Another One Bites the Dust

Today marks William Safire’s last Op-Ed piece article for the New York Times, and the paper has set up a lovely multimedia farewell to him online. Even readers are encouraged to get in on the good cheer and offered the chance to “share memories of the columnist.” We thought it might be nice to share some of their moving tributes below.
From Rajivshorey:
Outright thugs in the administration and out of it like Mr Safire are responsible for the utterly venal and criminal policy on Iraq war.
From farmhand07:
Think of all the good he could have done if he had just stayed with selling refrigerators. Instead he used his “salesman” writing style to foist and then prop up the most reprehensible figures in recent American politics. Agnew, Nixon, et al.
Good riddance.
From krome9:
Safire’s logic was sometimes just missing and most times corrupt.
From richeeboyee:
You’re a hell of a liar – good riddance.
From jazztenor:
Mmmmm…interesting illustration by Barry Blitt of Safire’s self-important melodramatic farewell…
Are we to surmise he is jumping into an empty pool?

From rfs181:
Our past remains with us, even as we move on, and yours is tainted with Nixon, Watergate, the connection of Iraq to 9/11, and attacks on the “enemies”. Your hypocracy and mangled logic is part of your history, and perhaps you can learn to match facts with your theories in your new life.
Although you would prefer to be known as a “political pundit”, you have always been a partisan hatchet man, with pretty words, but ugly thoughts. We all have our baggage, but yours was to color up an otherwise ugly side of American politics. You did it for Nixon and George W. with lovely words, but history will connect you to two of our worst presidents and our saddest times as a nation. You made your choice, and you will need to live with it. Best of luck in the future.
From neilrmurray1:
The NY Whore Times’ standards are pretty low, which is why an ignorant, biased and dishonest columnist like Safliar (and his successor, Brooks) could thrive on your pages…
From dean_becker:
You weren’t the most despicable of the right wing testilyers (it was close), just the most accessible through this forum.
I’m sure the NYT will find somebody worse to take your place.
From andonumajiri:
Well, another Likud propagandist bites the dust. Why not just hire Netanyahu or Sharon and be up front about it?
From dpkilian:
How to Read a Column? Woe unto us that Mr. Safire did not follow his advice or write the flip side to this one: How We Write Them To Make Our Point (And It’s Not the One You Think).