Gene...

1916-2005

Growing up, the question of whether or not Jesus saved souls might have been a matter of family debate in the Dale household, but we all agreed that FDR had saved the country. The Democratic Party, more than anything else, was the family faith. At campaign time, it was never a question of which party, but of which Democrat. The first time I made that choice for myself, it was Gene McCarthy.

Getting 'clean for Gene' wasn't that big a challenge for me, really. My dad wouldn't let me wear my hair much longer than the campaign preferred and my mom made sure I had clean clothes. We didn't stop the war that year, or dump the Hump, or really accomplish much of anything we set out to. Sadly, the '68 primary campaign will always be defined more by the havoc in Daley's Chicago than by the legions of Gene McCarthy's "children's crusade."

Still, there was a time. And it was a time.

RIP, Gene, and thanks...