# Why Is Ted kennedy being Deified? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [May 23, 2008, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372 "2008-05-23T16:05:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2008, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/21 "2008-05-23T19:25:01Z")
[QUOTE=ralph124c] I wish we had a government where: -every senator HAD to have a Ph.D in engineering or science -representatives had to have worked as engineers, scientists, or medical doctors ( or senior managers) Then we would have some intelligence in governmnet, and sensible decisions 9free of the lawyer/hucksters/kennedy-types! [/QUOTE] Better still, how about an R&D department staffed entirely with lawyers, economists and political scientists? ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2008, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/22 "2008-05-23T20:38:39Z")
> [@F. Scott Fitzgerald](#): > > They were careless people, Tom and Daisy – they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made. I don’t see how it applies to Ted Kennedy, aside from one instance from the summer of 1969. But the applicability of this quote to _another_ political figure…well, you get the idea. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![sqweels](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f19dbf/32.png) [@sqweels](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sqweels)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2008, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/23 "2008-05-23T20:54:13Z")
[QUOTE=ralph124c] That’s the point i’m trying to make-GROW UP, PEOPLE! The Kennedy family are NOT saints; they have generated a mythology (“camelot”) which was never true. [/quote] Since Ted emerged as patriarch, the backlash against the Kennedy mythos has if anything been the stronger. He was destined to rise no higher than senator, but he’s treated as though he’s perpetually the Democratic candidate for president. > [@](#): > > Then we would have some intelligence in governmnet, and sensible decisions 9free of the lawyer/hucksters/kennedy-types! So there’s 3 kinds of bad people in the world: Lawyers, hucksters and Kennedys. Kennedys represent a whole category of bad person unto themselves. ---
**Author:** ![Mosier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ea924/32.png) [@Mosier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mosier)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2008, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/24 "2008-05-23T20:54:42Z")
[QUOTE=Fear Itself] Then why did so many conservative Republicans co-sponsor legislation with him? Surely their superior morality would prevent them from conspiring with such a poor example of humanity? [/QUOTE] I deal with evil people every day, and so do you. Why should legislators be any different? ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2008, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/25 "2008-05-23T21:00:28Z")
[QUOTE=5-4-Fighting] At least nobody went over the top with the deification when Diana died. [/QUOTE] If you’re suggesting that Ted’s ruddy mug will still be glowing out at us from checkout magazine racks a decade from now, I fear I shall have to kill myself forthwith. ---
**Author:** ![Orbifold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/779978/32.png) [@Orbifold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orbifold)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2008, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/26 "2008-05-23T23:00:41Z")
[QUOTE=ralph124c] I wish we had a government where: -every senator HAD to have a Ph.D in engineering or science -representatives had to have worked as engineers, scientists, or medical doctors ( or senior managers) Then we would have some intelligence in governmnet, and sensible decisions 9free of the lawyer/hucksters/kennedy-types! [/QUOTE] Dude, I have a PhD. I spend my working life surrounded by people with PhD’s like you describe. They are brilliant people, deserving of what they have achieved, but there is no reason to assume they would make better leaders than the people in government now. There’s no reason to assume they would make worse leaders than the people we have now, either. But academic training hasn’t got anything more or less to do with effective leadership and moral sensibility than legal training, veterinary training, or carpentry training. (Do I wish our current leaders _listened_ more to people with academic training? Yes, because that would be a sign of leaders who recognize when they’re out of their zone of expertise, and sweet googly moogly would that be a good thing. But academics are also capable of being out of their zone of expertise.) About the Ted Kennedy thing: he’s served his country in government for a long time, and his family has sacrificed…_literally_…a great deal in the service of their country. Some respect for that is due, if nothing else. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2008, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/27 "2008-05-23T23:19:09Z")
[QUOTE=Mosier] I deal with evil people every day, and so do you. Why should legislators be any different? [/QUOTE] Yes, but the point is that there seem to be quite a number of Republicans who not only work with Kennedy, but appear to respect and like him. Do you respect and like the evil people you work with? Because if you do, I would think that that would tend to make your coworkers not evil. ---
**Author:** ![Mosier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ea924/32.png) [@Mosier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mosier)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2008, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/28 "2008-05-23T23:56:30Z")
[QUOTE=Ravenman] Yes, but the point is that there seem to be quite a number of Republicans who not only work with Kennedy, but appear to respect and like him. Do you respect and like the evil people you work with? Because if you do, I would think that that would tend to make your coworkers not evil. [/QUOTE] I don’t care whether Republicans respect and admire him. Plenty of evil people are respected and admired. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/29 "2008-05-24T00:04:32Z")
