American Heroes : Gary Locke, Antonio Diaz Chacon, and One Feisty Little Girl

When I first wrote about Jon "Bones" Jones, the evidence of American heroics by Gary Locke and Antonio Diaz Chacon had yet to surface in the news. Even then, though, the idea of a series of Hubs featuring present day American heroes seemed like a good idea here at the Border Fort.

Enter Locke and Diaz.

President Barack Obama did something right when he selected Gary Locke as Ambassador to China. A former Governor of the state of Washington, Locke is the only Chinese American to serve as Governor of any state in our nation's history to date and the first Chinese American Ambassador to China. Beyond that, his first language is Chinese; he didn't begin learning English until he began school at the age of five.

Okay, so he's highly accomplished and a stunningly obvious fit for his present post. Does that make him an American hero?

No, it does not.

This does.

Ambassador Locke was photographed at SeaTac (the Seattle Tacoma International Airport) by businessman ZhauHui Tang. The photographer thought it was a nice photo, so he posted it in China.

And the crowd went wild.

As it happens, Chinese citizens are simply not used to seeing high level government folks like Gary carrying their own backpacks, let alone ordering their own coffee. Are you kidding me? Gotta admire that!

And they did. Uh...do.

One more ugly American? Nuh-unh!! Gary Locke is making the USA look good! Not only that, but he's doing it before even officially taking up the duties of Ambassador; he was barely on his way to China when the snapshot was taken. All frugality, no waste of taxpayer dollars whatsoever. With the runaway tax-and-spend train running full throttle over the cliff in D.C., the man from the other Washington qualifies as an American Hero and then some.

Border Fort AHA! (American Hero Award!): Ambassador Gary Locke.

Albequerque, New Mexico. Twenty-four year old Antonio Diaz Chacon, a mechanic and the father of two little girls, had to use the washing machine at his mother-in-law's home. Antonio does not speak English well (yet), but the language of abduction needs no words. When he witnessed a little girl from the neighborhood being grabbed right off the sidewalk and thrown into a blue van, he knew what he was seeing.

The blue van sped away. Diaz Chacon immediately gave chase in his black pickup truck.

Between black and blue, guess who won that one?

When the van crashed and the driver bailed out, the pursuer did finally slow down long enough to wonder, "What if he has a gun?"

It did not come to that. The child snatcher ran. The mechanic--whose wife was already in a panic, worrying he'd end up in a pine box--rushed up to the wrecked van, told the little girl he'd take her home...and took her home.

Happy endings all around.

Except for the kidnapper, one Phillip Garcia, age 29. Garcia sits in jail as we speak, wisely refusing to talk to detectives and waiting for the magical appearance of an Albuquerque attorney who will even consider taking his case.

Public Defender's Office, anyone?

Antonio Diaz Chacon, my Spanish is no better than your English, but I assure you: You are on the short list of people whose hand I would like to shake, and you are a true American hero.

Border Fort AHA! (American Hero Award!): Antonio Diaz Chacon.

The young girl who was abducted by Phillip Garcia, despite being rescued by Antonio Diaz Chacon, also deserves an American Hero Award for the following reasons:

1. When the bad man put his hand over her mouth, she bit him.

2. She was able to describe the van's interior--including the lack of any back seats--accurately. No defense attorney will be able to impeach her testimony. This feisty little girl is a powerful witness against her abductor, ensuring Garcia's future imprisonment for a good long time.

3. Despite rattling around inside the van during the crash and having been grabbed so hard that bruises almost immediately appeared on her chest and back, she has her priorities straight. Her deepest concern was for the tostadas, which were left behind in the van when Diaz Chacon took her home.

Border Fort AHA! (American Hero Award!): One Feisty Little Girl.