Rest in peace, Senator Kennedy

It's with sadness that I awoke this morning to hear about the loss of Sen. Ted Kennedy (above, left, with brothers President John F. Kennedy (center) and Robert F. Kennedy). There was no greater champion in the U.S. Senate over the last five decades for civil rights, healthcare reform, world peace and even stem cell research than Ted Kennedy.

Of course, in these highly partisan times that we live in, I've no doubt that many on the right will quietly cheer the silence of this proud liberal voice (and no doubt a few will even publicly do so), but that's to be expected. As far as the right's strong hatred for Kennedy, I'll say this - if there was any way to quantify it, you'd have to multiply that by a factor of a million to even begin to describe the way I feel about Dick Cheney, George W. Bush and the rest of the conniving, profiteering, scum of the Earth who pillaged this country during the eight years of the Bush administration. However, President Obama has been in office for a little over 200 days, so now we can blame everything on him now! At least, that seems to be the battle cry among many conservatives these days. But, I digress.

It would be wrong to completely whitewash Kennedy's entire career in the wake of his passing, for the man was deeply flawed, for sure. But, I try to see the other side when it comes to Kennedy, too. I can't begin to fathom the emotional strain he must have endured after seeing two of his brothers assassinated and also losing two other siblings to tragedy very early on in their lives. I'm not making excuses for Kennedy's often boorish and even tragic behavior, but it's easy for people to judge his behavior, but more difficult to comprehend the many tragedies in Kennedy's life. Many critics point to the Chappaquiddick incident as proof of Kennedy's criminality, and his actions are impossible to defend, and I'm certainly not going to try here. However, many conspiracy theorists have argued that Mary Jo Kopechne was intentionally drowned by Kennedy, and I'll never believe that. But, I'm also not naïve enough to believe that Kennedy didn't receive special treatment from the justice system because of his last name, either.

One of the stupidest bumper stickers I ever saw on a car read: "Ted Kennedy's car has killed more people than my guns." I've always wanted to print bumper stickers that say "George Bush has killed many more people than Ted Kennedy's car," but I never got around to it. I still say it could have been a seller, though.

Despite Kennedy's many flaws, in the end, I admire the man for the way he handled the many tragedies he had to endure, and largely how he handled them. One of his finest moments was courageously eulogizing his brother, Robert, following his assassination in June 1968:

My brother need not be idealized, or enlarged in death beyond what he was in life; to be remembered simply as a good and decent man, who saw wrong and tried to right it, saw suffering and tried to heal it, saw war and tried to stop it.

Those of us who loved him and who take him to his rest today, pray that what he was to us and what he wished for others will some day come to pass for all the world. As he said many times, in many parts of this nation, to those he touched and who sought to touch him: 'Some men see things as they are and say why. I dream things that never were and say why not.'

I think the same can be said of Ted Kennedy himself, too. What a career on Capitol Hill - during 46+ years in the U.S. Senate, he authored 2,500 bills, 300 of which became law; and he co-sponsored another 550 bills, too. Because of personal flaws and mistakes, he was not destined to be president, but he certainly made a difference on the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue.

From civil rights, to Title IX, to healthcare and 18-year olds gaining the ability to vote, Kennedy was in the middle of all those legislative debates and more during the last five decades. I've often written that I believe in term limits for all members of Congress, and in the end, I probably still do, but Kennedy is an example of what career politicians can accomplish during a long and mostly distinguished career on Capitol Hill.

To the man who was never ashamed to be called a liberal (I share that same trait), I say this - well done, Senator, well done. Liberals and like-minded moderates alike will continue the healthcare fight in your absence, but the fight just became a little harder without you.

Below is the tribute to Senator Kennedy during the first night of the 2008 Democratic National Convention - it's pretty good and worth a look (thanks, Sadath) ...

The lion's roar may be silenced, but the fight will live on. Rest in peace, Senator Kennedy.

Robert F. Kennedy, 1925-1968

I really wish I could have lived to see him. More importantly, I wish I'd be living in a country where Robert Francis Kennedy had served two terms as President of the United States.

Richard Nixon's 6+ years were so disastrous for the country - many of the effects of Watergate are still being felt today in many ways - it's hard to even comprehend how different our country would be were it not for a madman named Sirhan Sirhan.

