If we had to have man of Ronald Reagan’s often loathsome principles and questionable intelligence as President, I suppose the Gipper wasn’t all that bad. (See, e.g., George W. Bush.) True, his presidency was a huge step backwards for social policy and a huge step forward for fiscal irresponsibility, but he did have a marvellously soothing voice—something I appreciated as a 5-year old.
I’m sorry he’s dead, and I’m sorry his last years were so difficult for him and for his family. But that’s pretty much it for me: with all the fervor about renaming things the Ronald Reagan This and the Ronald Reagan That, you’d hardly be too far from the truth for thinking that the man’s been dead a long time now.
A Day of Mourning? That’s just idolatry. My first thought on hearing the news was, my goodness, how terribly convenient for the Bush campaign, isn’t it? My second thought was, gee, this is still the top story? Don’t they have other news to cover?
I’m not going to go dancing on graves Friday, but I’m not going to be rending my clothes, either.