I originally posted this last year but it seems no one listened to me. So it’s time for a repost.
Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 3-110e simply reads as follows: Nathan Hale shall be the state hero.
I’ve always thought that if Hale had been a better spy, he never would have had to give his “one life” for this country (that’s another blog entry for another day).
I don’t have the time to write about Newman’s contributions to Connecticut and society in general but if you’re interested the Hartford Courant does a pretty good job of this.
Newman was an actor, served in the Navy, a political activist, a philanthropist – who lived life with zeal and goodness.
Most impressive is that Newman donated over 220 million dollars (or all post tax profits and royalties) from his Newman’s Own Brand to charity. In an age of greed, Newman was generous.
In Connecticut, we have room in our statutes and in our hearts for more than one state hero so long as we have citizens like Paul Newman. I’m sure that Nathan Hale would agree that the legislature should amend Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 3-110e to read:
Nathan Hale and Paul Newman shall be the state heroes.