Radio Host Paul Harvey has died

[FarLeftRage]

Source: ABC News

ABC is reporting that Paul Harvey has died at 90...

Breaking with no other details at this time...

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/

---

Looks like he's headed to horsey heaven... Mr. Ed beware!!!

[davidinalameda]

1. it's always a shame when someone dies

that's all I'm going to say

[StClone]

32. He was an Original American...but

As a kid in the 70's, I loved his UFO and monster sightings in rural Illinois. I at first loved the guy. Then learned of his Conservative tendencies and, I grew to ignore then be suspicious of him. His pushing the "Clinton Chronicles" fabrication turned me 180 from his broadcasts.

[rosesaylavee]

64. Ditto that.

Grew up listening to him on Chicago radio and then realized he sure wasn't who I thought he was. Sad.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

85. I know what that monster really was

I was driving from Marion to Champaign on I-57, when an aardvark dashed across the road. This was at the height of the "monster/UFO" stories, and it fit the description of something with "five legs"--the fifth was its nose!

[Journeyman]

2. And that's the rest of the story. . .

[slay]

47. :-x

trying... really... hard.. not... to... oh fuck it.. :rofl: :rofl:

RIP Mr. Harvey. I think he would approve. :)

[47of74]

3. We'll have to stand by for the rest of the story.

[Mike 03]

4. His wife died recently, too. They were very close. I was not a fan, but it is never

good news when someone dies.

Bless him and his family, and all his years of devotion to radio.

As long as I can remember, he seemed to be on the air, when I was getting ready to go to school.

[The abyss]

5. Hmmm…

I wonder if the son will continue on with the radio broadcasts.

[JohnnyLib2]

6. Sad. He was Americana for a long, long time.

[TankLV]

91. If that repuke asshole was americana, I want OUT...

he was a conservative asshole who pushed the "clinton chronicals" among other repuke/concervative bullshit...

only idiots will miss him...

[Cirque du So-What]

7. Although he had more class in his pinkie than OxyRush has in his corpulent frame

he was still a RW tool. Snopes.com has reams of info debunking his 'rest of the story' BS.

[Xipe Totec]

8. Ecclesiastes 12

1 Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them;

(When you have lost your will to live)

2 While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain:

(when your eyes go dark or cloudy)

3 In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened,

(when your arms and legs grow weak, your body bends, and your teeth are gone)

4 And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of music shall be brought low;

(when your lips shut, you cannot chew, you cannot sleep, and you loose your hearing)

5 Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high,
and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets:

(when you lose your balance, your hair turns gray, your body bends, and sex is no longer a pleasure)

6 Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern.

(when death comes)

7 Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.

(then things will return to be as they were, and you will meet your maker).

[tularetom]

35. You shouldn't post stuff like that where we old farts can read it

Some of those things have already happened to me.

[ConcernedCanuk]

39. How old do you have to be to get into the "old farts" club?

.
.
.

I figure I'm getting close

or is it not just an age thing,

but a state of mind?

[tularetom]

41. I think it's a state of mind

I'll be 68 this year and I'm still fairly active. I take a 20 mile bike ride a couple times a week, ride the horse when I can, take a couple of days a year to shoot at some ducks or pheasants, do all the work around the place except tree trimming. On the other hand I've lost 75% of the sight in my right eye (due to an accident), have had a bunch of small skin cancers removed from my scalp and forearms, and it takes me about two hours to loosen up every morning because of arthritis.

Of course the arthritis is the worst. I try to stay positive but I can't even bend over to tie my shoes when I first get up.

So I'd have to say, it is an attitude thing but it's harder to maintain the right attitude when you are that friggin stiff. On the plus side I have a brand new great granddaughter to help keep me thinkin young.

Anyhow we old farts would welcome you into the club with open arms if you feel you are ready to sign up.

[ConcernedCanuk]

45. LOL - well I see your mind is quite healthy

.
.
.

stil laughing over your last line there

"Anyhow we old farts would welcome you into the club with open arms if you feel you are ready to sign up."


LOL

you got a healthy mind there

well done

and yes,

children are a blessing

you give that new great granddaughter a kiss for me

just a crazy old Canadian . . .

