Remember: No family has ever sacrificed or endured more for America than the Kennedys

[Politics_Guy25]

From Joseph P. Kennedy in World War II to President Kennedy on the sreets of Dallas in 1963 to Senator Kennedy in California in 1968 to the overdose death of Robert Kennedy's son in the 80's to Michael Kennedy's skiing accident in 1997 to JFK Jr's plane crash in 1999. Despite it all, Senator Ted Kennedy champions progressive causes each and every day from universal health care to derailing the outrageous nomination of Judge Bork to the USSC to education reform (and even today in a moment of great personal crisis, Teddy is still at work trying to help the world.) Despite it all, despite losing her brother and father and mother and uncle early, Caroline Kennedy has always been there. She never withdrew from public life the way Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis did. From speeking at DNCs to profiles in courage to Kennedy center awards to various other humanitarian causes, she has given back to America in ways too numerous to mention. Always living by the motto "to whom much is given, much is expected." To them, there is a higher calling than just personal glory. It's time for America to give back to them once more.

What could possibly be better than President-Elect Obama restoring Camelot with his beautiful wife and lovely daughters over the next 8 years fulfilling the dreams that President Kennedy never was able to achieve followed by his daughter continuing on the restortion of Camelot in 2016 after an notable senate term filled with achievements. To some, Camelot is the glorification of the Kennedys. To me, Camelot was the last time that America truly had a sense of purpose and was on the right track. Before 1968 blew liberalism apart, Nixon corrupted the government in unimaginable ways before Reagan used his charisma to lead America down the wrong road.

I wasn't alive in 1963. Still a generation away from being born but I've always been fascinated by the Kennedys and the promise that they weren't able to fulfill. An appointment and election to the senate of Caroline Kennedy would go a long way to restoring that promise. Not only that. We stand 45 days away from a man with sweeping vision, with kindness, with charisma, with caring taking over the White House and beckoning a new dawn for America. What could be better than having the sole survivor of America's last dawn along with her uncle in the senate ushering in this new era.

It brings me to tears. Know hope America. Know Hope.

[Blu Dahlia]

1. too much lifetime TV? rofl

[Westegg]

2. Bullshit. Spare me...

...I'd say "Try harder next time," but this is obviously the limits of your ability.

[Drunken Irishman]

22. Not going to get into it.

[Westegg]

29. Just pointed out what to me was the obvious./NT

[olkaz]

33. No kidding, jesus christ. nm

[mtnsnake]

3. Beautiful beautiful post

and the nicest thing about it is you made a bunch of wonderful points without disparaging any other Democrats.

:thumbsup:

[WeDidIt]

4. There has been a Kennedy in the Senate since before JFK was killed

and Ted would probably like to see to it that tradition carries forward.

[Midlodemocrat]

5. This is a very nice post. Thank you.

:thumbsup:

I, too, am very fond of the Kennedys for many reasons. Politics and their philanthropy being just two.

[Uzybone]

6. K&R

Great post and all true. I don't think Caroline should be appointed to fill Hillarys seat but again then it wouldn't bother me one bit.

[nsd]

7. I admire the Kennedy family, but this is too much.

Three of the sacrifices you reference -- drug overdose, skiing accident, plane crash -- had nothing to do with America. They were the ordinary tragedies that lots of families suffer.

And there have been plenty of families who have lost loved ones in war or in other service, and who never got anything like the level of public recognition the Kennedys have. Let's keep some perspective.

[LostinVA]

19. Seriously

And, I'm tired of JFK getting all the kudos for race relations. That often boorish, probably racist man from Texas did a whole hell of alot.

I will say that the Kennedy women seem to be a whole hell of alot better than many of the Kennedy men in most ways.

[uppityperson]

8. Kennedys have gone through a lot, but I wouldn't say "NO family has EVER sacrificed or endured more"

Michael Kennedy's skiing accident had little to do with sacrificing for America. Nor did a drug overdose or plane crash. I don't think having bad things happen to people in a famous family makes any other member more fit for a political position.

Other than the hyperbole, I want people in positions because they are capable and right, not because of their ancestry.

