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30 Jun 2011 15:24

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U.S.: Robert Gates awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom

  • Last day on the job: The path Robert Gates took as a defense secretary for successive administrations (under the control of different parties) is very unique, and as such you can understand President Obama wanting to give him this sort of an honored send-off. You can be sure that Gates feels the love. source

15 Feb 2011 15:21

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U.S.: Three Medal of Freedom recipients you should get to know

  • one John Sweeney, he of a prototypically heart-warming “America” story, grew up the child of Irish immigrants (his mother a domestic worker, his father a bus driver) to later become head of the AFL-CIO.
  • two Dr. Tom Little, a New York optometrist who was murdered in Afghanistan, where he lived and raised his family forĀ over 30 years, while working to provide eye care to any Afghans who needed it.
  • three Sylvia Mendez, who as a young child was the central figure in a legal battle over segregation in California. Her family’s victory in 1946 was a precursor to the Brown v. Board of Education ruling in 1954. source