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by t1m 3503 days ago
I am reeling.

Leonard's music had an uncanny sense of timing, both musical and cultural. He referenced the external, political world, indirectly - not through selfishly inward bullshit, like many of his contemporaries, but by sifting it through relationships with others and his relationship to the divine.

As I am writing this, the next article in hackernews is about Peter Thiel and his ascension to whatever office he is seeking in Trump's cabinet. His views on the damage women and minorities have done to Libertarianism (whatever that is), and how democracy is shit are well known, and I will let you judge how Palantir has benefited humanity.

The thing that gets me is his straight faced desire for immortality. Note that he doesn't wish for immortality for someone who is great, he wishes it for himself.

RIP Leonard. You already are immortal.

1 comments

Way to use someone's death for political purposes. Aren't you ashamed of yourself? (Note to mods: trying to be really civil here, but come on!)
He was merely demonstrating the contrast between two people and doing so politely and in an eloquent way, whether you agree with him or not why should the mods be involved? And why should he be ashamed of himself/herself..
It was done rather insensibly, but that's an opinion too.
He was using a man's death as a soapbox to criticize Thiel's political leanings. If you don't find that problematic, I'm not sure what to tell you.
I think you're both right. Which means best to leave it alone and move on IMHO. The first sentence of his post about Cohen is nicely put, "uncanny timing" and all that. Then he spoiled it with a whiny point on politics.

Cohen said something funny about his time spent meditating at a zen buddhist monastery in the hills. He said of the experience that "on a superficial level it basically gets you to stop whining"..."it makes whining the least appropriate response to suffering".*

* From his last interview, audio here: http://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/leonard-cohen-...

Wrong thread for that man, come on.