[No Elephants]

86. Great Granddaughter? I'm jealous. I'm almost 66 and my only child seems commitment phobic.

[Hardrada]

58. I had a Greek teacher in college who was never old

though he had taught there almost 55 years!

[Mari333]

42. LOL

LOL

[wisteria]

9. May he rest in peace.

I frequently did not agree with him, but he was a class act.

[BumRushDaShow]

10. The end of an era

as more "old-school" broadcast commentators leave us. They didn't have to go "shock jock" to give their views, whether one agreed or not.

R.I.P.

[Bluebear]

21. His homophobia "shocked" me.

[elocs]

11. Wow, I can remember hearing him on the radio when I was a kid 45 years ago.

He was an American radio icon. He probably had one of the most recognizable voices to anyone over 50.

[SharonAnn]

31. Well, I thought about it and it has been at least 55 years since I first heard him.

I guess I thought he would live forever.

[elocs]

34. This is when we start to feel our own mortality, when the familiar voices and faces

from our childhood start to die off. The actors, the singers, the athletes, and authors. It may be silly, but I big one for me will be Andy Griffith--that's still a very nostalgic show for me, when it was in b&w.

[Divine Discontent]

37. I'd put that at over 40. I'm even younger than that and I used to listen to his show as an adult.

Although, I'm even more familiar with Casey Kasem's voice! ha. Harvey certainly was a radio icon. His brand of conservative didn't appear to be harmful, and he had plenty of interesting stories.

[ChazII]

40. Agreed.

May he rest in peace and condolences to his family.

[WheelWalker]

12. And the Wheel turns.

[Wizard777]

13. RIP Paul. When they give the rest of the details on his passing.

I will be highly disappointed and possibly even angry if they don't end the report with "and now you know the rest of the story." God bless you Paul Harvey!

[GreenTea]

14. Harvey always gave a right-wing republican point of view, well, because he was a republican.

But like O'Reilly, Harvey always pretended to fair and impartial...

Unlike O'Reilly, Harvey also pretended to be non political, but indeed his shows were often laced with republican ideology & point of view.

[acmavm]

16. Yeah, and it was all pretense too. I heard that guy say some really

ridiculous stuff. He was outright dishonest and duplicitous in his support of blivet & co.

[sufrommich]

15. RIP Paul Harvey. He was a republican but he told some

funny, sad, poignant stories occasionally.

[windoe]

17. A radio personality with class.

Even if I didn't agree with his point of view, he presented himself with humor, warmth and wit. Gotta respect that these days.

[Lost in CT]

18. Despite his views he was a class act. RIP nt

[moundsview]

19. Paul Harvey.............

Good Day!

[Triana]

20. I didn't always agree with Paul Harvey, but I respected him. He was a breed before

the trash radio shock-jocks we have now.

R.I.P. Mr. Harvey

[annarbor]

75. Nicely put....

RIP Mr Harvey...

Ann Arbor

[emilyg]

22. Sleep sweet Mr. Harvey.

[Bluebear]

23. Pro-slavery, homophobe, endorsed native American genocide. Sorry for the family but no tears here.

Condolences to the family but the man was a right wing loon with a microphone.

We didn't come this far because we're made of sugar candy. Once upon a time, we elbowed our way onto and across this continent by giving smallpox-infected blankets to Native Americans. That was biological warfare. And we used every other weapon we could get our hands on to grab this land from whomever.

And we grew prosperous. And yes, we greased the skids with the sweat of slaves. So it goes with most great nation-states, which--feeling guilty about their savage pasts--eventually civilize themselves out of business and wind up invaded and ultimately dominated by the lean, hungry up-and-coming who are not made of sugar candy. - Paul Harvey

[MindMatter]

43. In his own words, "Good day"

That's how he signed off every one of his idiotic diatribes. That's how I'll sign off the news that I'll never have to listen to the shit again.

Good day indeed.

[donheld]

48. Ditto

[liberaltrucker]

24. RIP, Mr Harvey

I disagreed with your politics, but you always had my utmost respect.

:patriot:

[Grinchie]

25. Mr. American Palp

This guy was the reassuring voice that put trillions of brain cells to sleep every day.

