PostHeaderIcon Sen. Edward Kennedy interred in Arlington Cemetery

Edward Kennedy 1932-2009



On Saturday, August 29, 2009, Sen. Edward (Ted) Kennedy who died this week of malignant glioma, a form of aggressive brain tumor was buried with full honors in Arlington Cemetery in Virginia beside his ill-fated slain brothers Pres. John F. Kennedy and Sen. Robert Kennedy.

In a solemn sundown ceremony, the 77 year-old senator was carried to his final resting place attended by close relatives, friends, and millions of admirers who watched in TV. His death marked the closure of a chapter in a colorful life of the legendary Kennedy clan which awed the imagination of many Americans and people of the world.

Edward, the 9th child and youngest in the family of Joseph and Rose Kennedy served as a government official for almost 50 years, leaving with him a mixed legacy of successes and disappointments. His dream to be United States president was dashed by tragedies, personal foibles, and human limitations,

A towering influential figure in Capitol Hill, Edward, the “Lion of the Senate,” was a liberal democrat who reached out across party lines to tackle public issues so diverse as healthcare, immigration, wages, racial bias, gender discrimination, nuclear proliferation, and civil rights. No wonder there had been a lot to say about his contribution and legacy.

A remarried divorcee from Massachusetts, Ted had been a proponent of abortion which proved antithetical to Catholic Church teaching which he professed. Before he died, coinciding Pres. Barack Obama’s visit to Rome, he asked the president to personally deliver his letter to Pope Benedict XVI. The Vatican acknowledged Ted’s outstanding contributions to society and the Holy Father prayed for his solace and comfort during his most difficult time. The plan to make his niece Caroline Kennedy as US ambassador to the Holy See didn’t materialize.

In support of Pres. Obama, his desire to overhaul healthcare is generally lauded for its scope to cover all Americans, but the contentious issues surrounding the bill have been the subject of heated debates. Aside from the cost of healthcare, the proposal has a tendency to “marginalize” the elderly, the chronically ill, and disabled.

There is the pervasive worry that the revamp will lead to more expenses, rationing of services, and the lack of doctors and nurses. Prolonged waiting times for diagnosis and treatment, and more government intrusion to the patient-and-doctor relationship are possible changes if the overhaul is implemented.

America’s healthcare system may end up faltering if funding is drastically cut, making it less possible to have the best medical services that Sen. Edward Kennedy used to extend his life. Because healthcare expenses can’t be sustained in the long haul, there is pressure to scrimp and dictate, endangering the quality of medical services particularly that of ordinary American citizens. (Photo Credit: dag.nl) =0=

RELATED BLOGS: Sen. Edward Kennedy, 77 dies of brain cancer Posted by mesiamd at 8/26/2009; Posthumous tributes to Sen. Edward Kennedy pours in from the world Posted by mesiamd at 8/27/2009; Sen. Edward Kennedy survives longer under the world’s best medicine available Posted by mesiamd at 7/07/2009



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