I'm only 36 years old, born during Nixon's first term in September 1971, but in my lifetime, I've never had the pleasure and inspiration of knowing a politician like Robert Kennedy. Barack Obama is probably the closest thing we've had in my lifetime.

I watch and read a great deal about Kennedy, and it seems as if my fascination isn't going to wane anytime soon. It's not that I'm in love with the Kennedy surname per se, it's that I have a tremendous amount of respect for what all three Kennedy brothers did and have done for our country in their political lives. Both President Kennedy and Robert Kennedy ultimately gave the ultimate sacrifice for trying to make a difference.

Specifically with RFK, after his brother was murdered in so public a manner, he easily could have said, "To hell with it, and to hell with this country." It's not like his family didn't have tens of millions of dollars for him to live off of, and really, who could have faulted him? He was crushed over his brother's death, and it was clear that the 1960s were a pretty risky time to be a politician. It's important to remember that at the time RFK was shot, 40 years ago today, his brother, Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. had already been murdered in the decade. Kennedy clearly knew the risks, yet he pushed on, determined to try and make a difference.

As Attytood noted today, perhaps Kennedy's most shining and courageous moment came on April 4, 1968, when he was due for an appearance in Indianapolis on the day that Martin Luther King, Jr. had been assassinated. When he arrived, he was told that his predominately African-American audience was not aware that King had been murdered just hours before. He courageously went on stage anyway, speaking off-the-cuff and from-the-heart about his own experience with losing a family member, and what American needed to do to move forward. Without a speech writer, teleprompter, or polls to figure out the most popular thing to say, here is a part of what he said to the audience that night:

My favorite poet was Aeschylus. He once wrote: "Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart, until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God."

What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence and lawlessness, but is love and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice toward those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or whether they be black.

[Interrupted by applause]

So I ask you tonight to return home, to say a prayer for the family of Martin Luther King, yeah that's true, but more importantly to say a prayer for our own country, which all of us love - a prayer for understanding and that compassion of which I spoke. We can do well in this country. We will have difficult times. We've had difficult times in the past. And we will have difficult times in the future. It is not the end of violence; it is not the end of lawlessness; and it's not the end of disorder.

But the vast majority of white people and the vast majority of black people in this country want to live together, want to improve the quality of our life, and want justice for all human beings that abide in our land.

Below is audio of his speech - take a few minutes and listen to the words, emotion and raw power (and the audience's reaction) to his speech...

Many people, mostly Republicans and conservative blowhards on right-wing radio, love to vilify the youngest Kennedy brother, Senator Edward M. Kennedy, who won't be with us much longer even with the best prognosis after being diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer. It was Ted who eulogized his brother RFK in June of 1968 with these words:

My brother need not be idealized or enlarged in death beyond what he was in life, to be remembered simply as a good and decent man, who saw wrong and tried to right it, saw suffering and tried to heal it, saw war and tried to stop it.

I cannot imagine what it's been like for Ted, seeing his three older brothers die (Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. in World War II), two of them murdered, yet he still has soldiered on, making many mistakes and even a tragic one, yet he has endured to become one of the most successful U.S. Senators in U.S. history. RFK's and JFK's legacies are alive with Ted Kennedy.

It's my hope that Barack Obama can deliver the sort of hope to generations of Americans that Robert did to America during the spring of 1968 before the tragic events at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles.

Kennedy as he uttered the last public words of his life: "Thank you, now it's on to Chicago, and let's win there."

Rest in peace, RFK. You are gone, but not forgotten, and you never will be.

My letter to Wiener: Updated

Yesterday I wrote a letter to Michael "Savage" Wiener concerning his tasteless, despicable attacks on Sen. Ted Kennedy (see below), and of course, the message bounced, which is about what I'd expect from the likes of Savage. Lob grenades and then turn off your e-mail. That's okay - I prefer to hit people where it hurts - in the wallet. I'm still on the search for his advertisers and I'll keep you all posted, but in the meantime, here's a company to add to your boycott list: Rockstar Energy Drink.