Why think when Paul Harvey would do it for you?

[astral]

26. I was listening to him on the radio in the 60's

It is sad to hear of his death. I didn't hear him very often after growing up but was always amazed when I did hear him -- still on the air after all these years!

Homophobia may be scary to some people (I don't recall hearing it from him) but remember he was born in another generation where things were different then. Let God be his only judge, as with all of us, after his passing.

[Roon]

27. Before Monica, Harvey said that Hillary and Bill

didn't love each other.

[damonm]

28. I'm with many here...

Frequently disagreed with the man, but he could disagree without being disagreeable.
The term I see most frequently used here is "Class act" - that he was. He was for AMERICA first - remember THAT, Republicans?

[TankLV]

92. Homophobic rightwing bigoted ASSHOLE - interesting your definition of a "class act"...

[Tangerine LaBamba]

29. The rightwingnuts lose another hero

He had a grasp of reality as solid as Ronald Raygun's. The guy told stories that he pulled out of his ass. Yes, it's always sad when anyone dies, but reaching the age of 90, and only losing your beloved wife recently is not a bad way to go. Paul Harvey apparently lived a good life.

But, he was a rightwing tool, and some of the made-up stories he told were at the expense of those less fortunate than he was.

The best thing I can say about him is that he wasn't even remotely as disgusting as any of the rightwingnut blabbers out there today.

[shadowknows69]

30. And I guess that's the end of the story....

Good journey Mr. Harvey, personally I thought your style could put a meth head to sleep but it was your own and as a fellow (former) colleague of the airwaves I have nothing but respect for the length of your career.

[Lint Head]

33. I remember that he was for the Vietnam War from the beginning but

changed his mind and said the war was wrong. His acknowledgment helped to bring an end to the killing in Vietnam.

And that's the rest of the story.

:dem:

[Celebration]

36. Really weird dude

Aren't we all?

[unkachuck]

38. this once again proves.....

....the good die young.

[TankLV]

93. yeah - and he lived TOO LONG...

[J-Lo Biafra]

44. Don't let the smallpox-infected blanket hit you in the ass on your way out, you fuck.

He was a douchebag, and I never speak ill of the dead, but I make exceptions with assholes that celebrate one of the worst chapters of this nation's history.

[earthside]

49. What chapter was that? n/t

[J-Lo Biafra]

50. Regarding Native American genocide.

Here, I'll let you read for yourself. He was something else, that guy:

http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=2569

[earthside]

51. It is a pity ...

Harvey is an example, sad to say, of an old guy that should have hung it up professionally years ago.

At one time, he was a master craftsman in the radio business.

But as he got older his personal prejudices took control of his professionalism.

His remarks as indicated in the fair.org link, his blind defense of Bush, his smarmy rightwing-ism ruined what could have been a strong legacy as a broadcaster.

Yup, he's dead and now he is not around to defend himself.

But his glorification and rationalizations for the deaths of others because of his perverted "patriotism" will have to be remembered.

[Chemical Bill]

77. I hear you. n/t

[jobycom]

46. I respected him as much as I can respect anyone I so fundamentally disagree with.

He was cut from a different cloth than the current crop of right-wing "journalists," in that he tried to convince those who disagreed with him, rather than silencing them through insult and attack. His opinions were often divisive and just as bigoted as the rest of his party's, and he became increasingly bitter over the last two decades, but we'd be a better nation if the debate were held using his example instead of Limbaugh's. I never remember feeling like he had called me a traitor, even when he made my eyes bulge in anger.

And he was an incredible storyteller. True or false, right or wrong, he could hold a listener through a cavern of dead air. I remember in college in the mid 80s his "Rest of the Story" came on at noon, and throughout our dorm, the entire building would listen. Each room hung in silence during his final pause, and then everyone wouldgroan in recognition as he revealed his ending. That's a rare talent, and in an industry that prides itself on fast-talking and uninterrupted noise, he was completely unique.

The passing of more than a legend. The passing of a myth. The passing of a wedge of America's identity, and America's picture of itself.

RIP, Mr. Harvey. They don't make them like you anymore.

