Charles Krauthammer, MD may he RIP

Mosin

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Mar 11, 2012
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There are two certainties:

1) This is the Internet where there are no shortages of opinion.
2) If the Internet makes your blood pressure rise, maybe you should consider getting a life.

I was in my advanced years before I realized that anyone who can raise my blood pressure is only an extra in the movie. :D
 

Ron Resnick

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+1.

a class act and oasis of civility which will be missed.

A big +1. I feel that the country has lost a unique and eloquent voice and view which we simply could not afford to lose.

I have never before been so upset to learn of the death of someone I did not know personally.
 

Ron Resnick

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And you know all of this---how??:confused:

By the accounts of people on all points on the political spectrum who worked with him or who knew him personally.
 

Ron Resnick

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. . . We don’t have to get into politics to recognize great people, artists, writers etc contributions to society when they are deserved.

I agree with this for the moment. But KeithR and DaveyF have a very fair concern.

So please let’s be sure to stay far away from politics on this thread, and focus only on Charles, the man.
 

DaveyF

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A big +1. I feel that the country has lost a unique and eloquent voice and view which we simply could afford to lose.

I have never before been so upset to learn of the death of someone I did not know personally.

“Could afford to lose”...?? :confused: Or—couldn’t afford to lose with the apostrophe, lol.:rolleyes:
 

Ron Resnick

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It is coming from the tributes to him written by people on all different points on the political spectrum.
 

Ron Resnick

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“Could afford to lose”...?? Or—couldn’t afford to lose with the apostrophe, lol.:rolleyes:

My typo. I am sorry. I meant could not afford to lose. (I inadvertently woke up in the middle of the night, and saw this thread, so I was careless.)
 

Ron Resnick

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I agree with this for the moment. But KeithR and DaveyF have a very fair concern.

So please let’s be sure to stay far away from politics on this thread, and focus only on Charles, the man.

DaveyF added
 

Priaptor

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Incidentally on a music front Dr. K and his wife founded a charitable foundation, Pro Music Hebraica, to bring classical Jewish music outside the Synagogue.
 

Bobvin

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I have great respect for Dr. K even though I did not always agree with his opinions. His opinions always came with significant forethought of history, the current state of the world, and morality.

I have always been struck by the fact Antonin Scalia and Ruth Bader Ginsburg where close and dear friends... there is a lesson there for us all I think.
 

dminches

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Oct 22, 2011
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I have great respect for Dr. K even though I did not always agree with his opinions. His opinions always came with significant forethought of history, the current state of the world, and morality.

I have always been struck by the fact Antonin Scalia and Ruth Bader Ginsburg where close and dear friends... there is a lesson there for us all I think.

I think the lesson is that it starts at the core. If someone exhibits integrity and honesty then their opinions should be listened to even if one doesn't agree. But the minute someone shows themselves to lack those qualities then their opinions cannot be trusted since they are likely being used to achieve personal gains and power. JMO, of course.

I have been reading and listening to a lot of what CK had to say over the years. His positions were never consistently aligned with one group. They spanned the gamut of ideologies.
 

Priaptor

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I think the lesson is that it starts at the core. If someone exhibits integrity and honesty then their opinions should be listened to even if one doesn't agree. But the minute someone shows themselves to lack those qualities then their opinions cannot be trusted since they are likely being used to achieve personal gains and power. JMO, of course.

I have been reading and listening to a lot of what CK had to say over the years. His positions were never consistently aligned with one group. They spanned the gamut of ideologies.

As a very Conservative person, I too didn't agree with many of his positions but had the ultimate respect for the man and always enjoyed listening to him and reading his pieces
 

PeterA

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It's not my opinion that he was a pundit. Here's the opening line from the Washington Post's obit:

"Charles Krauthammer, a Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post columnist and intellectual provocateur who championed the muscular foreign policy of neoconservatism that helped lay the ideological groundwork for the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, died June 21 at 68."

