Jerry Falwell Dies

[gtalum]

Oh boy, is he going to be surprised...

[Windswept]

Oh boy, is he going to be surprised...

I was electing to go the "say nothing" route until I read this post.

ROFLMAO

[alicia-w]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/commen ... 795451.ece

Here's The Times obituary for Mr. Falwell. The Brits just put it out there, dont they.

[Regit]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article1795451.ece

Here's The Times obituary for Mr. Falwell. The Brits just put it out there, dont they.

British newspapers are known for superior obituaries. They don't gloss over the negative aspects of the deceased's life and give you a full history of the person.

[Janie2006]

A rather good obituary, I'd say.

[Pburgh]

That was a really informative obituary. Well written.

Prayers go out to his loved ones.

[abajan]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article1795451.ece

Here's The Times obituary for Mr. Falwell. The Brits just put it out there, dont they.

British newspapers are known for superior obituaries. They don't gloss over the negative aspects of the deceased's life and give you a full history of the person.

There's a story here in Barbados about a lady attending a funeral service getting up from her pew during the eulogy to go and check who was in the coffin just to make sure she was at the right funeral.

She did this because the eulogist spoke very glowingly of the deceased which sounded nothing like the person she knew.

I've always found this business about being respectful of the dead a bit strange. Afterall, the dead are dead aren't they? I can more understand respect for the family of the deceased.

[coriolis]

It is strange how people act differently towards the deceased. I have yet to hear any eulogy that included negative aspects of someone's life.

[O Town]

I think as human beings we want and try to remeber all the good things about someone after they pass instead of dwelling on the bad.
I don't think being respectful of the dead is strange at all. But I think I understand what you mean. We have no problem bashing someone while they are living but find it much harder to do so after they die. I guess we are just being sympathetic.

[Regit]

Well there's an old saying that "There are no sons of bi***es in the graveyard."

This is true of most people when being remembered in the media. The only reason you're hearing negative things about Falwell is that he was so vicious to so many people for so long. But for people who just had your everyday faults, those faults are usually forgotten upon death.

The public view of people tends to change upon someone's death, especially with a public figure. Not to get too political, but the best example I can think of is a politician: John Kennedy is regarded today as such a great president, yet he accomplished next to nothing while in office. The only reason we think of him that way is because of how tragically he died. (Sorry to any huge Kennedy nuts who read this )

The same is true of many other people.

[LarryWx]

We have no problem bashing someone while they are living but find it much harder to do so after they die. I guess we are just being sympathetic.

I think that most also find it much harder to criticize someone in a weakened or sick condition. In other words, I think that the tendency to be criticized is when one is strong, healthy, and especially cocky and can fight back. It isn't just an alive vs. dead issue. I feel that few people want to kick someone when they are already "down" due to their feeling sorry for them. Of course, being dead is the extreme form of being "down".