[ovidsen]

52. The REAL, TRUE "Rest of the Story....

Some may consider this to be in poor taste, since his body is still warm, but I know from first hand experience that Paul Harvey had some notable human weaknesses, as many of us do. And since under US law (which states that the dead can't sue for libel or slander because, well, they're dead), now is as good a time as any to tell a story I've kept wrapped up for more than 30 years.

I used to work for ABC Radio in the same office complex that Paul Harvey's office and studio were located. 4th floor of the Stone Container Building, 360 North Michigan Avenue in Chicago. Michigan and Wacker, overlooking the Chicago River, to be specific.

It was 1978. I was just a few years out of college, and although I certainly didn't agree with Mr. Harvey's political views, I had tremendous respect for his total command of radio. His phrasing, the sometimes slight, but subtly dramatic vibrato in his voice, his trademarked dramatic pauses, his ability to hit the post (time out to the exact second, a necessary skill in broadcasting to this day. I think you're born with it. It can't be taught) had me in awe. I was working the morning shift, (4am to noon) and so was Mr Harvey. Well, he'd arrive slightly later than me (4:30am), but he was always still at his typewriter or in front of the mike when I left at noon. And we all should give him credit when, speaking from his bully pulpit in 1970, said of President Nixon's Vietnam War policy, "Mr. President, you're wrong". He was one of the first conservative commentators to say the Vietnam War was a huge mistake.

I was in a serious relationship with an ABC Radio sales assistant who also worked on the 4th floor. The relationship crumbled a few years later, and I don't know where she is, but since she was (and probably still is) a fine woman, I'm not going to mention her name.

Paul Harvey hit on her. Big time. There was never any inappropriate physical contact; I'll give him props for that. First he started hanging around her desk, smiling, being charming, trying to make small talk. My girlfriend, not wanting to jeopardize her job, because at the time, Harvey was the 800 pound gorilla at the ABC radio networks, humored him.

But then he started stalking her. He found out where she lived. He'd show up at her modest studio apartment on Lake Shore Drive, unannounced and unexpected, with flowers, or a box of candy, or a bottle of wine, and basically invite himself in. He never (she told me) made a direct proposition, but this 26 year old woman was downright scared that this 58 year old man, old enough to be her father, was clearly trying to get her in the sack.

Maybe it was his "mid-life crisis". After all, he had been married to his "Angel", who died last year, since the dawn of time. Maybe he was a serial stalker. You know the type. Or maybe it was a one time slip. I don't know, and probably never will.

There were nights when my girlfriend cried herself to sleep in my arms. She was that scared.

Paul Harvey finally got the message, I guess. He stopped hanging around her desk, and the unexpected visits ceased. But to say that I was furious over the man's behavior would be an understatement. I did get my revenge. Sort of.

Both Harvey and I parked our cars on Lower Michigan. For those unfamiliar with Chicago, Lower Michigan is part of the double deck, and sometimes triple deck maze of streets in downtown Chicago anchored by Wacker Drive. Get there early enough (and we both did), and you could easily find a legal parking spot that was under the snazzy Michigan Avenue that tourists and movie fans know, and a 60 second walk to our workplaces. As often as not, he'd park his pink (really) Cadillac next to my modest Ford. When he did, I made a point of repeatedly banging the side of his car with my front door, leaving behind a large series of dents.

Juvenile? You bet. But then again, I was just 27. I'd be a tad more discreet today.

And that, my DU friends, is the Rest of the Story.

[shrike]

67. Sadly, your story doesn't surprise me

It's famous/powerful man's disease (though not universal).

An acquaintance of mine (I won't mention any details, because he's still alive, and so, I'm sure, is she) was stalked in a similar manner. Except her stalker was more aggressive, and more crude; he would follow her to the supply room and lock the door behind him. Never forced himself on her, but the experience was frightening, as you can imagine. She was not in a relationship at the time -- not lucky enough to have your kind of support, alas -- and she would come see a (married) friend of hers, who worked with me, so she could at least talk about it.

[ovidsen]

79. Too true. The "famous/powerful man's disease".

I thought about posting my story in General Discussion or the DU lounge, but I get no pleasure from going out of my way to speak ill of people, even if the story is true, and even if the person in question is dead.

