The editorials are pouring in, as predicted. Plenty of journalists, bloggers and assorted voices have an opinion on the opinions of Jacqueline Kennedy (pre-Onassis). I don’t blame them, as I’m one among them after all. Jackie is, to say the least, an immortal icon of unmatched mystique.
She was also, may I say again, human. First Lady Kennedy held outlooks and impressions of everything and everyone, not from the same viewpoint as the rest of us, but still– just like the rest of us. As such, nothing revealed this week via the release of her 1964 audio recordings strikes me as “shocking.” On the contrary, I find her words refreshing, though-provoking and of course, amusing!
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis lived on for 30 years after making these tapes, moving through three decades of life in which her positions grew and evolved, again not like the rest of us, but– just like the rest of us. While she may well be disagreed with, I see no reason for outright criticism.
For all the “grace, fortitude and civility” afforded to her over the past 50 years, Jackie is now, posthumously, more human than ever before. After decades of her self-imposed guardedness that lasted well beyond her death, we’re now hearing from her directly and candidly. While this may be “shocking” to some– or worse yet, “less than flattering,” we finally have a more complete picture of a beautiful, captivating– and imperfect– human being, just like the rest of us, but not.
Thank you, Jackie. And that’s my opinion.
I certainly recognize the need to adjust and monitor one’s diet in the wake of clogged arteries and bypass surgery. At the same time, I must wonder if doing so really requires foregoing all items derived from animals. Is this not taking healthy eating to the unnecessary and unenjoyable extreme? There’s plenty of “good” meat in a healthy diet, no? Even though he’s in far better health today than a decade ago, Bill is now looking TOO thin, and dare I say older than his age. At 65, he appears he could use a little…er… meat, on his bones.
Ryan R. Sanderson 