Ted Kennedy: 1932-2009

MSNBC is just this moment reporting that Senator Ted Kennedy, last of “the” Kennedy Brothers, has died.

I’m here in MA right now… and somehow that still just feels strange to say. For whatever else he might have been, few figures have ever loomed over American political life for as long and in so many different forms.

This will DOMINATE the news for at least the next few weeks, and probably more considering how much his name will be invoked in the Health Care debate. But for now… wow. It’s surreal, and also hugely tragic. Here was one of those figures who goes beyond politics and parties… I don’t care who you are or how you vote: If you know thing-one about the last several decades of American politics, you know that a Titan has died this day.

4 thoughts on “Ted Kennedy: 1932-2009”

  1. Peter S. says:
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    Holy fuck… I actually got the chance to meet him when I went to DC on my 8th grade trip and it honestly never occurred to me that this was actually possible (although in retrospect that's fairly stupid). Nevertheless, this is certainly something that will be a divisive issue as all form of forum trolls will now take this opportunity to hide behind their computers and show their true colors. It's really sad when you know that a shitstorm like this is approaching and there's nothing you can do to stop it.

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  2. Alek says:
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    Meh I never cared for the guy, but then I never lived in a region represented by the guy. All I know is I remember him as being rather different from the other Kennedys in that he was huge, so yeah I guess you could say a titan has died, still there are a lot of old people who've never lost a congressional election just sitting around in there. Whatever, I'm conservative and I'm not afraid to say that I won't miss him that much. It's always sad when someone you're aware of dies. But more meaningful if you actually liked said person.

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  3. Anonymous says:
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    I wouldn't call him a titan at all. If not for name and fortune he would have died in the slammer as a convicted murderer instead of at home as a United States senator. I have had enough of Kennedies during my life. No doubt he will be lauded by the administration and the left wing press as an American hero. But there will be many of us who remember Ted Kennedy as a spoiled rich kid who got tossed from college for cheating, who should have been prosecuted for killing a girl friend, and whose every action was hypocritical at best. Sorry, that's the way many Americans feel, at least those with memories that last longer than a couple of months. Teresa

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  4. Blue Tecken says:
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    Actually, many Americans remember him for what he was able to achieve in the Senate. His legacy is enormous. The Prime Minister of great Britain announced to Parliament that Ted Kennedy was a good man, and the entirety of Parliament gave a standing ovation in reaction. That is not the normal response to the death of an Elected official in America in other countries. “Many Americans” aren't blinded by partisanship. “Many Americans” recognize that Kennedy had monumental achievements with wide ranging effects. “Many Americans” can see that you don't judge a man by only their flaws and not their accomplishments. But then again, you don't actually know what “Many Americans” think, do you.

    Thomas Jefferson owned slaves, and lived beyond his means to the point his estate was sold off to cover his debts.

    Benjamin Franklin was lecherous, and a lush.

    Abraham Lincoln believed the black man to be racially inferior.

    Theodore Roosevelt believed the White man to be genetically superior.

    FDR was a womanizer.

    Eisenhower enacted the program that would turn into the bay of Pigs.

    But then again, I suppose you're right, and those flaws mean none of those people were great Americans. Thanks for your insight Teresa.

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