October 14, 2006

What's missing?

Here are the first 188 words of former Congressman Gerry Studds' obituary in the New York Times. What's left out?

Gerry Studds Dies at 69; First Openly Gay Congressman
By DAMIEN CAVE

Gerry E. Studds, the first openly gay member of Congress and a demanding advocate for New England fishermen and for gay rights, died early Saturday at Boston University Medical Center, his husband [sic] said.

The cause was a vascular illness that led Mr. Studds to collapse while walking his dog on Oct. 3 in Boston. He was 69.

From 1973 to 1997, Mr. Studds (whose first name was pronounced GAIR-ee) represented the Massachusetts district where he grew up, covering Cape Cod and the barnacled old fishing towns near the coast. He was the first Democrat to win the district in 50 years, and over the course of 12 terms, he sponsored several laws that helped protect local fisheries and create national parks along the Massachusetts shore.

A former Foreign Service officer with degrees from Yale, he was also a leading critic of President Ronald Reagan’s clandestine support of the Contra rebels in Nicaragua. He staunchly opposed “Star Wars,” or the Strategic Defense Initiative, which Mr. Studds once described as “the Edsel of the 1980’s” — overpriced and oversold. [More]

"Protect local fisheries" -- that's definitely what leaps first to mind in these days of the Foley Follies when you hear the name "Gerry Studds"!


My published articles are archived at iSteve.com -- Steve Sailer

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