The man’s a hero to the writer:
“In prison, Debs read the works of Karl Kautsky, a chief expositor of Karl Marx, and learned about socialism.[2][3] Upon his release, he launched his career as the nation’s most prominent Socialist in the first decades of the 20th century. He ran as the Socialist Party’s candidate for the presidency in 1900 (earning 0.63% of the popular vote), 1904 (2.98%), 1908 (2.83%), 1912 (5.99%), and 1920 (3.41%), the last time from a prison cell.
“Debs was noted for his oratory, and his speech denouncing American participation in World War I led to his second arrest in 1918. He was convicted under the Espionage Act of 1917 and sentenced to a term of 10 years. President Warren G. Harding commuted his sentence in December 1921. Debs died in 1926, not long after being admitted to a sanatorium.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene_V._Debs