I had several issues with Moscow Mitch or the Russian Asset while some people call him Mitch McConnell. Regardless of his nomenclature, he is a Senator from Kentucky and former minority leader of the Senate.

Moscow Mitch

Moscow Mitch got along with some of the leaders of the former Republican party. This is the Cheshire Cat Four.

Cheshire Cat Four

However, I am getting ahead of myself. I need to address the importance of mentors in each of our lives. It was my modus operandi in life to make a list of people with whom I admire and respect. I have nearly two dozen individuals that follow and attempt to emulate. Go to Mentors and Me. You will find my list. Name any one of those mentors, and I’ll tell you various things about that person that I would like to model myself.

What is interesting about those people is that there is a common thread that binds them all together. They all responded to some sort of pain. Regardless of the mentors’ race, sex, ethnic background, or religion, each one of them addressed their pain and became stronger for doing so

This essay is about Demosthenes. He was born 384 BCE in Paiania, which was in the hinterlands of the city-state of Athens. Therefore, he wasn’t a part of the group of the urban elite of Athens. Beyond being a country boy, Demosthenes wasn’t even a big kid in his small town. If that wasn’t enough facing him, he stuttered.

To make matters worse, Demosthenes’ father died when he was seven years old. Nonetheless, he inherited his father’s sword-making company. His caretakers were to turnover his inheritance when he reached eighteen. Tragically, by the time he reached eighteen, they had stolen most of what he should have received.

Nevertheless, Demosthenes went to court to claim his rightful inheritance. However, due to other pending cases, it took about two years for the courts to review his case. Additionally, in that time when you went to court, the plaintiff was essentially his lawyer.

Therefore, Demosthenes realized that he had to overcome several issues. He was small in stature, and he didn’t speak grammatically correct Greek. Therefore, he went about self-educating himself. He listened to the great Athenian speakers, which improved language skills.

To address his stuttering, Demosthenes went to the Aegean Sea and waded into the water to learn how to project his voice over the noise of the waves.

Demosthenes roared over the ocean’s roar.

Finally, Demosthenes would put a handful of pebbles in his mouth to force himself to speak more clearly and avoid stuttering. If that wasn’t enough, he essentially learned how to run cross country, which provided strong lung ability.

Within two years of his self-imposed education, Demosthenes went to court…and won his case. The Athenians were so impressed by him that many asked him to write speeches for them or speak on their behalf in court. Essentially, he became one of the first lawyers in Greece.

Demosthenes

Due to a litany of problems that he faced, Demosthenes addressed them and became the greatest orator of Greek antiquity. Not only could he speak well, but he was also well-informed in the area of politics and doing ethically correct things. And then, he became a great leader. In many ways, he reminds me of Bobby Kennedy, who is my most important mentor.

Bobby Kennedy

Another mentor of mine was Gilgamesh. He grasped the issue of immortality, not physical immortality, but the immortality of being remembered after death.

Gilgamesh

This brings me to Moscow Mitch or as I call him Muttering Mitch. He isn’t a great orator. He is a leader that follows while claiming that he leads. When it comes to ethical decisions, he will first check what his followers believe is correct. Gilgamesh would assure Muttering Mitch that he will be remembered as a muttering leader who follows.