Take Me To Post Comment Form It is no small measure of the tragedies that have befallen the Kennedy clan that on the occasion of Senator Kennedy's death, we can at least be thankful that unlike his three brothers, his death was not the result of a bullet.

Senator Kennedy served our nation in uniform, and in the Senate for nearly five decades. He was unapologetically liberal and never afraid to tell you what he stood for.

I know there are many people who expressed relentless hatred for this man. Even now, as news of his death is breaking, the right wing blogs are filled with some of the
most vile, putrid examples of classless inhumanity I ever care to see in print.

Nancy Reagan's words of condolence and commemoration provide hope that common decency has not yet been entirely purged from the political right. In fact, Kennedy's circle of close friends included the Reagans, Republican Senator Orrin Hatch and pundit Cal Thomas.

Those who knew the man actually liked him. I think that is a far better indicator of the Senator's place in history than the obscene hostility current percolating in the right wing blogosphere.

Especially repulsive were the ravings of a cretin known as Andrew Breitbart. Google him if you want to sample his garbage for yourself. I will say simply that it is a pretty safe bet that the ovewhelming majority of people who share Breitbart's psychotic hostility towards Kennedy, have in the past gladly benefitted from some domestic policy where Kennedy was a primary architect. That would include OSHA, COBRA, minimum wage increases, and dozens if not hundreds of other protections that even the most conservative citizens take for granted.

But to borrow the logic frequently used by Sarah Palin supporters, the hostility of the opposition obviously means that Kennedy was telling the truth.

I sincerely doubt that most of Kennedy's critics will contribute even 1/100th of what he did towards making America a better place for all of us. So to Mr. Breitbart and those who agree with his vitriol, as far as I am concerned, you can all go and engage in the reproductive act in solitude.

I wonder if the Senator's death might ultimately turn into some kind of cosmic paradox that only the Great Spirit/Creator could choreograph. Senator Robert Byrd has proposed renaming the pending health care legislation to honor Ted Kennedy.

It would indeed be quite the paradox if it came to pass that after attempting to use facts, figures and logic to defeat the emotional hysteria about death panels, socialism and tyranny, it is the emotional impact of one man and the cause he believed in so strongly that becomes the deciding factor in achieving health care reform.