[mtnsnake]

12. So what families do you think have sacrifed & endured more for America than the Kennedy's?

Mind naming some? :shrug:

[nsd]

15. I hesitate to respond because this shouldn't be a competition, but ...

how about the Sullivan brothers? They all enlisted after Pearl Harbor and served on the same ship that was sunk by a torpedo. Their parents then made speaking appearances to sell war bonds and to rally the public.

[LostinVA]

20. Watch "Flags of our Fathers," too

[mtnsnake]

21. You're right. It shouldn't be a competition

Unfortunately it seems that all too often people enjoy pitting 2 good Democrats against one another (not here, but in too many other threads) just to drive a wedge and create more division that we don't need. I am not referring to you or your post, BTW, just talking about this place in general.

Thank you for the example you gave, and I apologize for putting you on the spot.

[lynne]

42. Yep, Sullivan Brothers came to my mind - you beat me to it

[uppityperson]

17. Having a famous name and deaths due to OD, ski or plane accident doesn't = "for america"

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=7963453&mesg_id=7963507

There are unsung heroes all over. People making a mark on the country in many ways, not just nationally political with deaths.

[mtnsnake]

24. True

Sorry for putting you on the spot. I can get a little defensive about the Kennedy family sometimes.

[uppityperson]

34. I very much appreciate the family and like many of them.

I don't mean to downplay what any Kennedy, or as a group, has done. Just the "most" bit got me.

Turning point of childhood-adulthood was when Bobby got killed. Hearing it on the radio was the moment I knew I was no longer a child and the world was not sunshine rainbows if you tried hard enough.

[rvablue]

25. While I respect the Kennedys and understand they have had more than

their share of family tragedies, how does a tragic death on the ski slopes and the devastation of a fatal drug overdose equate with "sacrificing and enduring for America"????????????

:shrug:

[stray cat]

9. Many have sacrificed more with less in return - many unsung heros

never see any publicity or pay off for their lives and sacrifice. Never any disrespect for the Kennedys - they deserve better than over the top accolades that raise their sacrifices beyond that of others.

[mtnsnake]

14. And what families might that be?

Since you said "many", a few names ought to pop up right off the top of your head.

[Stand and Fight]

10. I think the Kennedys are great, but this is WAY OVER THE TOP.

ON EDIT TO ELABORATE:

Millions of Americans have given much of themselves and their families OUT of the public limelight without any of the very public actions of the Kennedys and they've never spoken a word about it. To elevate this family of privilege above millions of other families is sycophantic dribble to say the very least.

[WCGreen]

11. How about that WWII family that lost all eight children when one troop

ship went down...

Give me a break, the Kennedy's have proven to be fine and dandy rich folks, but everytime we lionize one of the folks at the top it stops one of the folks from the middle or the bottom of the ladder from attaining the heights to serve the country as well...

Remember, we just elected Obama over Clinton.

If I lived in New York I would be a little upset if Caroline Kennedy was selected as my senator. What about all the other folks toiling hard in the political arena, what we should dump them aside just because of a name. Appoint somebody and then let her earn it by running on her own in 2010.

[Stand and Fight]

13. Spot-on post!

You said it a heck of a lot nicer than I could have!

[LostinVA]

16. "Fighting Sullivans"

[AngryAmish]

28. beat me to it

[EFerrari]

18. I think giving three sons to a country is enough, myself. n/t

[peaches2003]

23. The Fighting Sullivans

My thoughts exactly. The Sullivans lost all 5 sons (not 8) at one time in WWII. The Kennedys have lost 3- one in WWII and two for political reasons. I would never compare one family's grief with another's, but certainly the Sullivan family's life was destroyed with such a tragic occurence. From that time on brothers have never been allowed to serve in the same unit. For those who have never seen the movie, it is well worth renting.

[derby378]

26. Well said

Rebuilding a national sense of purpose is fine. Placing one particular family at its nucleus is, dare I say it, dangerous.

[TreasonousBastard]

27. Ol' Joe Kennedy shure enough sacrificed a lot in his..

war on Prohibition.

And Rose? Well, I know this poor woman who was new at her job at Waterford and almost got fired because Rose threw a fit when a bill was presented.

"We're the Kennedys. We don't pay for Waterford."

And it wasn't so long ago people ended up dead with big arrows pointing that way.

OK, so even the gods have their bad days and every fortune has some very unsavory things about it if you turn over all the rocks. And the Kennedys, like the Rockefellers, have done some very good things over the years.

But, deifying them? Installing them as a political dynasty? Bigger war heroes than that Republican reprobate Eisenhower?

Gimme a break.

[cali]

30. adulation makes me ill.

and there never was a Camelot.

[H2O Man]

31. Well said.

Nominated.

[leftstreet]

32. This thread is an epic fail

[Forkboy]

38. I don't get that pic.

Judging from the dart on the kid's head I don't see how this can be considered failure. :D

[Waiting For Everyman]

35. I agree with you, and I remember 1963 very well.

And you're right... no other family has endured TWO assassinations in our political arena. NONE. ZERO.

I agree on all points, and I couldn't imagine a better Senator for New York than Caroline Kennedy. She's a serious and talented person. I'm only surprised that such a good idea is actually happening.
Bamelot it is! :fistbump:

(And btw to OP slammers, cynicism is stupid.)

[mitchum]

36. Another "Kennedy tragedy" you left out was when that SOB Joe Sr had...

Rosemary lobotomized mere;y because she was...acting like the Kennedy boys

This American Royalty nonsense has to end

[Retrograde]

37. What is it about the Kennedy "mystique"?

Why all the adulation? Yes, they served the country, but so did a lot of other people, most of which didn't have the family or connections. So why the ongoing Kennedy worship?

I'm old enough to remember the Kennedy presidency, and the assassination. I think JFK was an average president, but nothing special. The unfulfilled promise I see is more Bay of Pigs type brinkmanship with the Soviet Union, slow progress towards civil rights, and the same quagmire in Vietnam that Johnson faced. Better clothes, though, and more glamour in the White House, but in the end I think Camelot was a pretty fiction.

[mtnsnake]

39. That just pisses me off

That's all I can say.

[LostinVA]

41. And Michael Kennedy's death was tragic for some of his family, but he was a sexual offender

Kick Kennedy's death was also tragic, but my wife knows two people who died at the WTC on 9/11.

[pecwae]

45. "most of which didn't have the family or connections"

or the money. The Camelot bullshit is just that.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

40. That's for damn sure!

[AllentownJake]

43. Umm I love the Kennedy's and all

but there are families that have sacrificed more...there are families in WWII and the Civil War that were entirely wiped out.

[Autumn]

44. I really like the Kennedy's but

"No family has ever sacrificed or endured more for America than the Kennedys" I have to disagree.

[pecwae]

46. Kennedy was a politician

from a family of politicians.

A new career in romance novels awaits you.

[Grateful for Hope]

47. I agree that the family has suffered a lot

I don't know about "most", but, I was thinking about the JFK assassination today. I am old enough to remember being glued to the TV for days during the aftermath.

I was thinking that, whether or not people agreed with the policies of JFK, he WAS our president, and he was murdered in cold blood while serving our country in a very, very demanding position.

Caroline was five when this happened. Not only was her father taken from her, but, the home she knew since the age of two was also taken from her. And, unlike other families who suffer personal tragedies, she was put "on stage" during the funeral activities because, after all, this was our President.

Fast forward nearly four years. Her Uncle Bobby, who was known to have taken his niece and nephew under his wing so as to provide a "father figure", was taken from her in much the same way as her father had been.

I know many of us have suffered tragedy in our lives (I am certainly no exception), but, I tend to think that her appointment to the NY Senate may, in some way, provide her with some poetic justice.

Most important, however, is that, from what I know of her, she would make a highly competent senator for my state.

[Politics_Guy25]

48. There is a reason that DNCs are ELECTRIFIED by the Kennedys

And also I think that Time Magazine had it 100% correct. What ended in 1968 with riots and chaos in Grant Park was reborn on November 4, 2008 with President-Elect Obama's victory speech in Grant Park. For the first time since the Kennedy era, liberalism is on the march once again.

[qwlauren35]

49. MLK's family has sacrificed more. Really.

Right after MLK was shot, his brother was found dead in a pool. Later, someone shot his mother, in church.

I think you just don't know everyone's story.