Yes. Here is another opinion from the Wall Street Journal:

By The Editorial Board
June 22, 2018 6:45 p.m. ET
Many people in recent weeks have praised the character and contributions to American public life of Charles Krauthammer, who died Thursday at age 68. But allow us to add a few words about the way he thought and argued as a journalist because our republic could use more like him.


Perhaps it is possible that he was both a pundit and a journalist. People certainly listened to him and respected the man and what he had to say.
 

Pb Blimp

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Yes. Here is another opinion from the Wall Street Journal:

By The Editorial Board
June 22, 2018 6:45 p.m. ET
Many people in recent weeks have praised the character and contributions to American public life of Charles Krauthammer, who died Thursday at age 68. But allow us to add a few words about the way he thought and argued as a journalist because our republic could use more like him.


Perhaps it is possible that he was both a pundit and a journalist. People certainly listened to him and respected the man and what he had to say.

Agreed Peter. Regardless of your philosophical bent, it saddens me to think that we are unable to honor the passing of a person whom, IMO, was a highly ethical and honorable American without people being petty on the political front. For goodness sake the man has died; some of these comments go to the root of what is haunting our nation. I see very dark clouds on the horizon.
 

Priaptor

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Yes. Here is another opinion from the Wall Street Journal:

By The Editorial Board
June 22, 2018 6:45 p.m. ET
Many people in recent weeks have praised the character and contributions to American public life of Charles Krauthammer, who died Thursday at age 68. But allow us to add a few words about the way he thought and argued as a journalist because our republic could use more like him.


Perhaps it is possible that he was both a pundit and a journalist. People certainly listened to him and respected the man and what he had to say.

That he was, for sure.
 

Priaptor

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Agreed Peter. Regardless of your philosophical bent, it saddens me to think that we are unable to honor the passing of a person whom, IMO, was a highly ethical and honorable American without people being petty on the political front. For goodness sake the man has died; some of these comments go to the root of what is haunting our nation. I see very dark clouds on the horizon.

I agree with you. From my perch it is analogous to defining someone like JFK strictly by his Bay of Pigs decision, an incredibly polarizing position, that some would like to utilize to debase the man. Same with Dr. K, so many would like to define him by his 2003 Iraq stance as though that defined the man in total.

Truth is I love to read both sides of each argument when the argument is worthwhile and love to read both sides of people's impressions of periods in history regardless of what my political bent is.
 

Pb Blimp

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Oct 30, 2017
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I agree with you. From my perch it is analogous to defining someone like JFK strictly by his Bay of Pigs decision, an incredibly polarizing position, that some would like to utilize to debase the man. Same with Dr. K, so many would like to define him by his 2003 Iraq stance as though that defined the man in total.

Truth is I love to read both sides of each argument when the argument is worthwhile and love to read both sides of people's impressions of periods in history regardless of what my political bent is.

The bold above is an approach I also value greatly which, IMO, is part of the foundation of the Socratic Method----an approach to decision making I find highly correlated to civility. One must consider all side of an arguement equally in order to become enlightened. Only the enlightened can coexist in harmony.
 

jeff1225

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Jan 29, 2012
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Yes. Here is another opinion from the Wall Street Journal:

By The Editorial Board
June 22, 2018 6:45 p.m. ET
Many people in recent weeks have praised the character and contributions to American public life of Charles Krauthammer, who died Thursday at age 68. But allow us to add a few words about the way he thought and argued as a journalist because our republic could use more like him.


Perhaps it is possible that he was both a pundit and a journalist. People certainly listened to him and respected the man and what he had to say.

The opening line of the WSJ obit is:

Charles Krauthammer, the Pulitzer Prize-winning conservative columnist whose critiques made him an influential voice in Washington for decades, died Thursday. He was 68 years old.

It's important in the environment of fake news and pundits pretending to be factual journalists that we point out who has an agenda. The fact that Priaptor thinks that simply posting a obit from the Washington Post (a paper where Krauthammer wrote) is in itself controversial shows how powerful and effective the campaign against factual reporting has been. Sad times indeed.
 

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