Re: Death (again)

[Jim Topp <jtopp@indiana.edu>]

>And let's not forget, when John Lennon died they didn't make this big a deal
>out of it. The only times I can remember that come close are Kennedy and
>Martin Luther King's death.
>
>                Cheers                 ML

Mark,

I seem to recall that an almost sufficiently big deal was made of 
Lennon's death. Especially on a global level. I thought, at the time, 
that no one short of a world leader or a Pope (or Elvis) would get 
such a reaction.

Yoko asked fans to observe a moment of silence for John wherever they 
were on a Sunday afternoon a week or two later. I remember a news 
story about a young store clerk getting fired while observing the 
moment of silence and ignoring customers while on the job.

Maybe it's a regional thing. SC can be expected to make a big deal 
about a driver's death. Same with the Indianapolis TV market (where I 
am).

In 10 years, we'll see how many people still talk about Lennon's 
death and how many people still talk about Earnhardt's death.

Of course, the loss of life is always a tragedy, and my comments 
comparing the public's reactions to celebrity deaths are not meant to 
minimize that. (Nor do I think anyone else here is doing that.)

Jim

"As far as this White House is concerned it is time to move 
forward...I've got too much to do, get a budget passed, to get 
reforms passed on education,
to get a tax cut passed, to strengthen the military, than to be 
worrying about decisions that my predecessor made" 
	- President George W. Bush 02-22-01