[QUOTE=Mosier] Plenty of evil people are respected and admired. [/QUOTE] By their opponents? Why don’t you provide me a sampling of these widely recognized evil people and the names of several of their opponents with whom they share a friendship? (BTW, I said respected and _liked_.) ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/30 "2008-05-24T02:18:18Z")
> [@](#): > > He was destined to rise no higher than senator, but he’s treated as though he’s perpetually the Democratic candidate for president. Is this a joke? Who’s considered Kennedy to be a possible Presidential candidate in the last twenty-five years? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/31 "2008-05-24T02:20:14Z")
> [@](#): > > Plenty of evil people are respected and admired. Calling Ted Kennedy evil is debasing the word. At worst, he’s an elected career politician whose policies were wrong. ---
**Author:** ![5\_time\_champ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/278dde/32.png) [@5\_time\_champ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5_time_champ)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/32 "2008-05-24T02:35:25Z")
[QUOTE=42fish] Because the presidency of nuclear engineer James Earl Carter was a high point of American history. [/QUOTE] Hmm- I always thought it was the Hoover Administration. ---
**Author:** ![Governor\_Quinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d26b3c/32.png) [@Governor\_Quinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Governor_Quinn)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/33 "2008-05-24T03:23:21Z")
[QUOTE=ralph124c] I wish we had a government where: -every senator HAD to have a Ph.D in engineering or science -representatives had to have worked as engineers, scientists, or medical doctors ( or senior managers) [/QUOTE] Continuing the hijack: Ever read about how Woodrow Wilson and Henry Cabot Lodge interacted with each other? A Senate filled with academics, if my experience is representative, would result in that situation, expanded to an extreme amount. (Mind you, I’m planning on being one, so this isn’t contempt for contempt’s sake.) In addition, maybe this is just me, but, if you limit the candidate field to people in certain occupational fields, don’t you risk having a government dominated by the leading interest groups in that field? Assuming that I’ve understood your limits correctly, we could be in a situation where the AMA, the IFPTE, and the various unions representing university professors end up with a huge amount of pull. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/34 "2008-05-24T04:43:11Z")
[QUOTE=ralph124c] I wish we had a government where: -every senator HAD to have a Ph.D in engineering or science -representatives had to have worked as engineers, scientists, or medical doctors ( or senior managers) Then we would have some intelligence in governmnet, and sensible decisions 9free of the lawyer/hucksters/kennedy-types! [/QUOTE] Then you should immigrate to China. Technocrats rule, baby. :o ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/35 "2008-05-24T06:36:25Z")
I don’t think he’s deified. I think he’s a senior senator that gets re-elected from Camelot legacy name recognition and a job well done. By default, his fellow legislators are required to sing his praises during these sobering moments of crisis. I hope he gets the opportunity to spend a great many years in retirement where he can reflect on his past accomplishments and enjoy the glory of his youth. I’d be curious to know if he’s planned on a burial at sea. Nantucket wouldn’t be the same without his presence. ---
**Author:** ![Mosier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ea924/32.png) [@Mosier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mosier)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/36 "2008-05-24T07:01:09Z")
[QUOTE=Little Nemo] Calling Ted Kennedy evil is debasing the word. At worst, he’s an elected career politician whose policies were wrong. [/QUOTE] I don’t think his political agenda is evil, I think the man himself is. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/37 "2008-05-24T14:24:56Z")
Kennedy only had 2 brothers assassinated in American politics. He has spent a lifetime being on the side of the poor or middle class. He has been an active legislator for many years. There is much to like about him. When people die or it seems they will soon ,many look past their warts and see the good they have done. Even Reagan and the place filling Ford were treated as heroes. ---
**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/38 "2008-05-24T15:35:16Z")
[QUOTE=gonzomax] Kennedy only had 2 brothers assassinated in American politics. He has spent a lifetime being on the side of the poor or middle class. He has been an active legislator for many years. There is much to like about him. [/QUOTE] Those of us with Mentally Retarded family members are especially fond of the Kennedys and all they have done for The Special Olympics. If you go to a meet you can’t swing a dead cat without hitting a member of the Kennedy clan quietly working behind the scenes. I don’t think there is another family in American history that has devoted as much time to public service and paid such a high price. Wish this was the pit so I could tell you Kennedy haters what I really think. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/39 "2008-05-24T15:55:42Z")
[QUOTE=DanBlather] Those of us with Mentally Retarded family members are especially fond of the Kennedys and all they have done for The Special Olympics. If you go to a meet you can’t swing a dead cat without hitting a member of the Kennedy clan quietly working behind the scenes. I don’t think there is another family in American history that has devoted as much time to public service and paid such a high price. Wish this was the pit so I could tell you Kennedy haters what I really think. [/QUOTE] Don’t forget women’s rights. Ted Kennedy never gets the credit he deserves for his undying support of those in need. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372/40 "2008-05-24T16:07:03Z")
> [@](#): > > I don’t think his political agenda is evil, I think the man himself is. This is about the deathcamps isn’t it? Okay, sure, there were a million Rhode Islanders killed during the Greater Massachusetts movement. Nobody’s denying this. But it was back in seventies and nobody’s ever proven that the squads were acting on Kennedy’s orders. He was found not guilty in Brussels. Just let it go. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-ted-kennedy-being-deified/450372.md?page=3)