Tim Russert dies

[marc26]

man, i am so bummed
i loved Tim Russert, he had such a clam manner about him but you could also see he was an everday kind of guy

News icon Russert dies - San Jose Mercury News

[TanMan]

I was pretty shocked at the news. To me, he was kind of Johnny Carson-like coming from yeehaw, America (Buffalo, NY for Russert and Omaha, Nebraska for Carson), yet taking on the big guys in their respective trades.

Comedy... political news coverage... almost the same thing.

[Dupree00]

Well I just watched Meet the Press. Tom Brokaw hosted James Karvel and his wife Mary, Maria Shriver and NBC coworkers that were with Tim Russert from the beginning. Everyone telling their stories. All the great clips from the show. Tom started to break down 45 minutes in but managed to hold back the tears.

The show ended with a live version of Thunder Road that the The Boss dedicated to Tim. Tim went to a lot of Springsteen concerts. Anyway the harmonica is making my dog howl and it's an end to a Sunday morning tradition.

[JayBee]

Tim Russert will be greatly missed. Especially in this election year.

[Capt. Fantastic]

Not to put too fine a point on it but TR was seriously overweight and had a heart condition. Both issues could be treated by diet and exercise. But he chose to put his faith in a pill. I do not own a TV (so did not see him weekly or more often) yet when I did see pictures of him I noticed the weight, sickly complexion, red eyes, that sort of thing.

It is a tragedy when "beloved" public figures drop from preventable deaths. John Candy and Chris Farley (both not just obscene but fat)... I was going to list a few notable drug deaths but think my point is illustrated.

Abuse your body, die young. I am certainly not going to shed tears over an avoidable death.

My .69 baht.

[Masterwoodsman]

I suppose its quite fitting that only Americans have responded to this thread, as the guy in question must be U.S..... sorry but i've never heard of him????

I guess it would be like me saying Richard Madeley had died !!!

[sundancekid]

Well, you don’t miss’em until they’re gone I guess. I’m not a US citizen, but I do get Meet the Press here on UBC and have actually made it my Sunday night routine. One of the few shows I would actually make an effort watching.

I know some on the Left would criticize him for being too much a “softie” on the Conservatives, but I’ve always viewed him as being as fair as they get these (polarized) days. Just hope the new guy --- whatever his name --- will come close to the quality of Russert. Remains to be seen though.

Oh yes the segment with Brokaw was quite emotional...

[sundancekid]

Originally Posted by Capt. Fantastic

Abuse your body, die young. I am certainly not going to shede tears over an avoidabl death.

My .69 baht.

I know I disagree with you on political issues, but this is just such a weird comment to make. What would the term “avoidable death” actually entail? Yes, he did nyot adhere to the advice of his doctors, but ou should still be sensible enough to shed a tear or two --- fat or not --- on behalf of his family. But ok, he deserved it then.

[Capt. Fantastic]

Sundance--

Hmm... Did you actually use the "quote" feature THEN make (mis)spelling changes? And you call ME weird?

On the topic at hand: No tears for TR, just as I shed not a tear for race car drivers killed or injured on the track. Nor for skydivers, drug abusers, burglars... Not a question of deserving anything (Who am I to judge?) but rather, people are free to make their own choices. But I am also free to not agonize over the consequences of said choices.

[Dupree00]

Originally Posted by Capt. Fantastic

Abuse your body, die young. I am certainly not going to shed tears over an avoidable death.

My .69 baht.

Why would anyone shed a tear for someone they have never seen or admired? You are not emotionally attached in that scenario.

Your insensitive comment tells me that you would not feel bad if someone you loved or admired died before their time because they didn’t take perfect care of themselves. Are all your family members and friends taking the best possible care for their health?

When you are at the funeral of a family member or friend who didn’t take care of themselves per your guidelines maybe you will realize what a stupid comment you made on a thread where people were expressing grief for someone they will miss.

[Capt. Fantastic]

Here's a thought, Dupree:

Ignore Capt. Fantastic

No clue as to why you go ballistic over my posts. I suppose it is flattering in a sense but... "Can't we all just get along?"

My .69 baht.

[Dupree00]

Originally Posted by Capt. Fantastic

No clue as to why you go ballistic over my posts. I suppose it is flattering in a sense but... "Can't we all just get along?"

My .69 baht.

