John McCain: Heroes video

Yesterday John McCain visited McCain Field in Mississippi, named for his grandfather, Admiral John "Slip" McCain, who served under Admiral William "Bull" Halsey during World War II.

The McCain family's roots are in Mississippi, which is why it's a natural that the Navy chose that base to honor "Slip." Early in his Navy career, the candidate served as a flight instructor there.

More trivia: If you fly to San Diego, you'll land at Lindbergh Field, the airport's McCain Boulevard is named for the senator's father, Admiral John S. McCain II.

This morning Senator McCain is in Alexandria, Virginia, where he will talk about the extraordinary influence of one of his teachers at Episcopal High School, William Ravenel. Watch the YouTube video for more on Ravenel, but for you cynics out there, one of McCain's biographers, Paul Alexander, had to say about Ravenel in Man of the People in 2002:

Years later (McCain) would single out one master who played a meaningful part in shaping his character: William B. Ravenel, who devoted his life and career to teaching young men. The effort Ravenel expended on McCain was profound. He tried to make Ravenel a better person.

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In the end, Ravenel was one of the main reasons why McCain matured as much as he did at Episcopal. Ultimately, McCain left the school more seasoned than the 15-year-old who had arrived there, but he was still full of the fire and contentiousness he would carry with him the rest of his life.

Technorati tags: politics Election McCain John McCain Republican GOP World War II Virginia books heroes education