Two American heroes...

Over the weekend between work and sleep I read about a couple people who I think deserve to called heroes, one's recent struggles an inspirational story, the other's, no less inspirational, has ended in tragedy.

First, freelance journalist Roxana Saberi. She was in Iran working on a book that would give Iran a more favorable view of the much-criticized nation. She was arrested in January because the Iranian government claimed she had classified documents (which she says was not true) and forced to admit to being an American spy. She later recanted this admission, but was still found guilty of espionage.



Second, Dr. George Tiller. He was a doctor who performed abortions in all trimesters. He survived a previous assassination attempt in the 80s, but instead of giving up he kept on with what he knew was right. Today's Democracy Now had a great hour of coverage on his life and why he did what he did. A quote from his family sums up what a great man he was:

"George dedicated his life to providing women with high-quality health care despite frequent threats and violence. We ask that he be remembered as a good husband, father and grandfather and a dedicated servant on behalf of the rights of women everywhere."