The last of three.

United States Senator Edward Moore Kennedy died last night at the age of 77. Whatever you thought of the man or his politics, you have to admit that this is an event of extraordinary cultural significance. As a Massachusetts native, I felt a great sense of loss in learning of the death of a public servant who has represented the Commonwealth in the United States Senate since my father was in high school. For me, the loss is not simply political but cultural: within the once-dominant Catholic culture of the Bay State, the Kennedys were iconic figures. As a product of that culture, I cannot help but think that an element of our collective identity has been irretrievably lost.

To those who may be tempted to critical comment, I can only repeat the old dictum, De mortuis nil nisi bonum dicendum est. Again, whatever you think of the person or the politician, you should be able to affirm that this is an event of cultural as well as political significance - all the more so, perhaps, if you come (as I do) from a place where culture and politics were once tightly bound together. Requiem aeternam dona ei, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat ei. Requiescat in pace. Amen.