Chappaquiddick – Lest We Forget

Gary L. Wasson

Father Time, the mythological figure that randomly bestows either a curse or a blessing, also eliminates painful memories and obscures the importance of historical events. We see today the frantic documentation of events surrounding World War II before Father Time eliminates all those specifically attached to Normandy or the invasion of Italy. Memory fades and new issues take precedence in our fast-paced society.

While discussing the Democratic Convention and those selected to address the delegates an intelligent young man brought this important aspect of our society to the forefront of my attention. A thirty year-old man during a conversation about Senator Edward Kennedy had no idea what I was referring to when I mentioned Chappaquiddick Island. He was at a complete loss when I asked him if he knew the events surrounding a young woman named Mary Jo Kopechne. In other words, Father Time is successfully eliminating the infamous date of 18 July 1969 at Chappaquiddick Island and one of the biggest cover-ups in political history.

I have no intention of taking readers back through all the thousands of pages detailing the death of Mary Jo Kopechne at the hands of Senator Edward Kennedy. The facts are available throughout the internet and published in “Senatorial Privilege”, “Death at Chappaquiddick” and “The Bridge at Chappaquiddick” so a complete rehash here of all the issues would serve nothing. It angers me to see this man publicized through the national media condemning American values and standards, belittling the current administration, and providing aid and comfort to terrorists and terror organizations. So I feel some issues need to be resurrected.

Senator Kennedy used his political position as a United States Senator and wealthy social status to exert himself above the law. The investigation was tainted and flawed. Wealthy individuals pushed their power to intimidate and break the legal system. And now, thirty-five years later, Senator Edward Kennedy stands in front of the American people naming President Bush as a failure in international policies and accusing him of perpetrating a fraud on the American people. This from a man with a reputation of alcohol abuse and womanizing. This from a man who left a young woman to die a frightening and horrible death in the back seat of his car. This from a man who hopes the American people will forget.

Lest we forget.

On the night of 18 July 1969 the Senator from Massachusetts left a party on the island of Chappaquiddick and while en route to the Edgartown ferry Kennedy drove off the Dike Bridge. That’s the story in a nutshell. But there’s a bigger nut to crack.

1. Kennedy did not report the accident until the next morning - even though a young woman was dieing in the overturned Oldsmobile.
2. The party at Chappaquiddick was attended by six unmarried females. Kennedy was married. Speaks of impropriety if not out right adultery.
3. Kennedy’s spent ten hours between the time of the “accident” and when he reported it speaking with lawyers and political associates instead of the police. Smells like a cat performing their “cover-up” to me.
4. Mary Jo Kopechne’s body was whisked away to Pennsylvania for burial without an autopsy. Interesting?

The news media issued Kennedy a “pass” with sympathetic reports on the tragic “accident”. Newspaper accounts published stories about tragedies associated with the Kennedy family. The murder of two brothers and a plane crash were used as compassionate blankets to cover-up this most recent scandal. Yes, the event damaged - even destroyed - any chance Senator Kennedy had of ever becoming President but it did not stop him from becoming one powerful Senator with anti-American liberal ideals.

I have no respect for Senator Kennedy. He has ridden on the reputation of his brothers throughout his political career. His Senate voting record has undermined American values and supported the degradation of established principals fought for by our ancestors. And more importantly he cowered to the protection of his political status and family fortune while a young woman named Mary Jo Kopechne drowned in the back seat of his car at Chappaquiddick Island.

In the eyes of this author Senator Edward Kennedy can be accused of undermining the authority of the President of the United States, defaming the reputation of America and the principals she stands for. He has stood in front of cameras and microphones spreading lies and hypocritical ideals. And regardless of all this he is still a Senator, still protected and still the cause of the death of a beautiful young woman. Let not Father Time make us forget what kind of man Senator Edward Kennedy really is.