We viewed Kennedy through rose-colored glasses

Am I the only one who's absolutely aghast by our politicians and the media's sanctimonious praise of now departed Sen. Kennedy? Listening to the media blather and reading all the politicians' quotations being foisted on the masses makes me wonder when Sen. Teddy's canonization will begin.

Why has no one in the media thought to ask the Kopechne family about how they feel about the late senator?

Remember back in 1969, when the already-married Senator Teddy drove the Kopechnes' young daughter and Kennedy campaign assistant Mary Jo off a Chappaquiddick, Mass., bridge?

Then instead of trying to save her, Kennedy swam ashore to save himself, leaving poor Mary Jo to drown, but it was even worse than that. It was nine hours before he reported the accident.

Had you or I done what Kennedy did, we'd have been branded by the media as a coward and completely dishonored, arrested and carted off to jail for manslaughter to deservedly serve time. Instead, the goofy people of Massachusetts re-elected him.

Why the people of Massachusetts believed that this demonstratively dishonorable man was the best available Senate candidate and repeatedly re-elected him, from among the millions of honorable state residents, surely must rank as one of the saddest episodes in Massachusetts history.

But at least Chappaquiddick forever ended Kennedy's dreams for the U.S. presidency. However, now that he's died, the media and the politicians forget this pitiful episode and want to canonize him. Poor Michael Vick is vilified by all for killing dogs, but Kennedy is now touted as a real American hero. What a Country!

Albert J. Dzermejko

Gilberts