Rockstar was founded by Russell Wiener, the son of Savage. Before you think boycotting his son's company is unfair, read on. Savage founded the Paul Revere Society with his son in 1996, a radical organization that has listed its goals in the past as follows:

1. Make tax cuts permanent.
2. Close the borders now.
3. Deport all illegal immigrants now.
4. Eliminate bilingual education in all states.
5. Require health tests for all recent foreign born immigrants.
6. Eliminate as many entitlement programs as possible.
7. Reduce the number of Federal Employees.
8. Oil Drilling on U.S. Soil.
9. Tort Reform "STOP LAWYERS"

In recent years, the PRS has toned down its message. Right now, its mission statement reads:

Michael Savage founded The Paul Revere Society (PRS). With a crisis of leadership threatening the United States, PRS stands for the reassertion of our borders, our language, and our culture.

Some say that the borders are arbitrary, English is only one of many languages in our new "Multicultural America," and that we share no common history or values. We believe in the Sovereignty of our Nation. That English is our national "glue." And that we all do share in the pillars of the Bible, the U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. These documents and what they stand for are our common cultural heritage.

The Paul Revere Society (PRS) will assert the values inherent in these pillars of freedom. We will seek to educate the citizenry about our nation's freedoms.

If you read between the lines, much of what Savage spews forth on his Website and his radio show is there - they've just gotten clever about packaging PRS to make it more appealing.

Anyway, for the love of God, if you don't believe in what Savage does and says (again, see below), don't buy any of his books (at least new), and eschew Rockstar Energy Drink, too. More to come about Savage soon...

Here is my letter and post from yesterday:

I thought I'd share a letter to you I wrote to Michael "Savage" Wiener today [(At right) He's the one on the right, in case you were wondering]. This guy is a hateful piece of work - he re-ran a Dead Kennedys song today, claiming that he is "being persecuted for refusing to take the party line" on Senator Ted Kennedy. No, Wiener, you're just showing a blatant lack of decency and humanity.

Dear Dr. Wiener,
I laughed with glee at your apparent lack of humanity in making fun of Ted Kennedy's tumor the other day. You're so witty - playing The Dead Kennedys? I always knew you were so full of sage political witticisms, but why, and where have you been hiding this urbane, polished humor? How selfish of you to hide it from the rest of the world!

Actually, we all did receive a hint of your bottomless well of wit years ago when you cleverly renamed yourself "Savage." Ooo, that's so intimidating and manly.

Anyway, thanks for brightening my day by poking fun at someone who likely won't be with us a few years from now. You really do add to the political discourse in our country. We need three or four more of you in the media, and then we can just torch the constitution (wait, Bush has already effectively done that), round up anyone who doesn't conform to your hateful views, and then maybe we can have a cultural cleansing, vis-à-vis the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia in the 1970s. Hey, Halliburton could build the camps with a no-bid contract.

Thanks for being a true inspiration. I tried going to your joke of a Website to see which advertisers I could write, to say they were kissing my business goodbye, but a funny thing happened - I couldn't find any, except ads for your legal defense fund (no doubt when you slash, slander and defame the next person who doesn't share your views) and for your stupid Savage Nation gear. (Call me when you get the Savage Nation toilet paper in, though - it will no doubt be very abrasive and probably disintegrate under pressure, but put me down for a 4-pack.) The other advertisers I found on there I wouldn't frequent if I were given the money to buy the stuff. Keep up those rants, though - I'm sure you're minutes away from a multinational corporation banging down your door for ad space.

Yours in democracy,
RJ Ravage

If you like, drop the Wiener a line at: michaelsavage@paulreveresociety.com and send him along some love.

h/t to The Patriot Boy for the illustration

Michael Wiener: disgrace to humanity

In the political atmosphere & culture we live in today, it wasn't difficult to predict that some extremist imbecile on the right would make fun of the fact that Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) was recently diagnosed with a brain tumor that will almost certainly kill him within the next few years, or sooner.

Seriously, just what in the world is wrong with some people? Right-wing hate monger Michael "Savage" Wiener went way over the line when making fun of Sen. Ted Kennedy the other day. Listen to the above audio, and you'll quickly see that this man is reveling in the fact that Kennedy is dying. Words almost fail me - it's equal parts sad, outrageous and incomprehensible. The man is clearly rejoicing and poking fun at Kennedy, while playing a Dead Kennedys song. Classy!

First of all, anyone who renames himself Savage should already have his mental stability questioned. Then again, I guess when your given surname is Wiener, and you hope to become some sort of media personality, prudence demands action. Hence, Michael Wiener became Michael Savage.

