virtue and reason.

Talrijke vrienden,

graag houden we met deze titel een oude traditie in ere: levenswijsheden. Het bovenstaande citaat is niet van David maar van Witheet. Het thema voor vanavond is helden (oftewel heroes).

Graag plaatsen we vandaag een echte held in de schijnwerpers: Sgt. Garner Ellerbee. Deze Afro-Amerikaan genaamd: Gregory Allen-Williams is een true American heroe.

We hebben dan ook alles in het werk gesteld om hem aan een kritisch diepte-interview te onderwerpen:

HOFFIUS: “Gregory Alan Williams is perhaps best known for his role on the TV show Baywatch, where he plays Sergeant Elerbee. But, he’s also a Shakespearian trained actor and served in the Marine Corps. He’s also a real-life hero, having saved the life of a man in the LA Riot. And, he has recently written his memoirs titled “A Gathering of Heroes.” Mr. Williams, I’d like to present you, on behalf of the Heroes in Training Program, with the picture of the previously interviewed cast of Baywatch, David Charvet and Nicole Eggert.”

GAW: “Grand.”

HOFFIUS: : “And here are the certificates and hero cards to go with them.”

GAW: “Thank you very much.”

HOFFIUS: “The first question I’d like to ask you, in keeping in the vein of heroism, I know as we’ve interviewed different people through the course of this program, what comes up often is that the real heroes are parents, and especially single parents. I know that you were raised by a single mother. Can you give me your thoughts on parents as heroes?”

GAW: “Well, I think that heroism can often be defined as a commitment to others long term…long, steady and constant. And, I think parenting requires that kind of heroism.”

GAW: “We often think of heroes as being extraordinary people, people who accomplish great feats. But, when you consider paying the rent or the mortgage on a regular basis, keeping groceries in the refrigerator, keeping the utilities on, the gas and the lights and so on and so forth, putting bandages on wounds, putting love and kind words on hurts of the heart, those are ongoing commitments and I think that that is heroism. And, I think if we look at our parents, we will find heroism very very close to home.

HOFFIUS: “Can you tell me a little bit about the events in the LA Riots, tell me what happened?

GAW: “Well, I was in the intersection of Florence and Normandy in hopes of being a voice of reason with those few individuals there who were committing acts of violence against strangers, but, strangers who were human beings and fellow Americans. When I arrived, a brown Ford Bronco pulled into the intersection and debris struck the vehicle from almost every corner. The driver stops, people ran out to the vehicle and began beating the driver inside.”

GAW: “The driver turned out to be a Japanese-American named Tatao Hurata. I was standing on the southwest corner. As he slumped forward unconscious, I moved into the crowd and was able to get him out of the truck. As I pulled him from the truck, I was joined by a Mexican-American law student named Jorge Gonzalez who moved to intervene on our behalf, to help us out.”

(Mr. GAW becomes emotional and takes a few deep breaths.)

GAW: “And, he was struck and knocked to the ground and kicked and beaten. His assault - I should say, his intervention, served as a diversion and I believe the folks that struck him were about to strike myself and Mr. Hurata again.”

GAW: “So I was able to get Mr. Hurata down the street where other neighbors in the neighborhood intervened and summoned a passing police cruiser and brought a paper towel to wipe his wounds and asked me to set him down on their grass. And, folks came along and asked if they could take him to the hospital. And finally he was taken to the hospital by an African-American man in a van. And, at that point, he was bleeding from – I believe it was his left ear. And, that single entity was hurt very badly and had it not been for that man that took him to the hospital, Mr. Hurata may well have died.”

(After a deep sigh, Mr. GAW keeps silent for a few moments...)

HOFFIUS: “Saving that man’s life, I’m sure everyone agrees, is certainly a heroic act and makes you a hero. But, when we talked earlier, you said a few things that I thought were very interesting. You said that was your responsibility to act like that. And you also said that it was a selfish thing.”

GAW: “No question. We ask that proverbial question, ‘Am I my brother’s keeper?’ ‘What is my responsibility to another human being?’ Dr. King told us that we are tied in a single garment of destiny and whatever affects one directly affects one indirectly.”

GAW: “Mr. King quoted another writer saying, ‘Never seem to know for whom the bell tolls. It tolls for thee.’ Some folks talk about karma. Other folks say, ‘What goes around, comes around.’ Some folks say, ‘You reap what you sow.”’ In every culture, there is some sort of saying that suggests that you get back what you put out.”

GAW: : “If that is so, then it is in my best interests to look out for my neighbor. As Americans, we have throughout our lives, taken a pledge to preserve liberty and justice for all. The day Mr. Hurata was beaten, his liberty was stolen…liberty in this instance defined as security of person, the right to go to and from one place to another unmolested, unafraid, and so on.”

GAW: : “It is then as an American, I’ve taken the pledge, made the oath, that I would preserve liberty and justice for all. It is then my responsibility as an American to do that when I can and wherever I can. The promise of Democracy is fulfilled person to person. The principles of the Constitution are honored person to person. And, so is the Bill of Rights. If I wish to demand justice, then I must be willing to preserve justice.”

HOFFIUS: “So, does it all come back to the Golden Rule?

GAW: “Yes, and that’s why it’s golden, because it is universal. ‘Do unto others as you would have them.’ Certainly, were I in a vehicle at an intersection being beaten, I would have others do unto me as I did unto Mr. Hurata. I would have someone – if it was in my power to mesmerize someone to come rescue me – I would do that. I would want that. I would need that. I would require that. So then, with Mr. Hurata, I did unto him what I would have others do unto me.”

HOFFIUS: “Isn’t that just one of the greatest parts of human nature, though, that we are willing to help?”

GAW: “It is one of the parts of our nature. Our natures are varied. We are as capable of great acts of compassion as we are horrible acts of intolerance and of course indifference.”

HOFFIUS: “If we look for perfect heroes, we will always be disillusioned, won’t we?

GAW: : “There will be no heroes! If perfection is a requisite for heroism, there are no, there will be, there are no heroes. It is often, however, a person’s flaws that inspire. As I mentioned, if a person, if a man or a woman can achieve great things and by great we mean… remember that consistent, steadfast kind of commitment to purpose and to our own lives and to the lives of others. If we can maintain that, even in the face of our fear and our anger and our shortsightedness, then we are, we are truly heroes.”

HOFFIUS: “Do you think of yourself as a hero?"

GAW: : “No. Yesterday’s scores will not win today’s ballgames. If the Padres go out and win on Tuesday and they’ve got a game on Thursday, and when they hit the field, they say, ‘Well, you know what, folks, we won Tuesday so…’The fans will say, but today is Thursday, you see.”


HOFFIUS: “Okay. Mr. Williams, thank you very much for meeting with us.”

GAW: "Thank you."

NASCHRIFT:

Met gevaar voor eigen leven gooit deze man zijn leven in de strijd om een Japanner te redden. Een held inderdaad! Eens te meer wordt een profetie van David bevestigd:

------Baywatch has enriched and, in many ways, helped save lives.------

Bezin Uzelf!

Uw toegenegen Hoffius.