Friday, October 31, 2008

Studs Terkell died today.


What a sad day for America! 96 year old Studs died peacefully today, October 31, Halloween, 2008. There is something sacred in that date, in that Studs was a folk man, a man who collected the stories of the unnoticed, the ignored-kind. And Halloween is the day that the pagans hold as the sacred day when the veil between the worlds is thinnest. In her report on his death, Caryn Rousseau from the Associated Press said, "He was a cigar and martini man, white-haired and elegantly rumpled in his trademark red-checkered shirts, an old rebel who never mellowed, never retired, never forgot, and "never met a picket line or petition I didn't like."

In these days where "socialism" is dragged around as if it's the dirtiest unAmerican word and no one will say that any system of taxation is a system of socialism and ESPECIALLY bailing out private banks with national funds is socialism and creating jobs for a failing economy is ALSO socialism, it's nice to read about an old man, who stuck to his guns, who celebrated his people, who expected his government to help where it could, who stood up to his government when necessary and who never bought the b.s. that some campaigning folks like to spread around to get power or to keep power.

Another rabble-rousing American has passed into the annals of history. I'm so sad to hear that he's gone.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Studs Terkel was a folk hero, an anti-demagogue par excellance. I read his honest and guileless writing, reminiscent of Hemmingway's literature-very refreshing compared to so much pretentious writing in vogue lately.

D.L. Hall said...

Yes, he was!