I'm not stupid enough to believe that there aren't people out there who hate Ted Kennedy, and it's obvious that Wiener is one of them. Fine. But, do you really need to make fun of someone dying? There really is a special place in hell for people like Wiener.

Of course, there isn't a news story that's been written in the past week that hasn't mentioned the Chappaquiddick incident, when a car Kennedy was driving went over a bridge, killing Mary Jo Kopechne, in July 1969. There isn't a doubt in my mind that Kennedy used his influence to avoid an almost certain jail sentence. The truth is, the truth will probably never be known, but that hasn't stopped many on the right from claiming a host of conspiracy theories. Fine, but that was over 40 years ago, people.

One of my favorite bumper stickers that I see from time to time about Kennedy & Chappaquiddick goes something like this:

Ted Kennedy's car has killed more people than my guns.

Witty! However, I think that one should be updated by those on the left. Just off the top of my head, how about:

George W. Bush has killed tens of thousands more people than Ted Kennedy's car.

I don't believe that Kennedy intentionally killed Kopechne, despite what disgraces to humanity like Wiener would have you believe. But, he certainly acted improperly (to say the least). However, since that time, Kennedy has done a great deal of good for both his constituents and for those less fortunate than him around the country, and for that he should be applauded. After all, many on the right acknowledge Kennedy's work, so maybe it's time the rest of his opponents should as well. I'm not holding my breath.

The guy has had two of his brothers murdered in a very public way - RFK just over a year prior to Chappaquiddick. I'm completely guessing here, but he was probably petrified over public reaction and pretty damn traumatized. Maybe it's time people on the right give the guy a break. After all, the Kopechne family has. I know, I know - fat chance that's ever going to happen, just like there's a fat chance I'll ever not think that President Bush should be tried for war crimes. So be it - that's the political world we live in today.

But, as much as I disagree with almost everything that President Bush does, I would not publicly or privately rejoice were he to be stricken in some way with a fatal illness, or worse. I guess that's the difference between the so-called extremists on the left and the right - most of the ones on the right seemingly have no line they will not cross to score a cheap political point (or radio ratings). Every time I hear about hate speech, it seems like it comes from the right, be it Wiener, Rush Limbaugh, Michelle Malkin, Ann Coulter, Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly, Glenn Beck, etc. I would hope that indicates something to rational, educated people .

For instance, as much as I despised Rev. Jerry Falwell, I didn't rejoice in his death, publicly or privately. I didn't necessarily mourn him, either, but there are lines I don't cross - rejoicing in someone's death (or imminent death) is goes beyond the pale, but that's what Wiener is all about - being totally outrageous to get ratings for his miserable radio show. I'd say the man is fringe, but he clearly is not. Most stories I read about him have him ranked as the third most popular radio listener in terms of audience on terrestrial radio, behind Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity. That should also tell us all something about the dominance of right-wing radio, as well as how many people filled with hate there are out there, all because they disagree with someone politically. Pathetic and sad.

The good news is that I went to Savage's Website to see which advertisers could kiss my business goodbye, and there really aren't any. (I wonder why?) The only ads I could find were pleas to send money for Wiener's "legal defense fund" and ads hawking his stupid t-shirts, mugs and hate-filled screeds that pass for books. So, it appears that most sponsors won't touch him, and it's little wonder he was fired from MSNBC for responding so virulently to a caller he disagreed with (I believe he wished AIDS on the caller, if memory serves me correctly). I don't think the man should be fired - after all, we do have the First Amendment in this country. But, any company or organization who advertises on his show should be punished for supporting such a hate-filled, churlish simpleton.

When I find out more about his advertisers, I'll share it with you.

Special hat tip (h/t) to Media Matters, an organization devoted to exposing and publicizing such hateful claptrap in the media. Of course, the likes of Savage and O'Reilly HATE Media Matters for all of their work, which is all the more reason we should admire, support and spread the word about this important organization and its work.

If you want to send your own message to Michael "Savage" Wiener, his e-mail address is: michaelsavage@paulreveresociety.com. Please, keep it polite and professional, or as much as you can.

I'm e-mailing him later today, and I'll share it with you when I send it.

