<p>“Wow… a little harsh, huh? “He’s 76 and everyone dies of something.” Did you feel that way when your own parents or grandparents became ill? Geez.”</p>
<p>Harsh? No. I felt that way when my own family became ill and died, except those who died very young, because we do all die of something. And a brain tumor isn’t as miserable a death as many others I could name. Kennedy has lived a long life and will likely have a painless death, and I think most of us hope for the same.</p>
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<p>I think when you remark on someone’s rottenness (your opinion) when he’s most likely just been given a terminal diagnosis, it is wrong. Ever heard the saying don’t kick a someone when they’re down? I can guarantee you he and his family are down right now, and by speculating publicly on his ‘rottenness’, you’re kicking.</p>
<p>Agree wholeheartedly with fact that 76 is old and everyone dies of something. Ignore his past and those facts are still the same. Hopefully he and his family will consider his age and prognosis when planning his treatments. There will be someone to take his place in the political/public arena. </p>
<p>We should not waste limited resources to showcase our abilities to cure an elderly man, they should be spent on someone with a future. It is unfortunate that those with money and power get more than those of average means, their lives are not worth any more (and some, like the current crop of Republicans in power, have a negative worth to society- think of all the young people dead/disabled due to current warmongering). Can’t help the political connotations because if he were not in politics nobody outside his circle would even know he was ill- thousands of people face illness and death without the rest of us knowing or caring.</p>
<p>Post from dntw8up (#22) states my feelings exactly. Next post- no reason to make a saint of someone just because they are ill, the facts remain the same. Families with public figures shouldn’t expect everyone to share their attitudes or feelings, they are dealing on a personal level, the rest of us on a public level. It is disgusting when people discard honesty for platitudes. Without personal contact one can’t kick. Now is not the time for his family’s neighbors to speak out to them on their disagreements, but there is no reason for the rest of us to withhold our opinions in public.</p>
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<p>You know, my mom was 82 when she died after decades of chronic illnesses, so it was not unexpected. I admire her for not wanting to give up many, many times; however, she was the only one of her sisters who never had great grandchildren, and I know how much she wanted that, but it never happened. So yea, she lived a long life, but she still had dreams she wanted to fulfill despite all the pain she suffered.</p>
<p>teriwtt-
Agreed (see post #11). To strike out at a person (kick or hit) when they are down is just distasteful, to say the least. IMO, making disparaging comments about one’s character or political beliefs when they have just been diagnosed with a potentially terminal illness speaks more about the person making the comments than about Kennedy. Sorry- it is slimy.</p>
<p>I hope Mary Jo Kopechne’s family is not reading this. If that name doesn’t ring a bell to all you Kennedy lover’s - google it.</p>
<p>No one is “speculation”. He got away with murder. This was not an “indiscretion”.
This has nothing to do with politics or the tragedies the Kennedy family has endured. Lot of families endure tragedy.</p>
<p>dntw8up, that is about as heartless of a post as I have ever seen. If your family and friends have the same attitude then you are going to be one lonely senior citizen, if you have the good fortune to live that long. Yes, “everyone dies of something” - so I guess all the doctors and medical researchers should just hang up their stethoscopes and call it a day.</p>
<p>wis75, at what age should we arbitrarily stop treating people? How do you know a 75 year-old isn’t going to live another 20 years? My mother is 72 and has had cancer treatments for 4 years. She’s had wonderful holiday gatherings with us and will celebrate her 50th wedding anniv next month. Should we have just written her off? </p>
<p>Good grief, I am shocked at the heartlessness of some posters. </p>
<p>Nothing is going to bring Mary Jo Kopechne back. Even if he had been charged, under the lenient DUI laws of the day it’s likely he would have spent very little time in jail. I don’t equate that to OJ Simpson - Kopechne’s death was an accident, avoidable perhaps but still an accident, while Nicole Brown Simpson was deliberately murdered. Yes the result is the same, but the intent and culpability on the part of the accused is vastly different.</p>
<p>"arsh? No. I felt that way when my own family became ill and died, except those who died very young, because we do all die of something. "</p>
<p>Seems callous to me. Sure, we all die of something, but facing death still is difficult for the dying person and their family.</p>
<p>I’ve had elderly friends and relatives die, and I still felt sad. Just because one is old doesn’t mean one’s life is worthless and one has no love of life and isn’t loved by others.</p>