However, it kind of bothers me that he is being eulogized as some kind of saint by people across the political spectrum, including some of our fellow Duers. He wasn't. That's why I wrote what I did.

To Harvey's negligible credit, he never went as far as, say, Bill O'Reilly and his "loofah" phone message fantasies. But any way you look at it, what Harvey was doing to my girlfriend was sexual harassment, pure and simple. If anyone tried to pull that stuff on a fellow worker today, especially a worker who was lower on the corporate food chain than he/she was, the summary firing of the "stalker" would be perfectly understandable. Why wasn't O'Reilly punished? We'll never know, but he sure should have been.

Like just about everybody else, Paul Harvey had his flaws. He had his "dark side". This was one of them.

[regnaD kciN]

53. Horses everywhere breathe easier...

:evilgrin:

[davepc]

54. Well at least he told Nixon that the war in Vietnam was wrong.

[bigworld]

69. He was also a supporter of the ERA

And an early one at that.

[KonaKane]

55. It's interesting...

Guys like Paul Harvey are given, even by their ideological opponents, the benefit of the doubt and no small number of accolades by those in the industry. It appears, for some reason, that being a conservative radio blabbist gets a pass at the end of the road, when they step into the big soundbooth in the sky.

But if you are a leftist - a progressive, liberal, or lifestyle pioneer of any stripe - you're given a "good riddance" or any string of epithets at your graveside when you check out, from your opposers and even your own side.

As much as I detest Limbaugh, maybe he was right for once when he said that America at its core is conservative. Even the Leftists can default to it in the right circumstance.

[rpannier]

56. Sorry to hear he's passed away

RIP

[hunter]

57. The first I ever noticed Harvey was on my roommate's radio in college.

I heard Paul Harvey telling some story so plain and homespun it was an obvious lie, like he was promising to renew my asphalt driveway with some miracle liquid that looked like dirty oil drained out of a car, but my roommate was all quiet, listening. This was the same roommate who listened to Christian Rock as he did his engineering homework which made him impossible to live with.

As the sort of person who can't help but say inappropriate things sometimes, I asked, "Who is that guy? He's sorta creepy."

My roommate shrugged and paid no more attention to me.

Harvey wasn't actually painful for me to listen to, not like George W. Bush or Ronald Reagan, but I did not care for his fantasy America, and that creepy feeling I got whenever I heard him never went away.

He was an artist, sorta like the way Thomas Kinkade is an artist...

[susu369]

65. Zing!!!!

He was an artist, sorta like the way Thomas Kinkade is an artist...

:rofl:

[diamidue]

81. I agree

the "Thomas Kinkade" of artists. Love that comparison. I was thinking more of the "Reader's Digest" school of literature, but I like the Kinkade connection better.

[bird gerhl]

59. He's not really high up on my shitlist

He definitely sucks tho

[MichaelHarris]

60. He

had nice hair.

[old mark]

61. Very surprised by this

First because I thought he had died years ago.
Second because of the respect and kindness shown by many here for Mr. Harvey.
He was no less a fascist because he was an old fascist.

I'm wondering what kind of posts Rush's death will bring.
Hope I'm around long enough to find out.


mark

[Ilsa]

80. Rush will get little to no mercy here. And he deserves

that. I suspect his own words will be directed back at him at his time of death.

[bitchkitty]

62. RIP, Mr. Harvey.

My dad loved you. I paid you little attention as you were somewhat of an idiot to me, but if there's a heaven, I hope you're there with your wife.

[hadrons]

63. Oddly I almost posted two commentaries of his from 1985 to youtube; one was really wacko

I'll post it later today ... it involved pig fat ... really wacko

[progressoid]

66. Respect: (n) The condition of being honoured. An attitude of admiration or esteem

Sorry, others can say they respect him; I'm not going to lie.

However...R.I.P.

[slackmaster]

68. He seemed to be as old as the hills when I first became aware of his existence

That was in 1968, during the flight of Apollo 8 around the moon.

[panzerfaust]

70. I cared not for his views

but admired his honesty in holding them.

I appreciated that he tried to have at least one GOOD news item in each broadcast ... I wish that was the case with all.

