RIP Kopechne....and Kennedy

I'm not one to get sad for a celebrity dying. I really could care less most of the time, if not all the time. I get accused of being heartless, but then I ask them why they aren't sad for the nearly four children die every day as a result of child abuse or neglect? Or the one million child deaths that could have been prevented annually at a cost of $US 1 billion per year. Why did we give $3 billion to CARS again?

One thing about Kennedy's death that isn't getting much coverage is the death of Mary Jo Kopechne. Yes I know she is getting mentioned in passing but what 2 whole minutes out of maybe 3 hours worth of news coverage? Give me a break.

Mary Jo Kopechne (July 26, 1940 – July 18, 1969) was an American school teacher, secretary and political campaign specialist who died in a car accident on Chappaquiddick Island while being driven by US Senator Ted Kennedy.

Kopechne left the party at 11:15 p.m. with Robert's brother Ted Kennedy , after he — according to his own account — offered to drive her to catch the last ferry back to Edgartown , where she was staying. Kennedy stated he made a wrong turn on the way and came upon a narrow, unlit bridge without guardrails. Kennedy drove the 1967 Olds off the bridge and it overturned in the water. Kennedy extricated himself from the submerged car but Kopechne died, after what Kennedy said were several diving attempts to free her.

Kennedy contacted several aides that night, but failed to report the incident to the authorities until the car and Kopechne's body were discovered the next morning. Kopechne's parents said that they learned of their daughter's death from Ted Kennedy himself before he reported his involvement to the authorities, but that they learned Kennedy had been the driver only from wire press releases some time later.

Iowahawk made references to it in a HealthCare satire a few months ago. You can read it here. Iowahawk's post bring me to horror, not for his satire but for what he is alluding to, Liberals will use Kennedy's death to pass Obamacare. It's already happening.
Here is what I wrote on a Cafehayek thread.

I'm more afraid of him in death than I am when he was still alive.
I had mentioned to a friend that I had hoped he would live a nice long life for many years to come, if nothing more than to stop the liberals from reframing the Health Care Debate into a Memorial for the Liberal Lion. It seems from one of the headlines on WSJ, that that is exactly how Pelosi, Reid and Obama will frame the debate now.

I think he did some good things and some crappy ones. Samgrove's point is particularly important to note. Ted never once had to deal with the Forgotten Man's reality. I'm speaking of William Graham Sumner's Forgotten Man.

I also think that if Obamacare is passed as a memorial for Kennedy, then Kennedy's enduring legacy will be of America finally jumping the shark and going down the Road to Serfdom. I'm sure that's not what Kennedy intended but we all know the law of unintended consequences.

Update: Google Trends for today as of 1439 8/26/09

1.	tropical storm danny
2.	hurricane danny
3.	mary jo kopechne
4.	chappaquiddick incident
5.	joan kennedy today
6.	chappaquiddick ted kennedy

At least people aren't forgetting Mary Jo.