Ross Perot died yesterday. I would argue that he and Ronald Reagan were the two greatest Americans of our lifetimes.
His life is the stuff of legend. He was frustrated as an IBM computer salesman because the company capped the commission compensation salesmen could earn. They didn't want salesmen earning more than the CEO. Ross quit and started his own company, EDS, which became a huge success. After selling it to GM, he became concerned that GM had a massively underfunded pension plan for its employees but the one for its top execs was in great shape. GM bought out his shares to shut him up and he started another company, Perot Data Systems, which was an instant success.
He attended the Naval Academy, and much of his philanthropy was directed at military families. He was a tireless advocate and supporter of Vietnam war POW's and MIA's. He later funded a large medical study of PTSD for Gulf War vets.
He was a man of action. When two of his EDS employees were imprisoned in Iran after the revolution, he organized a successful commando rescue mission manned by EDS volunteers. It was later the subject of Ken Follett's book On Wings Of Eagles, which later became a TV miniseries.
He became familiar to Americans through his two independent presidential runs. He got 19% of the vote in 1992 and undoubtedly cost George H. W. Bush reelection. His themes were the dangers of our ever expanding national debt and the threat to American jobs through trade treaties such as NAFTA. His catch phrase was the warning that American jobs would disappear in a "giant sucking sound." Once again, he was spot on correct, but it took the country another 30 years to catch on. He later endorsed George W. Bush in 2000 and by doing so healed the rift with the Bush family.
The full story of his life and works would fill volumes, but the obituary in the Dallas Morning News is pretty good. https://www.dallasnews.com/business...de-billionaire-patriot-philanthropist-dies-89
His life is the stuff of legend. He was frustrated as an IBM computer salesman because the company capped the commission compensation salesmen could earn. They didn't want salesmen earning more than the CEO. Ross quit and started his own company, EDS, which became a huge success. After selling it to GM, he became concerned that GM had a massively underfunded pension plan for its employees but the one for its top execs was in great shape. GM bought out his shares to shut him up and he started another company, Perot Data Systems, which was an instant success.
He attended the Naval Academy, and much of his philanthropy was directed at military families. He was a tireless advocate and supporter of Vietnam war POW's and MIA's. He later funded a large medical study of PTSD for Gulf War vets.
He was a man of action. When two of his EDS employees were imprisoned in Iran after the revolution, he organized a successful commando rescue mission manned by EDS volunteers. It was later the subject of Ken Follett's book On Wings Of Eagles, which later became a TV miniseries.
He became familiar to Americans through his two independent presidential runs. He got 19% of the vote in 1992 and undoubtedly cost George H. W. Bush reelection. His themes were the dangers of our ever expanding national debt and the threat to American jobs through trade treaties such as NAFTA. His catch phrase was the warning that American jobs would disappear in a "giant sucking sound." Once again, he was spot on correct, but it took the country another 30 years to catch on. He later endorsed George W. Bush in 2000 and by doing so healed the rift with the Bush family.
The full story of his life and works would fill volumes, but the obituary in the Dallas Morning News is pretty good. https://www.dallasnews.com/business...de-billionaire-patriot-philanthropist-dies-89