5555555555 Exactly! Clueless.

[sundancekid]

Originally Posted by Capt. Fantastic

Sundance--

Hmm... Did you actually use the "quote" feature THEN make (mis)spelling changes? And you call ME weird?

On the topic at hand: No tears for TR, just as I shed not a tear for race car drivers killed or injured on the track. Nor for skydivers, drug abusers, burglars... Not a question of deserving anything (Who am I to judge?) but rather, people are free to make their own choices. But I am also free to not agonize over the consequences of said choices.

Gee, don’t know what happened here. But it was certainly not my point to disfigure your quote. (And screw up my own spelling at the same time. A copy / paste operation gone wrong that’s all.)

Point being though that the concept of “avoidable death” is still weird. We put ourselves at risk every single day by just (gulp) living, and not being able to even shed a tear on account of someone --- close or not --- not adhering to the advice of their doctor is just that: Weird.

I just shed a tear or two quite recently, by the way, upon the passing of my drug addicted uncle. Weird, I know...

[faultytowers]

Originally Posted by Capt. Fantastic

just as I shed not a tear for race car drivers killed or injured on the track. Nor for skydivers, drug abusers, burglars... Not a question of deserving anything (Who am I to judge?) but rather, people are free to make their own choices. But I am also free to not agonize over the consequences of said choices.

So , no sympathy for soldiers killed in action , or firefighters killed performing their duties ????? After all , they made their own choice !!!!!

[Older man]

Originally Posted by Capt. Fantastic

On the topic at hand: No tears for TR, just as I shed not a tear for race car drivers killed or injured on the track. Nor for skydivers, drug abusers, burglars... Not a question of deserving anything (Who am I to judge?) but rather, people are free to make their own choices. But I am also free to not agonize over the consequences of said choices.

When a person dies the tears come from those who were near to him or loved him. For those it really does not matter how this person died, all that matters is the loss.

[sundancekid]

Originally Posted by Older man

When a person dies the tears come from those who were near to him or loved him. For those it really does not matter how this person died, all that matters is the loss.

So we beg to differ then. My own personal strorage of tears are certainly not only reserved for those "near to me" or the ones I "love".

(Just for the record though: "Shedding a tear" does not necessarily only mean a physical drop of salty liquid trickling down a person's face. For me NOT "shedding a tear" would mean you don't give a rat's ass, regardless of the circumstances behind the actual cause of the death.)

[JayBee]

I didn't shed any tears, but I still feel bad for his son, his wife, and other family members.

When a person dies, it is not him that we feel bad for. After all, he is not around to care, one way or another. I would think it matter not to the deceased.

When we mourn a man's passing, it is for the loss suffered by family, friends, colleagues, and, in this case, his viewing public, as well as the public at large, as this man truly was making a contribution to the greater good, and the tributes paid to him by his colleagues, viewers, and even rivals and adversaries, is evidence of this.

As far as his care of his health, some people treat others better than they treat themselves. Are they good people for the good they did for others, or bad people for not caring better for themselves? If you fail to see that as a rhetorical question, you have my sincere sympathy for the state of your mental health. Perhaps, you should be taking better care of it.

[Capt. Fantastic]

Originally Posted by JayBee

...When we mourn a man's passing, it is for the loss suffered by family, friends, colleagues, and, in the case, his viewing public, as well as the public at large, as this man truly was making a contribution to the greater good, and the tributes paid to him by his colleagues, viewers, and even rivals and adversaries, is evidence of this...

That is one heck of a sentence! Takes me back to fifth grade, the hell of Diagramming Sentences. Perhaps a thread dedicated to parsing that awesome beast?

[JayBee]

Originally Posted by Capt. Fantastic

That is one heck of a sentence! Takes me back to fifth grade, the hell of Diagramming Sentences. Perhaps a thread dedicated to parsing that awesome beast?

Geez-ma-knees, Capt!! And I thought I was the only one who remembers diagramming sentences, a lost art, if there ever was one!!

If we had a drawing tool here, I would gladly demonstrate, altho admittedly, such a classic run-on sentence would test the skill of even an accomplished diagrammer, such as myself. As you can well see, I am quite the fan of compound direct objects!

[marc26]

Capt Fantastic

you are just a weird person


it's called etiquette
we were having a discussion about someone that we regarded who had died
to make that post is just senseless

[ChoakMyDee]

Perhaps a visit from the "brown dirt cowboy" would straighten him out.