Ronald Reagan, RIP
Just heard the news that President Reagan died today at age 93, after suffering for at least 10 heartbreaking years with Alzheimer's Disease. Having lost my own grandmother to this awful condition in 2002, I have great sympathy for Nancy and those around him, and recognize that they must greet the somber occasion of his passing with a mixture of sadness and relief that his suffering is over. Reagan's condition also robbed the country of what would have been one of the most fascinating ex-Presidencies in American history, and one can't help but wonder how the influence of an alert and lucid Reagan as the revered elder statesman of the Republican Party would have affected events of the recent past - particularly the Clinton impeachment and the nomination of G.W. Bush in 2000, rather than solid Reaganite John McCain.
I was never a fan of Reagan when he was President and won't pretend praise for his politics or administration now that he's gone. He was, however, the defining political figure of my adolescence and the shaper of American culture during the most important years of my social and intellectual development. He is beloved by many of my fellow citizens and accomplished much - for good and for ill - in his lifetime. Respect is due the man for a full life of service and contribution to his country, and sympathy due to his family for the hardships they've suffered over the past decade.
3:56:19 PM 
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