Albert A. Gore Jr

Al Gore

To say someone is your hero is a pretty big deal. The word hero is a strong word, one that is not used often. This is because not everyone in the world can be a hero. Most people aren't. But I know that my hero deserves to be one. He fits perfectly into the qualities a hero must have. He is someone who is caring, selfless, and inspirational. But most importantly he values life and lives it to the fullest. My hero is Al Gore.

Albert Arnold Gore Jr. entered our planet on March 31st, 1948. His parents, former US Senator Albert Gore Sr., and Pauline Gore, raised him in Washington DC as well as Carthage, Tennessee. While living on his farm in Carthage, he began to cherish the earth. In his older years he attended Harvard, and received a degree in government. After college in 1971 he enlisted in Vietnam and was sent over as a military journalist. When he returned home from Vietnam, he decided to go back to school. He went to Vanderbilt University Divinity School and law school while running a small homebuilding business.

Al Gore's Family

Al Gore began his own family in 1970 when he married Mary Elizabeth Aitcheson, who he calls Tipper. He and Tipper have four children, Karenna, Kristin, Sarah, and their only son Albert III. Al's life had some rough patches; his older sister Nancy died of lung cancer at age 46. In addition, his son Albert almost died of a fatal car accident. A car ran over him after a baseball game, and he was almost killed. Luckily, two paramedics had been watching the game and they brought their medical kits along with them. Al Gore considers them as two of his heroes because they saved his son's life. After this accident Al realized the importance of life. Al did not give up after these two events. He proved a heroic trait of courage. He didn't fall apart but grew stronger. He decided to help out others in the world. Al began helping the world in an environmental way. By trying to prevent Global Warming he is saving the lives of our world's future children. He is making sure they have a healthy home just like we do. This is a selfless act on his part, one that many do not take. He is thinking of others before himself trying to secure them a place on this Earth.

After he saw his son nearly die, Al Gore decided to set his priorities straight. He vowed to value first and foremost his family and to make the climate crisis a top priority in his professional life. These choices seemed very heroic to me. His drive for improving the Earth is beyond compare. But he also cares deeply about his family. Al Gore has achieved a lot in his life. He served as the 45th Vice President under President Bill Clinton for 8 years, along with running for president in 2000. He was the winner of the popular votes, but in the end the electoral votes gave George Bush the win. Al Gore and his family were upset by this loss but have moved on.

The Movie Poster

Throughout his life he has been working on making the world aware of Global Warming dangers. In college his professor and another hero of his, scientist Roger Revelle taught him about Global Warming. Al wrote a book called, Earth in the Balance. When he was elected Vice President he and Clinton created the Clinton- Gore administration. This administration created new policies on the climate crisis. He also created a Power Point on it and began presenting it around the world. In 2006 the documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, was released and watched by millions. He recently received an Academy Award for his film. His movie was subtitled a global warning, which ended up being very true by the end of the movie. He discussed scary events that haven't been taking place on accident. They are problems we can stop. Throughout my life I have been debating if Global Warming is real. But after seeing his movie I know it is a real problem. In the book An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore states, "Not only does human caused global warming exist, but it is also growing more and more dangerous, and at a pace that has now made it a planetary emergency." Many people are ignoring the problem or saying it's not true. Even our own president denies that it's a major issue. But people need to realize how much we pollute our Earth. Green house gases are getting out of control. Heroes like Al Gore are genuinely trying to do something about it, we all just need to open our eyes and see how harmful we're being to our home. I know that I want my children to be able to visit the beautiful Glacier National Park, but that can't happen if the glaciers are melting rapidly. Along with the North Polar Ice Cap, the mound of ice on Greenland, and the ice on top of the islands of West Antarctica. If all of this ice keeps melting it could potentially raise our sea levels 20 feet. Shocking isn't it? Al Gore is trying to inform everyone of these issues. He is not only my hero, but I am sure he is a hero to many others. He is trying to save our planet. He is trying to inspire our world to make healthier decisions for our environment. To me that is a very heroic deed.

After researching, I was highly impressed by Al Gore's knowledge of this crisis. He has achieved a lot in his life, from writing 2 books, to creating an Academy Award winning documentary. He seemed like my perfect hero because he loves the Earth and values it to his best. Learning about Al Gore and his inspirational teachings has influenced me greatly. All of these reasons don't have me doubting that Al Gore is most definitely my hero.