American History 1988
Chapter 206 - 200 The Irishman

Chapter 206: Chapter 200 The Irishman

Stanford’s Phi Beta Kappa (PBK) house had several new faces today.

Usually, the PBK house serves as a venue for various activities held by its members, such as parties, academic seminars, and internal PBK meetings.

Since PBK is a loose organization, it does not require members to live at the PBK house.

But if any honorary alumni come to PBK for speeches or newcomer receptions, the current members usually participate.

Today was the annual newcomer reception and, as was customary, PBK had invited one or two notable members to speak.

When Dean Price and others arrived, the house was already packed with students who had come for the gathering.

Although PBK isn’t a fraternity, seeing others with the same golden key pins made everyone feel a sense of closeness.

Among these academic nerds, there were also some with exceptional organizational skills.

It only took two or three of such individuals to liven up the atmosphere in the room.

Groups gathered here and there, sharing recent amusing events, and now and then, bursts of laughter erupted from the crowd.

Such a gathering, of course, wouldn’t lack alcohol since the official members were juniors or seniors and thus mostly above 21 years old.

Without the restriction of prohibition, wine and champagne circulated openly in everyone’s hands.

"Hey, Dean, I heard your company is hiring lately?"

Being near Silicon Valley, news about Byte Company had already spread across the Stanford campus.

As its founder, Dean Price undoubtedly had the brightest halo, having even spoken publicly at Stanford.

So when Dean’s figure appeared at the newcomer reception, many people noticed him right away.

A company valued at 400 million US Dollars, this guy was a bona fide billionaire.

If they could establish a connection with him, they wouldn’t have to worry about landing a well-paid job.

But what interested everyone most was Byte Company’s future Initial Public Offering (IPO).

If they joined Byte Company, they could get the right to purchase a portion of the employee stock.

What opportunity to get rich could be more fitting than this? They were students with no money to invest in Byte Company, but employee stock didn’t require any capital.

So, Dean became the second most popular person here, with no shortage of students who volunteered themselves.

"Hello, Byte Company is indeed hiring. You can go see Marcus White, and he has a special green recruitment channel for Stanford University."

As CEO of Byte Company, Dean couldn’t possibly focus his energy on these trivial matters.

But Stanford indeed had many talents, so Dean referred all these self-promoting individuals to Marcus.

He would categorize their resumes based on their professional backgrounds and pass them on to the HR department, ensuring they got the necessary attention.

As for whether they could get through the interviews, that was no longer the concern of Dean or Marcus.

After turning away several students here, Dean naturally turned his attention to a group in the middle of the room.

About a dozen people were forming a circle there, listening intently to a middle-aged man speaking.

"Anthony Kennedy." Adam nodded towards that direction, "Just wait a moment."

Having said that, Adam squeezed through the crowd, while Dean searched his memory carefully.

He felt the name was familiar, his instinct telling him the man was no ordinary person.

By this time, Adam had squeezed close to the middle-aged man, whispered a few words in his ear.

The latter looked up at Dean, said a few words to the crowd in front of him, and then walked over with a glass in hand.

"Dean Price, right? It’s a pleasure to meet you," the middle-aged man said with a smile, extending his hand.

"Mr. Kennedy, it’s an honor to meet you," Dean noticed the golden key pin on his chest.

"I’ve got a speech coming up, but let’s talk afterwards."

Kennedy only came over to greet Dean beforehand since it was almost time for him to give the welcoming speech.

Sure enough, as soon as he finished speaking, someone raised their glass and tapped it, drawing everyone’s attention.

"Let’s now welcome a pride of Stanford, lifetime honorary PBK member, United States Supreme Court Justice, Mr. Anthony Kennedy, to give a speech!"

Dean raised an eyebrow in surprise; alright, he finally recalled who this Mr. Kennedy was.

His name was in the famous Stanford alumni records; Dean had seen his photo before but just hadn’t recalled it immediately.

"How did you get him to come?" Dean asked Adam curiously.

Given the man’s status, he rarely attended such events.

Adam looked at Dean with an interested glance, as if to say, guess why he would accept such an invitation?

Dean paused, then suddenly, it somewhat dawned on him; had the westerly winds of the West Coast already reached the East Coast?

"I was born and raised in California. The first time I listened to Mr. Earl Warren speak, I developed a deep interest in law.

I later followed in my mother’s footsteps to Stanford Law School and was very honored to become one of the many outstanding members of PBK..."

"Mr. Kennedy comes from a Californian family of lawyers. His mother, Mrs. Glass, is a well-known attorney in the California legislature.

