September 1, 2009--Ladies of Forest Trace: Teddy Kennedy

“All weekend long, it was Teddy Kennedy, Teddy Kennedy, Teddy Kennedy.” It was my 101 year-old mother on the phone from her home at the Forest Trace retirement community. “Not just on TV, but also in the dining room here. All the girls wanted to talk about were the Kennedys.”

“It’s understandable. As everyone was saying, not only did he die too young but also it was the end of an era.”

“That’s part of what was upsetting me.”

“About him? Or the Kennedys? I’m not following you.”

“Be a little patient and let me get to my point.”

“Sorry. You’re right. I need to give you a little time.”

“And stop treating me like an old lady. I may be old but I’m not that old!”

“Sorry. You’re right. As you keep telling me, ‘Age is just a number.’” In truth, in her case, it’s also the result of a lot of good doctoring and, even more, good fortune.

“About him, Teddy. Or Ted. I can’t figure out what his name was.”

“Well, both I think. It depends on who’s talking about him.”

“But that’s not important. What is important are all the things I learned about him. The girls can’t forgive him for that Chappachipmunk business.” I choose not to correct her malaprop for fear that she would chastise me again for treating her like someone who has lost some of her marbles, which she very decidedly hasn’t. “And for all his drinking and womanizing, which was of course terrible and inexcusable; but from what they said about him on CNN he overcame that and became a remarkable senator.”

“I agree with that.”

“And I kept trying to tell the ladies that they wouldn’t have their beloved Medicare if it wasn’t for him and their grandchildren might not have been able to pay for college if it wasn’t for him and that millions of poor children wouldn’t have healthcare if he hadn’t taken the lead to pass those laws. But all most of them wanted to talk about was the drugs his children took and his cousin or nephew who raped that girl in Cape Cod.”

“He was found to be innocent at his trial for that.”

“Yes, that’s so; but his Uncle Ted or Teddy was out in a bar and grill drinking with him that night. Isn’t that true? What kind of a thing is that for a grown man to be doing with his nephew?”

“Nothing good. I admit that.”

“But this is exactly my point—how we are talking about him. As if that was all he was. A spoiled, rich boy in a man’s body. And I understand all the tragedies he had to endure. All his brothers were killed and even some of his sisters. And look what happened to his wonderful mother? Poor thing. With that husband of hers. But that still is no excuse for him behaving the way he did. But again—will you listen to me—I’m doing exactly what I got fed up with the TV doing and about what most of the girls wanted to talk about. Too much gossiping about this part of his life.”

“And, what did you say to your friends?”

“I asked them why when we talk about Thomas Jefferson—but to tell you the truth we never do—why do we talk about the Declaration of Independence and all the good things he did when he was president? Why don’t we talk only about all the slaves he owned and that business with Sally whatever-her-name-was?”

“Hemmings.”

“Yes her. Not that I’m comparing the two of them. Why don’t we talk about all the babies he had with her? No, that only came up recently when everyone in his family had a reunion or something. It wasn’t in the headlines forever. Not like with Teddy Kennedy. Especially if you watched that Fox. And what about Franklin Roosevelt and his girlfriends and which president was it who had an illegitimate child?”

“Harding, I think.”

“Yes him. We now know all of these things but they are only a part of the story. Not the main part. I heard someone say that when Bill Clinton dies Monica Lewinsky will be mentioned in the first paragraph of his obituary. Like Nixon and Watergate. Shouldn’t China be in the first paragraph? What’s more important—Watergate or China?”

She paused for a moment to give me a chance to respond. “I see I have given you something to think about.”

“Always.” Which is true.

“One of our problems now is how the news is given to us. Everything has to be about sex and crimes and scandals. Why is this so? Are they afraid that if they talk to us like adults we’ll switch the channel? Is it all about that? Being afraid that we won’t watch or listen if they talk about important things?”

“I think you’re right. It’s all about ratings. They know that people slow down to watch traffic accidents. True, some will get out of their cars to help, but most of us can’t take our eyes off the wrecked cars.”

“My point exactly. And this is dangerous. We have many, many problems here and overseas and we have to deal with them as serious people. Not as people who only want to be entertained. Yes, we need our distractions, but we also need to be informed.”

“I couldn’t agree with you more. But, as you were saying, in addition to Chappaquiddick, they also told us a lot about Senator Kennedy’s accomplishments. You mentioned that you pointed this out to your friends at dinner.”

“Yes, I did. And I hope some of it got through to them. As I told you I told them, they and their families have been his beneficiaries. Not that he did these things on his own. But he was a leader for these causes. So the full story was quite a story. But,” she continued, quickly shifting gears, “there is something else that the television did that I disagree with.”

“What’s that, mom?”

“About this end-of-an-era business.”

“Go on.”

“Be patient. I’m getting to it.”

“Good.”

“I don’t think that’s true.”

“What’s that?”

“Are you again in a rush to run off the phone?”

“No, I’m fine on time.”

“So just try to keep quiet for another minute.” I took a deep breath. “That era didn’t end with his death.”

“We’ll, he was the last of the . . .” As the words tumbled out of my mouth I realized I should just shut up and let her tell the story in her own way.

Ignoring my interruption, she continued, “Yes, he was the last of the male Kennedys of his generation, and that is part of the story, but only a part. The era of the Kennedys, really the era that began much earlier with Roosevelt, that they were a part of, that ended a long time ago. A time when we cared about the poor and the elderly and children, that era came to an end much earlier than now with this Kennedy.”

“Tell me more mom. I sense where you’re going with this but I want to be sure before saying anything.”

“That would be a first.” Before I could say anything she laughed and reassured me that she was just having a little fun with me. “I mean that that era came to an end when that actor Ronald Reagan was elected. It was then that he and his cohorts, including many Democrats it grieves me to say, began to take everything apart. What the other presidents did.”

“You mean the New Deal of FDR and the Fair Deal of Truman and . . .”

“And yes whatever it was, I forget, that that Lyndon Johnstone did.”

“The War On Poverty. Or Kennedy’s New Frontier.”

“Yes, all of those New things and those Deals. When they began to cut the rich people’s taxes and changed welfare, which maybe wasn’t entirely a bad thing, that’s when that era ended. Not this past weekend.”

“I see your point and think it’s a good one.”

“So why didn’t we hear more about that on TV?”

“There was I think some of this.”

“But not enough. People have to know the truth. I suppose that’s really my point. That we’re entitled to know the truth. No matter how painful it is. Then they can entertain us!”