Chuck Colson

I'm loathe to admit this, but Chuck Colson spoke at my college graduation. Every spring, I remember it, and squirm a little, because it's not something you should be able to admit to in polite company. I suppose if he had gone all Andy Cramed up there, spent an hour groveling - "I apologize... I apologize..." - I might have been inclined to forgive him, and maybe forgive the school for trotting out an old Nixon crony on my last day under their banner. But he didn't - I don't have a fucking clue what he did talk about, Jesus I imagine, but I wasn't really listening - I was too chickenshit to do anything about it (tomatoes or old eggs would have been appropriate), but I was none too happy. And they did - a dirty trick indeed.

So now he is dead. And so, sympathy to his family and all, for all of us are, after all, human beings, and deserve some dignity and respect in our hour of extremity (well - maybe not Liddy) - but - I can't exactly mourn. And since my alma mater did foist him on me - I'm not about to let it pass in silence either. I will even give him credit, a bit, for trying to change, and do good instead of evil - but it's not particularly clear that what he thinks was good is not evil. And plenty of what he's done through the years, since he traded Tricky Dick for The Lord, has been evil plain enough. So - what can you do. I wouldn't wish him dead, but I sure wish he'd have shut the fuck up, a long long time ago. And I really wish my old school had found someone less disgusting to send me on my way in the world.