Mr. Kennedy himself was also elected as a California Senator early on and served as a legal advisor to the renowned Governor, and later White House resident, Reagan."

Under Adam’s explanation, Dean gained a deeper understanding of the Justice.

"I come from an Irish Catholic family, and I am proud of my Irish heritage,"

Anthony Kennedy glanced slightly in Dean’s direction, "We have endured famine, oppression, discrimination, but we have united and made remarkable contributions to the social development of America."

"Mr. Kennedy has three children, all of whom are students at Stanford University. His eldest son Justin works at Goldman Sachs investment banking in Manhattan, New York.

The second son, Gregory, the young man next to him, is a lawyer at the New York white-shoe law firm Sullivan Cromwell."

Dean noticed the young man standing next to Anthony Kennedy, smiling broadly, his gaze filled with undisguised admiration for Anthony.

"Now, congratulations on becoming a member of this ancient and supremely glorious organization!"

Clap~Clap~, the sound of enthusiastic applause arose, and Dean also clapped his hands with a smile on his face.

Amidst the warm greetings of everyone, Anthony walked straight toward Dean with Gregory.

Seeing the two coming together, everyone tacitly refrained from disturbing them.

"An unparalleled speech, Mr. Kennedy," Dean delivered his praise generously.

"I’m glad you think so, Dean," Anthony greeted and then stepped aside to reveal the young man behind him.

"This is my son Gregory; he just graduated from Stanford Law School a few years ago."

"Pleased to meet you, Gregory. Just call me Dean."

"Hello, Dean," Gregory was also quite interested in Dean, who was currently receiving a lot of attention from Wall Street.

"I heard your mother is also Irish?" Anthony Kennedy was more interested in Dean’s family background.

"Yes, I love her deeply. She has always been the core of our family, and with her around, I never worried about tomorrow."

"Irish people love their families, perhaps we should drink to her." Anthony slightly raised his glass.

"Oh, thank you very much, Mr. Kennedy. I think if she knew in heaven, she would certainly be proud of an Irishman like you."

Dean was a bit surprised, but he still raised his glass and clinked it with theirs.

After finishing the drink, Anthony’s demeanor became much more cordial.

"Dean, ever since the last century, Irish people in North America have faced discrimination.

In their eyes, we have always been second-class citizens, suitable only for dirty and tiring jobs.

Coal miners, railroad workers, steelworkers... they saw us as big, rough bumpkins.

But the Irish never gave up their pursuit of knowledge, and now we are scattered across every stratum of America.

Johnson, Taft, Reagan, George—they all have Irish heritage, including you and me."

Facing the glass extended by Anthony, Dean gently tapped it.

"Irish people never shame their own heritage; they recognize and support every Irish person who is far from home."

"Good~" Anthony Kennedy took a satisfied sip of red wine.

He was a devout Irish Catholic and he held the Irish traditional consciousness in high regard.

[The Irish nation cherishes the special affinity with people of Irish descent living abroad, sharing cultural identity and heritage.]

Whenever he read Article Two of the Irish Constitution, Anthony felt his eyes well up with tears.

Although born into an elite family, he always struggled to fit in with the next generation of elite families around him during his childhood.

That sense of exile, the feeling of being an expatriate, even nostalgia, constantly reminded him that he was Irish.

At the turn of the century, around the time Anthony was born,

Saxon people’s stereotype of the Irish was one of vulgarity, alcoholism, gangsterism, and defiance.

So Anthony had always been looking for ways to change this perception, hoping to unite more Irish elites around him.

He chanced upon Dean, the founder of a software company valued at four hundred million US dollars.

Thus, he accepted an invitation from Stanford PBK, feeling that this trip to California would bring a different kind of reward.

"Dean, regarding the previous litigation of Byte Company, I support James’s approach."

"I’m glad to hear it, Mr. Kennedy. Byte Company believes justice will prevail."

James, Dean silently recited the name to himself, clearly Anthony had his own network of relations in the California courts.

"I’ve been with the Federal Court of Appeals in California for more than a decade, and in my professional experience, Bell’s lawsuit doesn’t stand a chance.

By the way, does Byte Company have a suitable underwriting law firm if it goes for an IPO?"

Dean glanced at Gregory who had been following them, and smiled in response.

"I think Sullivan Cromwell, where Gregory works, is a very good choice."

Anthony nodded composedly, "Indeed, Sullivan Cromwell has an outstanding reputation in the industry."

The young Gregory beamed with joy, as his path to partnership at the law firm became a bit smoother.

Dean swept his gaze over the father and son; he knew that the list of investors in Byte Company had just grown by two.