The November 2006 Money Magazine has a six-page article that begins with the title "My Name is Eric Massa and
I Need Your Support".
This article provides a good discussion of Eric Massa as impassioned, with real conviction and reasons for running for Congress. The article is Money Magazine focused on what it means to take a personal risk financially to achieve a goal -- such as starting a business or running for Congress.
But, this article should help get Massa to Congress ... for more, follow me beyond the fold ...
What drives a guy to take that kind of risk? Maybe its that Massa understands better than most how illusory security can be ...
Introduces us to the story of Massa's cancer (with General Clark playing an early & strong role) and how this began his conception of a potential career as a politician. It is a story that would warm (or terrify) NYCEve's heart:
One day ... a man ... asked if Massa could check ... whether they could switch the regimen from every three weeks to every five. The reason: to avoid piling on credit-card debt. "Now this is what our medical system in this country has taken us to," Massa says, his voice rising and his hands talking too ... "A husband and a wife gamble with the quality of health care based on how far into debt they can go."
Writ large, in this well-written article, Massa comes off as
* A very thoughtful, loving family man -- with his children, IMHO, coming off as extremely gracious as well.
* Someone who is running for Congress for all the right reasons. And, as
* Someone who is extremely hard working -- in the Navy, in his post-military jobs, and running for Congress.
This is a positive story for Massa ... very positive, IMHO ...
And, well, the most endearing material within relates to his kids Alexandra and Justin -- perhaps most Alexandra:
Massa warms up the crowd by poking fun at his excitability, recalling how his 15-year old daughter Alexandra recently attended one of his speeches. Massa was his typical animated self, an dafterward she told him she wasn't sure she wanted him to win.
He asked why. She replied, "I just watched you, and if you win, there's not a single boy in Corning who's going to want to date me."
'Sweetheart,' I said, 'that's why I'm running.'
NOTE: For those who don't know Massa, check him out at Massa for Congress or via his Daily Kos diaries.