When I heard he'd died, my immediate reaction was to laugh hysterically and say "I choose to see this as slapstick". I don't think that makes me a bad person.

The encomia following the demise of this wingnut-enabling excuse for a journalist is almost as sickening as that afforded to Michael Kelly.

He was a giant potatohead in journalism...

And a 'super-queasy, triple-yikes' goes out to this panel of commentarians. Go get-em boys and possible girl (Proud2bHumble). When and where the dead fall, you'll be there to proudly display a sort of public snark that isn't at all preventing progressives from changing minds and winning elections.

When I heard he'd died, my immediate reaction was to laugh hysterically and say "I choose to see this as slapstick". I don't think that makes me a bad person."

Ethan, of course this makes you a bad person. But also funny. :-)

I think the key was in something else said during his 'memorial' show on Sunday. Forget who said it, but the money quote was, "He was not one of those journalists who spoke truth to power. He researched hard, so he could take the other side of his guests' arguments."

Russert was not a journalist who sought to reveal truth. (Lord, we need more of those.) He was a debater, who goal was to bring people on his show and then start an argument. It didn't matter what his guest's opinion was or whether they were right, Russert took the other side and argued with them. He was a professional devil's advocate. And while advocating the devil, he willingly told lies spread by others. He probably knew it was a lie, but he told it and defended it because it made the debate sweeter.

I hate speaking ill of the dead also...but Russert was the exemplar of the worst kind of journalism, a kind that has been infecting this country for a while now. We need less of people like him, and more people who will speak truth to power.

God, yes, this is a breath of fresh air amidst the sickly rose scent of so many encomiums that this shill for the Administration is being showered with.

Just Google "Timmeh" to see how many of his heart-rent and grief-stricken new-minted fans were savaging his judgment and his coziness with the powers that be. Like when he declared the Democratic nomination.

Russert's more comparable to Harriet Miers than Edward R. Murrow.

Russert never was and never will be comparable to REAL journalists and speakers of truth, some of whom are journalists and some just Sibel Edmonds and Joseph Wilson. A phony, a fake, a sucker-up, never courageous or anything else than bought off.

Hitler had great personal charm, too. And plain folks just love plain-folks Bush, too. And Cheney's supposed to have been a wonderful dad.

When Russert was alive, I often expressed my belief that he was a perfect example of what was wrong with American journalism. His death has not changed my opinion.

You people make me sick. I'm disassociating myself from your twisted vision of liberal values.

I, for one, deeply mourn the disassociation of Mr. Oswald from my twisted vision of liberal values.
Can there be an "Oswald-sized hole" in a vision?
Yes there can, and yes there is.

Gotta wonder, though -- why didn't Madeleine Albright set him straight? Surely she knew the facts.

Ethan, of course this makes you a bad person. But also funny. :-)

I'll take it.

'When and where the dead fall, you'll be there to proudly display a sort of public snark that isn't at all preventing progressives from changing minds and winning elections.'

Oh give it up you goose. Would crocodile tears have made you feel better? Your country needs more snark, not less.

"preventing progressives from changing minds and winning elections."

Rob T--if you just want to say people shouldn't speak ill of the dead for some token period of time--one day or one week or whatever--then fine. The problem, though, is that the death of a public figure like Reagan or Russert or Gerald Ford is always used as an excuse for telling spectacular and vicious lies about how our lovely system works. This "speak no ill of the dead" plays directly into the hands of pathological liars and contributes to the sort of sick demented political culture that we have. I don't have an answer to this. Just pointing out the problem because you're so self-righteous about it.

As for electing progressives--yeah, whatever. Anyone who would refuse to vote for St. Obama because of some snark in a blog comment section isn't rational anyway. For all I know they might be making their voting decisions based on their reading of entrails of road kill.

ROADKILL? Its what's for supper.

Russert asks Gore what he's going to do about this.

A man without any journalistic merits is lionized as if he were a great Statesman.What does that say about the ruling class?

K.Rob: It says," Well done, thou good and faithful servant, well done."