I think LeN was pointing out that Breitbart himself had no compunctions against speaking ill of the dead, so Ginger should not feel overly compelled to hold back.

AHA. I has The Dumb today, there's contractors in my office making lots of noise.

Thanks for the clarification, I was really confused!

So much for the "only the good die young" theory. I tease my 90yo mother with that one all the time.

Zenkitty already said the other stuff I had to say:

ita, that's absolutely wonderful. I hope it can stay that way too.

Tom, seriously? How weird. And validating, I presume!

Okra = gross. Sorry, okra lovers. Your taste buds are wrong.

If he were still alive, he could look at that sentence and quote me as saying "I'm a fan of his work."

And he totally would.

And now I'm going to stop even thinking about Breitbart.

In other news, I sent someone an email last night with another email attached (not forwarded), which is something you can do in Outlook. And the receipient either didn't open it, or didn't know that she could, or something. And instead emailed back telling me I hadn't sent it, and cc'd my Nemesis. Which is just annoying.

If someone isn't using Outlook, would that attached email look like an attachment?

Nora,

Jessica has it exactly right. I'm not sure I'm an "eye for an eye" kind of person and I think we should individually say what we feel and not be chastised, but if someone has mean fucking shit to say, oh well. The stuff he said about Ted Kennedy took my breath away.

Shirley Sherrod:

"The news of Mr. Breitbart's death came as a surprise to me when I was informed of it this morning. My prayers go out to Mr. Breitbart's family as they cope through this very difficult time."

Bless her that she could be so evenhanded. I would have had to get a dear friend to write the statement for me.

The stuff he said about Ted Kennedy took my breath away.

Yeah. Kennedy was no saint, but he did a lot of good in his life, along with all his sins. And I don't think any human being has the skill-set to weigh the moral value of his life.

le n: Brava Shirley Sherrod. And this is why the Breitbarts of the world will always lose, in the long run.

You know, as someone who just recently lost her husband suddenly at a similarly young age, the idea that people I love and respect could be callous about the loss of a man who had a family that loved him, just because they didn't agree with his methods and politics, is disappointing. We're better than that. The discourse is never going to change if someone doesn't make the effort to rise above.

I did not agree with his politics nor his treatment of people with whom he disagreed, but I know exactly how his widow is feeling right now. My heart breaks for her and their children, because she has lost her partner and their 4 children have lost their father. I wouldn't wish this kind of pain on my worst enemy. May they experience the kind of love and support that I have. They'll need it.

Tom, it doesn't surprise me that they want you back. But, I'm glad you're not going.

Okra is also yummy steamed. There is less slime. Although, I will admit, I get a hankering for the slime on occassion. It's a comfort food for me.

I think people have been pretty even-handed about saying it's got to be hard for his loved ones, and that they feel bad for them. But the rest of his impact on the world--it's just cold hard fact to say they're not mourning that.

I have precisely zero opinion on the man. He's never made my radar, partially deliberately. People who love him are in pain. People he had a negative impact on are in less. It was his choice to have a negative impact on them, and it seems like he was okay with the choice, deliberate even. So I don't know if he's the sort who'd want crocodile tears, or just people moving on.

I've never heard of Andrew Breitbart, but I gather he was not well liked by most people here? So when I saw someone on Facebook post, "RIP Andrew Breitbart. You fought vigorously and happily for the conservative cause, and I will be forever grateful," and his mother comment, "What a shocker! My first thought was on how he was such a courageous warrier," I couldn't tell at first whether they were being sarcastic. But they weren't.

Maria,

I understand and I mean no disrespect, but for me my ambivalence is not about politics. He intended (and did) HARM towards people with whom he disagreed and he was very dishonest about it all. He was also racist. Virulently so.

I'm not glad he is dead and I share Shirley Sherrod's sentiments. But he was a very odious person.

That's all I will say further on the matter.