Ted Kennedy asked if he fears Obama possibly being a target

Following Ted Kennedy's highly publicized endorsement of Barack Obama, Kennedy appeared on CBS This Morning yesterday to discuss it. I still can't believe that anyone would ask Kennedy this question, but the boob from CBS asks him if he fears for Obama's assassination (in so many words), and then proceeds to mention that Kennedy is familiar with "agents of change" being "targets."

Unbelievable.

Our society occasionally veers off the tracks of reasoned debate by being overly politically correct, but to say that to the brother of President Kennedy is absurd. And implying that Obama could be a target is even more ridiculous.

Yet another example of fine American journalism.

Meet the Press for idiots

This one is from Conan O'Brien, and it's pretty good. No set-up required from me, just watch it. The punchline is worth the wait.

Teddy: We've lost the moral authority

In less than 48 hours, the documentary film Ghosts of Abu Ghraib premieres on HBO. The film is directed by Rory Kennedy, the youngest child of Senator Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy. By most accounts that I've read ahead of time, the film packs a pretty powerful punch, and how could it not, considering the subject matter?

In a column today on Arianna Huffington's Website, Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy has a point when he says that "It may well be the steepest and deepest fall from grace in our history."

"Yet at every opportunity, the Administration has tried to minimize the problem and avoid responsibility for it," he wrote.

Like Teddy or hate him, how can a logical person who has even passively followed the Abu Ghraib fiasco disagree, regardless of political persuasion? The most frightening part of the abuse and torture tragedy is that there are Americans who feel that nothing wrong occurred at the prison. Count Rush Limbaugh among them, who infamously said that all he saw in the photographs were "soldiers having a good time." Sick, demented, sad and preposterous.

Quick aside about Ted Kennedy, by the way. Can Republicans possibly be any more trite than bringing up Chappaquiddick every five minutes? Probably my favorite Republican bumper sticker of all time reads, Ted Kennedy's car has killed more people than my guns. My reply to that bumper sticker would be this: George Bush's Iraq War has killed more Americans than 3,000 of Ted Kennedy's cars. No question Kennedy got off easy and that Mary Jo Kopechne's death was tragic, but to hear some people tell it, he killed her in cold blood and walked away scott free. Politics aside, does anyone really believe that? Teddy's got a lot of warts, most self-inflicted, and that scandal tops the list, but he's done a lot of good for our country, too. Oh yea, and can we all agree that he and his members of his have made some pretty tragic sacrifices because they wanted to serve their country? Okay, Kennedy rant over.

Kennedy's right - the images are still disturbing to look at. I remember the shock, horror and disbelief I felt when I first saw the images.

In my lifetime, since I've been old enough to remember and follow politics, I can't think of any single event (Aside from the current War in Iraq itself) that has damaged our credibility and moral standing with the rest of the world more than Abu Ghraib.

I'll rephrase - Abu Ghraib is my generation's My Lai. Okay, that might be overstating the case a bit - over 100 innocent Vietnamese were killed in that tragedy. I'm not suggesting that Abu Ghraib is equal, I'm merely suggesting that its impact is equal.

We are America - we are supposed to stand for Democracy, freedom, peace and human rights. This war has put all four of those into doubt, and Abu Ghraib only exacerbated our free fall as the moral authority in the free world.

Adding to many Americans' frustration is the lack of any sort of in-depth, independent investigation of the scandal. In the days following Abu Ghraib going public, the Bush Administration seemed more intent at castigating those who exposed the scandal than getting to the bottom of what happened. And I won't even recap the absurdity of former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's comments.

Kennedy writes:

What we got instead were nine incomplete and self-serving internal investigations by the Pentagon. None of the investigators were given the authority to challenge the conduct of the civilian command. The report of the Schlesinger Panel found that abuses were "widespread" and that there was "both institutional and personal responsibility at higher levels." But Secretary Rumsfeld refused to let the panel to consider personal accountability for the abuses.

The Republican rubber-stamp Congress was complicit in the Administration's efforts to evade responsibility.

I know that the DemocratIC Congress has better things to do right now, like determining whether to fund President Bush's troop escalation, but once time permits, I certainly hope Congress initiates a bona fide investigation into Abu Ghraib, one with teeth and subpoena power.

Don't forget to check out Ghosts of Abu Ghraib, which premieres this Thursday night on HBO at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT.