Did I like Teddy Kennedy? Yes. I liked Teddy Kennedy. He was personable, friendly, eloquent, driven and very intelligent.

He was the champion of the underdog, fighting for such things as women’s rights, civil rights, health care and minimum wage laws.

He knew how to “reach across the aisle” and work with folks who were diametrically opposed to his political belief, and not only would he come away with compromises that would please both sides, but he also made lasting friendships with these people in the meantime.

Staunch Republican conservatives like Orrin Hatch, Mitt Romney and George W. Bush considered Ted Kennedy to be a respected rival and a good friend, and he worked hand-in-hand with them to forge countless pieces of good legislation.

I often wonder what Ted Kennedy got out of standing up for the downtrodden. Was somebody lining  his pockets? Come on! He was a Kennedy! He already had more money than he knew what to do with!

Was it power? He came from the most powerful political family in the U.S. How much more power could he attain than what he got from his birthright?

So then, what was his pay-off? He didn’t need the bills and the laws for which he fought so hard. He wasn’t a woman. He wasn’t a minority. He wasn’t poor. Whether women and people of color obtained equal rights would have no bearing on his life one bit.  Why would he care about making medical care affordable to all? He was a Kennedy! He didn’t have to worry about the cost of health care.

The same with the minimum wage laws for which he constantly fought.  He never worked in a McDonald’s or a Walmart in his life.

So what did this incredibly wealthy man get out of fighting for the people who needed his help?

I’ll leave that up to you to decide.

Was Teddy perfect? Nope. He LOVED to drink and to party. That is a flaw? If so, then I will go and stand in the same line with him. I enjoy a good party, and, as most of you who know me or read my posts on a regular basis know, I too have been known to imbibe in the “fruit of the vine” on a fairly regular basis. (When I walk into The Main Street Brew Pub in Willimantic, CT, I feel like Norm walking into Cheers; everybody knows my name!)

There was, as Mr. Rush Limbaugh has pointed out repeatedly over the past few days, the incident with the death of Mary Jo Kopeckne.

I’ve visited the narrow bridge on Chappaquiddick that was the scene of the accident. I’ve looked down from that bridge into the waters below and thought about Mary Jo drowning down there.

Was it an accident? I would assume so. There has never been any evidence to prove otherwise. Was Ted guilty? Yes. Driving under the influence is against the law. Because of his negligence, an innocent person lost her life.

We all make mistakes, do we not? Granted, most of us make mistakes that don’t have such grave consequences.  But I’ll tell you this; there have been more than a few times in my youth when I’ve driven home from parties, and I have absolutely no recollection at all of doing it. The fact that I didn’t kill somebody when driving when drunk or stoned out of my mind can only be chalked up to the grace of God.

I sometimes wish, when Mr. Limbaugh constantly brings up the Chappaquiddick incident, that somebody would begin reminding everybody about what a hypocrite he is. Here is a man who, for years, railed against drug abusers and law-breakers. Can you say, “oxycontin”, Mr. Limbaugh?

Mr. Limbaugh has admitted that he made a mistake. Mr. Kennedy admitted the same thing. Would Mr. Limbaugh appreciate it if people continually questioned his drug abuse, and did it incessantly for the next forty years?

I understand why people like Rush dislike people like Teddy. They are polar opposites. One is a staunch conservative; the other was a flaming liberal. One does what he does for the sole purpose of making A TON of money; the other didn’t need any more money, and did it for other more altruistic reasons. One looks for monetary gain by dividing people with incendiary distortions and half-truths, pandering to people’s fears and prejudices; the other spent his life reaching across to the other side and making friends while trying to do good for people other than himself. As I said at the beginning of this post, I liked Teddy. I not only liked him, but I admired him.

The liberal lion of the senate will be sorely missed.