6/5/2004 4:14:08 PM
REST IN PEACE - Ronald Reagan was one of the five most important figures of the 20th Century. His resolute stand against Communism in the 1980's drove the last nail into the coffin of that evil system and he reordered American politics as much as Franklin Roosevelt did; indeed, he ought to replace the elephant as the symbol of the Republican Party. And his final struggle with Alzheimer's is one that is intimately familiar to me. Ronald Wilson Reagan has died at the age of 93. UPDATE: You won't read too many better eulogies than this one.
 Posted by Christopher S. Johnson - 9 comments
Submitted by Ellen on 6/5/2004 4:18:08 PM
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Ronald Reagan made me proud to be an American. I remember the malaise of Carter years, but when Reagan spoke suddenly it was like the sun breaking through the fog.
God bless him.
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Submitted by Jeffersonian on 6/5/2004 5:05:08 PM
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Anyone who lived through the Carter years knows what Reagan meant and means to America. His presidency was a shaft of steel grafted to the American spine at a time when we, as a people, doubted ourselves like never before. His work with Maggie Thatcher and the JPII was masterful and directly responsible for the collapse of Communism.
I hope he, Tip O'Neill and Pat Moynihan are having a good laugh right now, lubricated by the finest Irish whiskey on Heaven or Earth.
RIP, Dutch, and thanks for everything.
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Submitted by Duane on 6/5/2004 5:36:09 PM
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I was 10 when he was elected and 19 at the end of his term. What I remember most about him is the confidence and swagger that he had. He truly believed the US was the greatest place on Earth, as he had lived the American dream, and this was so welcome after the Carter disaster. He also didn't play word games, he meant what he said and said what he meant. His speechwriters wanted him to delete the "Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" comment but he would not. Rest in peace, Dutch.
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Submitted by WannabeAnglican on 6/5/2004 9:33:05 PM
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Thank you, President Reagan.
God bless Ronald Reagan.
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Submitted by Kathy Shaidle on 6/6/2004 8:00:40 AM
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Yo, thanks for all the hits! You are too kind.
Can I just add something ghoulish here? Last night all the tributes said things like, "At one point his approval rating was only 40%" and "He fought communism even though many feared he was a fanatic bent on destroying the world" etc. I wonder if some folks will finally recognize the parallels between him and Bush and come around.
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Submitted by Gayle on 6/6/2004 8:15:15 AM
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Hey,Kathy, I am so with you on that.
It was incredible that number of parallels. The one that struck me the most, especially after living through the Reagan years is the fact that at the time that all of this was going on, the pundits that he was going to fail. The economy was being destroyed, he'd start WWIII, etc. etc. We didn't know that he was going to suceed. But he did and I think Bush will too, if he takes upon himself the mantle of Reagan.
For a long time I've been wondering aloud to my family why our Lord hasn't called Ronald Reagan home yet. (I've also wonder the same thing about JPII, but that's another story.) Ten years is a long time to live with diagnosed Alzhemeirs and for such a long time he had lost the ability to even recognize Nancy. It had been years and years since he remembered that he was president. I kept wondering what kind of purpose God was intending to keep him here past his time.
But I can be a person of little faith and I can even forget the greatness of our Lord. I suspect that our Lord has called Dutch home exactly when He intended. What timing!!! On the eve of the 60th anniversary of D-Day and just before that summit that Bush has called of the G-7 countries, plus several other invited attendees. I suspect that as the days and months unfold we will be able to see rightness and purpose in Reagan's passing at this moment in history.
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Submitted by a Canadian on 6/6/2004 4:45:54 PM
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Thank you and God bless President Ronald Reagan; and the many Americans who stood by him.
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Submitted by Edward on 6/6/2004 7:29:05 PM
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He was a great leader, a man of character, courage and vision, and the world is in his debt.
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Submitted by Mary in LA on 6/7/2004 1:33:58 PM
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I live just a few miles from the Little Chapel of the Dawn in Santa Monica, where President Reagan's body lay last night. Shortly after midnight, my husband and I went there with flowers from our garden -- nothing fancy, just some lilies of the Nile (they look like blue fireworks) and some leaves from our orange tree, in a jar tied up with red, white, and blue ribbon.
The street is closed off to cars, so we walked a block past benign Santa Monica patrol officers to the lawn in front of the chapel, which was covered, and I do mean covered, with tributes of all kinds: hundreds of bouquets, lit candles, signs with messages like "God Bless You, Gipper", probably 100 U.S. flags of all sizes (including one that, by its size and triangular fold, had once draped a serviceman's casket), an Israeli flag, a new Russian flag, stuffed bears, pinwheels, and bags and jars of his favorite jelly beans. There was a chaplain's flight cap and a Marine dress hat (I think "cover" is the right word? The beaked white one with ornate white braid on the top). And those were just some of the things -- I'm sure I didn't see all of them. The best tribute, though, was a piece of the Berlin wall with a note that read: "Sir, you told Gorbachev to 'tear down this wall!' We helped. Thanks for your courage and leadership." I pointed this one out as my favorite to a man standing by, and it turned out that he was the one who put it there. His brother had been living in Germany at the time and had helped thousands of Berliners with hammers to tear down the wall. He broke off a piece of that piece and laid it there in tribute to the man who, though he never swung a hammer at it, struck the blow that shattered it forever.
We stayed there for about an hour. I would have liked to take a picture, but it seemed disrespectful. (However, other people took pictures, so there should be plenty of them out on the Web.) It was deeply moving and very peaceful at the same time. The chapel was closed, but the lights were on inside. I suppose someone was keeping vigil.
As another of the tribute signs said, "Well done, my good and faithful servant!" May the Great Communicator rest in peace, may his family be comforted, and may we always remember him.
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