History is made by men with The Right Stuff; Abraham Lincoln faced not one man but a nation. A nation torn apart, set against each other in Civil War. Abraham Lincoln displayed the Right Stuff by ending the war, freeing slaves and reuniting the nation as one. In the 1940s the military begun testing rocket propel jets. These new airplanes required certain men with unique aptitudes, ones who have the ability to push themselves, never quit, never accepted the norm and demonstrate the courage to push the envelope and set records that are still talked about till this day. These men with the Right Stuff will push the envelope until it evolved into the greatest race that the world will ever witness. These men unknowing will bring a nation together, a nation filled with pride and patriotism, simply by displaying the right stuff.
Tom Wolfe describe this right stuff as one who put his hide on the line and then have the moxie, the reflexes, the experience, the coolness and do so in a cause that means something to thousands, to a people, a nation, to humanity, to God. On top of all this those with the right stuff must also have bravery, not bravery in the simple sense of being willing to risk your life. Bravery that wraps the entire concept Tom Wolfe talks about into one, one single aptitude propensity, the right stuff.
The United States is full of great men and women who have made this nation what it is today, a great nation. One of these men has been an inspiration to many, a symbol of the right stuff, John F. Kennedy, our 35th president.
The Right Stuff -as one who put his hide on the line and then have the moxie, the reflexes, the experience, the coolness to do again.
After graduating from Harvard, John F. Kennedy joined the Navy and was assigned to the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific as commander of a patrol torpedo boat. LT Kennedy and his crew of twelve men were in the waters of Blackett Strait during a mission when their boat was hit by a Japanese warship, two men died and LT Kennedy back was reinjured. As they swam to safety LT Kennedy heard one his men calling for help. He swam and found his man and dragged him and the rest of his men to a small island where they waited for five days to be rescued. The right stuff enabled LT Kennedy and his men to survive not only the attack but the five days as they awaited to be rescued.
The Right Stuff- do so in a cause that means something to thousands, to a people, a nation, to humanity, to God
President Kennedy also determined that the United States would lead the way in exploring space. President Kennedy pressed Congress for approval of Project Apollo, which had the goal of landing an American on the moon before the end of the decade.
John F. Kennedy was an inspiring leader, a statesman, and an effective president. Many people respected his coolness in a crisis, such as the contest of wills with the Soviet Union over nuclear missiles in Cuba. Others admired his ability to stir people with his eloquent speeches and remember the flashes of wit at his news conferences. Still others thought his willingness to fight for new government programs to help the poor, the elderly, and the ill were most important. He wanted the United States to move forward with new discoveries in science and improvements in education, employment, and other fields.
-John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum
Three great men in history, three men who have change our nation by using the right stuff. They have encouraged men around them and inspire a nation to not accept the norm. As my hero, President Kennedy said during his inaugural speech "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country."
Works Cited
Wolfe, Tom The Right Stuff.
New York, NY: Picador 1979. Print.
whitehouse.gov, Presidents
The White House 1600, Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC, n.d.
Kennedy.Library@nara.gov , John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum
John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Columbia Point, Boston MA, n.d.
Annotated Bibliography
Wolfe, Tom The Right Stuff. New York, NY: Picador 1979
Tom Wolfe looks at the world of rocket test pilots and their unspoken code of bravery and machismo, the right stuff. He focuses on the seven astronauts and the Mercy projected and their many exertions to be the pilot known to have the right stuff.
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