<p>“I don’t wish anyone ill and I do admire Senator Kennedy’s devotion to his fatherless relatives, but I can’t say that I would pray for him or wish him well. Aside from his own family, I don’t necessarily think this is a good man.”</p>
<p>I think that in order to be full human beings, we need to have compassion for everyone. At their core, I believe that everyone has some spark of good humanity. I also believe that everyone, no matter how many evil acts they have committed, has the ability to redeem themselves.</p>
<p>“So yea, she lived a long life, but she still had dreams she wanted to fulfill despite all the pain she suffered.”</p>
<p>It’s human nature to always have hopes for the future. Science, however, is not yet able to provide humans with limitless futures. Therefore, most people die with unfulfilled dreams.</p>
<p>Again, Lafalum and Teriwtt, I couldn’t agree more.</p>
<p>My fa in law fell and broke a few ribs last summer. He was hospitalized, treated, and then treated for the subsequent pulmonary problems he developed. He was seen by several specialists, improved, and went home with in-home healthcare. However, as he was fiercely independent, he got up to use the restroom in the middle of the night and stumbled over his portable oxygen machine, reinjuring/breaking his ribs. He was back in the hospital, and sadly, after about 5 weeks, he passed away. His healthcare was paid for by medicare and by Tricare (military). He did not have to pay much of anything out of pocket for his thousands of dollars of care. He was cared for appropriately, and given every opportunity to survive and be with his family who loved him. He died just a few weeks shy of his 99th birthday. I gather some of the posters here think we should have tossed him out to give his hospital bed to a younger, more “deserving” patient. Shame on you.</p>
<p>I am surprised that some of you think that 76 is old, and that we all need to die of something. Sure, 76 is not as young as 55, or 40, 22, or 15, or 4, but I have 2 grandparents that lived a healthy life into their 90’s. They were given good medical care in their 90’s (nothing less than a 30 year old would receive for the same diagnoses).</p>
<p>So, sunshadow, does that mean that so far as you’re concerned anyone who actively supports abortion rights pretty much deserves to die? Sure sounds like it.</p>
<p>Ted Kennedy is a human being who <em>has,</em> imo, done a great deal of good work in the Senate. And has very close working relationships with many Republicans, btw.</p>
<p>And let’s not throw around words like “murder” as if they’re fact.</p>
<p>Look, when President Bush is diagnosed with a fatal illness someday, I don’t think I’ll be posting in a thread about it to talk about the fact that he was not only possibly the worst President we’ve ever had, but arguably a war criminal, and, at the least, responsible for far more deaths of innocent people than Ted Kennedy could ever hope to be (even from the viewpoint of those who demonize him) – many of them, I’m quite sure, pregnant (since, after all, it’s apparently perfectly fine to kill a fetus by dropping a bomb on its mother).</p>
<p>Some things are appropriate discourse in a thread like this. Others aren’t.</p>
<p>jym, we cross posted, and I am glad to read that on this thread we are on the same page (or screen ;)).</p>
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wow. just wow. He let her drown. He walked away, never called for help and pretended it didn’t happen.</p>
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<p>this distinction made me think of a Gandhi quote which I read recently and I am trying to be mindful of:</p>
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<p>I will never respect or admire Sen Kennedy but I could never wish cancer on anyone.</p>
<p>This is expected; the radical fringe of both parties will stoop to new lows when the enemy is hurting. It happened to Lee Atwater in '91. It mostly exposes the character of the attackers.</p>
<p>LOL NEM. At least our elderly relatives didnt have to sit and wait for long periods of time in a waiting room to be seen by their doctor ;)</p>
<p>I am truly amazed by some of the comments being said here. Sadly, Kennedy and many of his family members had a history of alcohol abuse I have always wondered just how much Kennedy remembered from his drive on that bridge in MA, or if he might have been in an alcoholic blackout. I do not recall all the specifics, and don’t wish to debate it here. </p>
<p>Justamom- I hope Kennedy’s family isn’t reading this.</p>
<p>LOL, jym! My grandfather never had anything more than a rare cold until he started going into dementia (early 90s). He never needed to see docs. He did need dental work, but could not afford to pay for it, so he had all of his teeth pulled out in his 40’s and lived for over 50 years in dentures! </p>
<p>My grandmother was a HIP member (a HMO in NY), and she patiently waited. This was an affordable HMO and as a senior she was willing to wait for hours on end if needed. My mother drove her (she never learned to drive), dropped her off and picked her up 5-6 hours later. She also did not have many health issues, so health care was minimal until she was 90.</p>