[tabasco]

71. The republican, reactionary demographic continues to dwindle.

Hopefully, the USA can move into a better future as the hate-filled base of the radical right dies off.

[Taverner]

72. What is the connection between him and horses?

I missed that one, but have seen plenty of refs

[last_texas_dem]

89. Bartcop invented the story about Harvey's affinity for horses years ago

Basically, he said he had as much evidence to back up such an assertion as Harvey did for the various assertions that he made about Bill Clinton.

(Scroll down to the last entry on the page.)

>>>Today, Paul Harvey says "Clinton WANTS to appoint liberal judges, but he fears a political backlash, so he won't until after the election. (Admitting that he'll win.)

So, Paul Harvey "KNOWS" what Clinton's thinking? What happens when that political tactic is turned around?
Paul Harvey enjoys sex with horses.
He always has, since his early days in Oklahoma.
He didn't tell me this, I just "know,"
like he "knows" Bill doesn't love Hillary.
As time goes by, maybe Paul Harvey can "spit his bit"
long enough to keep his hate-filled, super-Christian,
holier-than-thou shit to himself.
Paul Harvey, you're a whore.
You're not only screwing horses,
you're screwing the old people who believe you.

We expect Limba's litany of lies,
but the Geritol folk think you're honest.
Maybe if you started telling the truth,
you might gain a measure of self-respect.
A whore needs that.

..and now you know the REST of the story...>>>

http://www.bartcop.com/0054.htm

[Mad_Dem_X]

73. Condolences to the family.

I should hope to live to be 90 years old.

[El Supremo]

74. He was one of the last connections I had to my grandmother.

We used to watch his TV show (yes, TV) together. She loved him. She died in 1964.

I thought he was great. One hell of lot better than the Limbaughs and O'Reillys of today.

[liberal N proud]

76. One less right wing voice on the airwaves

[Arugula Latte]

78. Not a fan of that creepy guy, but, condolences to his family.

[DesertRat]

82. I lost all respect for Paul Harvey right after JFK, Jr. died

A week after JFK, Jr. died in the plane crash Harvey repeatedly reported that JFK, Jr's secretary was pregnant with his child. That was an untrue tabloid rumor which Harvey reported as fact. He never recanted or apologized for airing that false report. I also remember him smearing the Kennedy family during that period.

After that I always changed the station when I heard Harvey's voice.

[jxnmsdemguy65]

84. apparantly Harvey had some animosity towards the Kennedys..

... he is said to have been a very close friend of Guy Bannister, the creepy ex FBI Chicago office chief who many think had a direct hand in JFK's assisination. The guy played by Ed Asner in the film JFK.

[Democrats_win]

83. Another giant conservative hypocrite.

He talked about individuals involved in lawsuits but never about his corporate buddies, the ones who brought thousands of lawsuits. He'd call the individuals, "sewers." The implication was that they were wrong. But, no, not once did he criticize corporate lawsuits. Just think, here in Denver a magazine called 5280 (Fifty-two Eighty, as in 5280 feet in one mile, the Mile High City) sewed a restaurant also called 5280. What a waste! The biggest sewers in the world are the corporate fascists that Paul Harvey defended every day of his life.

Paul Harvey tried to act like he spent his life working on the farm, but he lived on the corporate gravy train. The vast majority of Americans his age, had in fact grown up on farms. He did not. He was a corporate sissy.

He's as phony as the conservatism that he shoveled out every day. The Real Americans are the ones who go to work every day and try to survive against the corporate monsters that Paul Harvey supported. Just think, it was the worst president in American history who "honored" Harvey with some medal. That's the way it should have been. Good Day. And, the days are getting better as we lose more phony conservative nonsense every day.

[No Elephants]

87. Another racist, homophobe finally bites the dust. I just don't get some of the posts on this thread

[DesertRat]

88. I don't think that everyone knew what kind of a person he really was

I didn't know until I heard Harvey gleefully spreading false gossip about JFK, Jr. a week after his death.

[TankLV]

90. Another repuke asshole bite the dust....good.

The world it s WORSE OFF place for him having been born...PERIOD.

and now it's a better place that he is now, finally, gone...

only regret is that it should have happened LONG AGO...