I thought that the services surrounding the funeral of Ted Kennedy were beautiful, affording an insight into what is great about our country. Members of both parties came together for a common reason and the public acknowledgment of gratitude for the service a great person in the history of our nation. It highlighted a great deal about our country and I think provided an opportunity for moving forward in a direction Ted Kennedy would like. Not necessarily a liberal direction but more of working to together through differences to accomplish what is best for our country and our fellow citizens, to make the best United States possible for all it’s citizens and the world.
Unfortunately I think the media missed an opportunity to appropriately acknowledge the service and sacrifice of the Kennedy family in our nation’s history past and to look to the future of the role of this family in our country with optimism and hope. Both of the things would have honored Ted Kennedy even more because both of these were things he valued and believed in, acknowledgement and understanding of the past and hope for a brighter future. Specifically this opportunity was lost due to the consistent theme in the coverage I watched of "the end of an era" and frequent references to "the three brothers reunited."
There were more than three brothers reunited when Ted Kennedy passed away, not once did I hear reference to the oldest brother, Joe Kennedy Jr., who unfortunately died 19 years before any of the other brothers. Although Joe did not have the chance to serve our country by holding public office he served it in the most admirable way possible and made the ultimate sacrifice, serving in our military and dying in battle.
Joe graduated from Harvard in 1938, and was a delegate at the 1940 Democratic National Convention. After World War II broke out Joe opted to forgo his final year of law school at Harvard to instead join the navy and undertake flight training. Joe piloted Naval bombers for two tours of duty and underwent 25 bombing missions during 1943 and 1944. After the winter of 1944 having performed two tours of duty Joe was eligible to return home but instead volunteered for Operation Aphrodite.
Operation Aphrodite was a series of bombing runs by explosive-laden aircraft piloted by a skeleton crew who would parachute from the aircraft after pointing to a target and prior to detonation. After U.S. Army Air Forces Operation missions were drawn up on July 23, 1944, Kennedy and Lt. Wilford John Willy were designated as the first Navy flight crew to undertake such a mission. Kennedy and Willy were assigned to pilot a BQ-8 aircraft loaded with 21,170 pounds of explosives, it was to be used as a human piloted guided missile against a Nazi V-3 Cannon site in Mimoyecques, France. Ten minutes prior to reaching the target and planned crew bailout the explosives prematurely detonated killing pilots Kennedy and Willy.
The Navy's informal board of review rejected the possibility of the pilot erroneously arming the circuitry early and suspected jamming or a stray signal could have armed and detonated the explosives. An electronics officer had warned Kennedy of this possibility the day before the mission. Kennedy's body was never recovered; he was after his death awarded the Navy Cross, the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal. His Navy Cross Citation reads:
For extraordinary heroism and courage in aerial flight as pilot of a United States Liberator bomber on August 12, 1944. Well knowing the extreme dangers involved and totally unconcerned for his own safety, Kennedy unhesitatingly volunteered to conduct an exceptionally hazardous and special operational mission. Intrepid and daring in his tactics and with unwavering confidence in the vital importance of his task, he willingly risked his life in the supreme measure of service and, by his great personal valor and fortitude in carrying out a perilous undertaking, sustained and enhanced the finest traditions of the United States Naval Service.
I think the three brothers would have wanted the heroic actions of the older brother acknowledged and recognized. He put himself in a high-risk situation fighting for our country and deserves to be remembered and not forgotten.
In framing the historic moment the media opted to view it as an end of an era, discounting the surviving members of the Kennedy family and their potential to further serve our country and impact the evolution of the story of our country. Already there is a surviving member of the family serving public office, another has done so before and could again. Other family members are involved in diverse ways to serve the citizens of our country, be it mental health, environment or assisting people with basic needs.
During the coverage it was evident that there are many Kennedy’s surviving of all ages all with potential to positively impact our country. The grandchildren were eloquent and inspiring, and the entire family generous in sharing their loss of a person they loved but the public also mourned due to admiration and respect. To say that the era is over discounts the surviving family members and their ability to impact our country. This is not fair to the remaining family members both young and old, based on past and present service and the sacrifices of this family for our country and it’s people, to imply that their time of positively benefiting our country is over is not just.