Jack Valenti, Dead at 85 650
saforrest writes "Jack Valenti, a man whose influence in both Washington and Hollywood was profound, died today at age 85. He first became famous as special assistant to Lyndon Johnson: he can even be seen in the famous photo aboard Air Force One. In 1966, he quit this job to become president of the MPAA, from 1966 to 2004."
Corrected link (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Frosty piss... (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Frosty piss... (Score:4, Interesting)
Careful! My karma was "excellent" two days ago. Then I commented on an Anonymous Coward post stating little more than "Bush. Worst. President. Ever." on a story that wasn't even about Bush getting modded "+5 Insightful." By the end of the day, my Karma was "Terrible". Read my sig for opinion of opinionated Mods. Read my Journal for SlashDot rules. Look at my Karma to see how well they are followed.
Just my experience. May the mods have mercy on me.
C'mon-sliders. (Score:1, Interesting)
Creeps me out too, but not for the same reason it does you. Take a note of all the "ding dong" comments and add up the moderation then think "there's more like them out there". A lot are in postions of trust of some kind of resource (paperclips?), or they're going to grow up and become adults in the same position. Worried? Some are going or already have children and they're going to be taught the same ways as their parents. Worried more? Throw in a society that has thrown away any boundaries because they all come from some "magic" guy and it gets worse. Slashdot is just the tip of a very large iceberg and it's not melting.
Re:I disagree (Score:1, Interesting)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/27/movies/27valenti .html?hp/ [nytimes.com]
JM
Re:C'mon (Score:2, Interesting)
This is a day I'll never forget! (Score:5, Interesting)
For only the third time, the theme of the day is "Encouraging Creativity". Let's all show Jack how creative we can be.
Slashdot editors do edit! (Score:5, Interesting)
I see both these links were removed. Did that really need to happen? Yes, we all hate Valenti, etc., etc., etc. Does this article really need to be nothing other than a collective bitchfest? The man was a big fat jerk, but do we really need to talk about nothing more than that?
In that case, here is Lord Byron's poem on Lord Castlereagh [wikipedia.org]:
out of touch (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Good (Score:1, Interesting)
Rest in peace, Jack Valenti. May you find wisdom in heaven that seemed so lacking in your life on earth.
An important reminder... (Score:5, Interesting)
Every time these organizations cycle out officers, there will be younger, 'hipper', more intelligent people taking their places.
Sometimes you just have to let a few generations die off to make progress.
Re:Perhaps it's time for YOU to think? (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Perhaps it is time to stop and think. (Score:3, Interesting)
Hitler was a person. Mussolini was a person. This is not to say that Jack Valenti is on par with Hitler, because he is not, but where do you want to draw the line between "go ahead and celebrate" and "mourn his death"?
Folks? (Score:3, Interesting)
Yes, it's refreshing to piss on the grave of people we really, really, really hate. Too bad that they don't care about it, or they might stop doing what they are doing. I mean, I for one wouldn't like to have a funeral with a ton of people coming just to check personally if I'm REALLY dead and it isn't just wishful thinking.
But I doubt that Jack cared, or that his successor will. They know we hate them. They know we'd at best offer them a glass of water if they were drowning. Still they continue. If we want them to stop, we gotta make their life miserable, not their death. They don't care about us as long as they're living, how much less do they care once they're dead?
But, you know, nothing but good about the deceased and all that, so I want to end this with something good about Jack: He was
Re:Good (Score:3, Interesting)
Forgiveness requires admission, repentance, atonement, and determination to not repeat past sins.
Depends on which brand of Christianity you subscribe to. Fundamentalist Protestants, for example, generally believe that to be forgiven by God, you just have to ask.
And a rather famous (to medieval historians, anyway) involved Emperor Henry IV begging forgiveness from Pope Gregory VII. Gregory asserted that the throne had no right to meddle in the appointment of officials to Church positions, which was a departure from prior tradition. In response, Henry called for the election of a new pope. And in response to that, Gregory excommunicated Henry.
The military situation at the time was in Gregory's favor, so to buy time and restore his political influence, Henry went to beg forgiveness from the pope, standing in the snow for three days wearing a hairshirt as penance. Since Gregory, as Pope, was required to follow the example of Jesus, he was forced to grant forgiveness to Henry and accept him back into the Church. This permitted Henry to maintain his claim to the throne of the Holy Roman Empire, which gave him the clout necessary to muster an army which invaded Rome with designs on ousting Gregory from the papacy. Gregory escaped with the help of the Normans, but when the Normans got to Rome, they didn't stop at removing Henry's forces. They sacked Rome, and the resulting outrage amongst the populace forced Gregory to flee the city.
In other words, "a determination to not repeat past sins" is not a requirement for forgiveness, not even from the Pope.
How we managed to get the subject from Jack Valenti to the Holy Roman Empire, though, is a mystery to me.....
Re:I know he was detestable, but.. (Score:2, Interesting)
He was also a pilot in WWII before he turned his strong convictions towards "protecting" an albeit sour industry.
I guess my point is, you're lowering yourself to his level when you fling hate towards him at his death, rather than ignore or forgive him. Far better to show you are human (unlike him, as you say) and forgive or let be, than to become like the monster he was in life.