No. Just remembering basic high-school physics. Lightning rods are pointy at the end because that shape creates a magnetic field which dissipates any electric charge in the ground, thus preventing lightning (which is essentially a rapid closing of a static-electric circuit between charged clouds and opposite-charged ground). If you want a lightning rod to attract lightning, you should cap it with a globe like the one on top of a van der Graaf generator; that shape holds a charge until it builds up to the spark-gap point.
The (decidedly right-wing) Daily Mail wrote a damning critique of the decision to grant Ted Kennedy an honorary knighthood back in March, on the basis of his IRA sympathies.
Some his early statements and actions regarding Northern Ireland certainly colour my judgment of the man more definitely that the uncertainties of the Chappaquiddick incident; where given the available facts he didn’t exemplify himself either.
Not true. Whilst they are not designed to ‘attract’ lightening, they are designed to carry the current safely to Earth when strikes occur. The strike would occur either in a rod’s presence/absence, but where absent it may pass through a higher resistance and potentially inflammable material, causing problems.
Someone get a rope.
Really, it does a deep disservice to Ted Kennedy to reduce his life to Chappaquiddick. It obscures much more than it reveals–and it does that to the good and bad parts of his life alike. To treat his story as “Chappaquiddick + years of liberal lion” really doesn’t even come close to telling his story.
Senator Kennedy had a rocky, dark personal life from before he entered politics until many decades after Chappaquiddick. He was always in the shadow of his two younger brothers, and his family always viewed him as the f-up of the brothers. They had served their country in the darkness of the Forties, with the oldest sacrificing his life; Ted only enrolled in the military after he got kicked out of Harvard for having a friend take a Spanish final for him. And he was in effect gifted his Senate seat over other politicians far more accomplished and deserving than himself. And even with the seat, up through the Eighties his self-destructive carousing and womanizing continued unabated, exceeding even the typical standards of politicians and his brothers.
Despite that, he held steadfast to the star of the Kennedy family, a noblesse oblige realized through unending dedication to public service and standing up for the voiceless when few others would. And in the end he exceeded most statesmen’s contributions to the world. Ironically, the screw up had surpassed each of his brothers.
Longevity certainly played a role. But there’s a romance in his maturation and life. I don’t think it’s proper to judge whether or not he made up for his past; from my faith, I believe that only one being truly has the ability to know Ted Kennedy and whether he redeemed himself. As individuals as limited in perspective as we are, we really have no insight into the depths of Teddy’s soul.
I like to believe that Ted’s flaws drove him toward greatness. With that kind of moral darkness weighing down your soul, it is very hard to be holier-than-thou; perhaps that is part of what gave him the humility and inner strength to work with others, even those who otherwise were most opposed to his principles? It’s a thought.
Of all the tales of Ted Kennedy I’ve read today, this is the one that most stands out most to me.
After having lived out a life filled with tragedy and darkness, Senator Edward Kennedy deserves if nothing else our understanding, and I for one hope he found peace in his later years.
It may well pass now in part because of his death. If it does, there will be no question that he did play a part in achieving it.
Is there any word about how Senator Byrd is doing? He was ill before in response to Teddy’s illness.
That’s the closest anyone has come to bridging the gap between Kennedy the drunken womanizer and Kennedy the seasoned politician. There were a number of people, starting with Biden who testified that Kennedy called them regularly during times of personal tragedy. He may have gotten religion after all, having carried the weight of his guilt all those years.
i think a lot had to do with wife victoria. he steadied out quite a lot after their marriage. it seems to be one of those marriages that brings out the best in the people involved.
one story that i saw on cnn was that when he went to the ussr he worked to get a family out of the ussr. the daughter was failing and needed to get to the us for treatment. (kinda cracked me up that the parents names are boris and natalia. natasha is the usual nic. for natalia) he was able to facilitate their leaving the ussr a few months after his meeting with the pm at the time.
the daughter recieved the treatment she needed is 30ish now and works with the homeless.
No call came because Kennedy, having saved himself, assured his two friends that he would contact the authorities. He then went back to his hotel, made a weak-ass attempt to establish an alibi and went to bed! He didn’t call the police.
Let me just repeat that penultimate phrase. He went to bed. Let me just stress it to make sure it stands out for all the Kennedy idolaters here. He went to bed.
Kopechne at that same moment was in all likelihood desperately trying to catch a breath from the little air that remained, praying that Mr Kennedy would soon bring help. But that sorry excuse for a human being was sleeping peacefully by then.
But surely he was young and foolish, later years would bring remorse and wisdom? Twenty five years later a campaigning Kennedy, under pressure to make a statement on Chappaquiddick, spoke of his deep regret and how he had apologized to Kopechne’s parents and his own family.
He was lying through his teeth. He had made no apology to the Kopechnes, as they later made clear to the press. He never did make such an apology. I’m quite sure that Kennedy thought the Kopechnes should apologize to him for their daughter having cost him the Presidency.
I hope he rots in Hell.
I was not a fan of many of his positions. However, I obtained my green card as a direct result of his immigration bills.
That said, I do find the white washing (and it is white washing) of the Chappaquiddick incident to be very disturbing. We all make mistakes (let’s hope none of our mistakes result in someone dying) but part of being forgiven for making a misake is atoning for the mistake.
Kennedy never did this. No matter what he did subsequently I think that his reputation is forever and irreparably tarnished.
Yeah, I think we got that the other 8 or 10 times you have posted similar sentiments in the past day or two. But be sure to say it a few times more, as some of us may still not be aware of your position.
Anyway, so far as I know there is no such thing as Hell, so you may be disappointed there. On the other hand, it’s fairly certain some rot will be involved, as will be, eventually, for us all.
I could hardly give less of a shit about the Chappa-whatever thing. He accidentally, maybe negligently, killed a woman. Life goes on.
I do care about his vocal support for Irish republicanism, which was no accident and very definitely resulted in the death of innocents.
Sure be nice to see that discussed at length in something other than the Torygraph. Like the AP, for instance, now a Republican partisan outfit editorially fwiw:
Is that an accurate summation?
I never saw Kennedy as even a tacit supporter of the Provisionals. He clearly was pro-nationalist but I do not believe any of his actions in this regard caused the deaths of anyone. He was committed to Irish causes and did a lot of good for the “peace
process”.
Elvis1ives that is an accurate summation.
So you’re wrong there Really Not all that Bright but I do find it interesting that you dismiss his direct causal connection to someone’s death (it was more than just negligence) and then try and create culpability based on actions taken by others that Kennedy clearly didn’t approve of.
You cannot dismiss his political support for pro-nationalism with a hand wave because he later involved himself in the peace process.
By giving his name to the cause he certainly drew American dollars toward the conflict.
Hardly disappointed, as I’m an atheist. It’s an expression, you may have heard it before, people generally don’t take it literally. As someone who professes disbelief in the place it rather surprises me that you did.
BTW I have the perfect solution for you if, as you intimate, you are tiring of my Kennedy posts. Don’t read them.
One foot in the grave and the other on a greased-up banana peel. However, the WV Governor has the power to appoint an interem replacement and the Gov. is a Democrat, though a pretty conservative one.
Being term-limited, he is almost certain to run for Byrd’s seat in 2012. Should (read: when) something happens to Byrd, it is not out of the question for him to appoint himself to the seat
OK. so you hope he theoretically rots in a place that you know doesn’t exist. I’m a bit baffled as to why you’d take the time to type all that out, but whatever.
And yes, I am tiring somewhat of your posts, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t deserving of occasional comment.