Sorry, SRS, but I'm not going to protect that thread. If you have personal hangups about what you say about the dead, that's fine - but I don't think it's right for you to expect to be able to control what other people have to say. If there's any trouble in that thread, I'll close it and I won't allow another attempt.

I will say this: When the accident happened at Chappaquiddick forty years ago in in 1969, Ted Kennedy escaped - but then he went for help and went back to the scene of the accident to try to free Kopechne from the wreckage. If he really was a coward, he wouldn't have gone back. Still, he certainly wasn't as heroic as one might hope a Kennedy would be. Joe and Jack and Bobby all died martyrs. Teddy didn't show the heroism of his brothers, but what he did was certainly understandable.

And then there was his first marriage and divorce. Certainly not exemplary, I'd say - so much so, that his ex-wife wrote a book about it. According to most acounts, Teddy Kennedy was a boozer and a philanderer during his first marriage, although his second marriage seemed to be very solid. From all appearances, Victoria is a remarkable woman.

But despite all that, he was an excellent senator - they don't make senators any better than Teddy Kennedy. He had his own philosophical viewpoint which favored those who weren't wealthy or powerful, but he was certainly not a mindless ideologue. He knew how to negotiate and how to compromise, in order to get at least part of his goals accomplished for his constituents.

He wasn't an icon. He was a real human being - flawed, but able to overcome his flaws and accomplish far more than his brothers were able to accomplish in their short lives. I think his life is a wonderful lesson for all of us who realize we aren't perfect. Despite our imperfections, we have to carry on. If we don't, nobody will.

God bless you, Ted Kennedy. You had your faults, but you did a lot of good. I'm sure you're in Heaven today.

-Joe Offer-