In 1984, I was 22 and a year into my first post-college job at an investment bank. That summer, I worked and became friendly with William Kennedy Smith whose mother Jean was the younger sister of John, Robert, and Ted Kennedy. Mine was a permanent job, but his was an internship, so our connection ended with the summer. Some years later, he gained notoriety as an acquitted defendant in a criminal trial. This post is about the summer of 1984, and I have nothing to say about that later incident.
It's an interesting story, but I suspect your personal experience shades it more than a little. Today, 2023, there are millions of voters who might even ask, "Kennedy?" Those of us of a certain age have strong memories, but some of us do not and younger voters even less so. Add to that the present bias magnified by social media, and I suspect Mr. Kennedy will be disappointed that his family name does not carry the weight it once did.
Great story, David! And, I don’t blame you for feeling intimidated, especially since you didn’t know William all that well. It must have felt like you were treading water most of the time! (I can’t believe you picked up the card about Bobby’s death. 😳)
And, I HATE water skiing! I can’t do it either, and I don’t know why the people who can think the people who really aren’t interested are going to love it. I remember going with a friend to downhill ski. It was basically a place where a large river must have run centuries ago, and now there was a relatively “small” one, and the so-called slope was off the side of the ravine. So, once you got to the bottom, you needed t be pretty good at snow plowing, turning, or falling before getting to the river. Needless to say, I hung out on the bunny slope off to the side.
I just listened to a very interesting podcast on Bobby Kennedy. It’s a two parter, and I thought the first part was quite sympathetic to his relationship with his family vs his public persona. The second one, not so much.
It's an interesting story, but I suspect your personal experience shades it more than a little. Today, 2023, there are millions of voters who might even ask, "Kennedy?" Those of us of a certain age have strong memories, but some of us do not and younger voters even less so. Add to that the present bias magnified by social media, and I suspect Mr. Kennedy will be disappointed that his family name does not carry the weight it once did.
His website seems to be prominently leaning on the Kennedy name so polling probably suggests it’s still relevant with many voters.
The Kennedy family has its fingerprints on NYC, when you take the RFK bridge to JFK airport.
Another great piece. The Kennedy weekend from summer of '84 would make a really good short story (or movie).
Great story, David! And, I don’t blame you for feeling intimidated, especially since you didn’t know William all that well. It must have felt like you were treading water most of the time! (I can’t believe you picked up the card about Bobby’s death. 😳)
And, I HATE water skiing! I can’t do it either, and I don’t know why the people who can think the people who really aren’t interested are going to love it. I remember going with a friend to downhill ski. It was basically a place where a large river must have run centuries ago, and now there was a relatively “small” one, and the so-called slope was off the side of the ravine. So, once you got to the bottom, you needed t be pretty good at snow plowing, turning, or falling before getting to the river. Needless to say, I hung out on the bunny slope off to the side.
I just listened to a very interesting podcast on Bobby Kennedy. It’s a two parter, and I thought the first part was quite sympathetic to his relationship with his family vs his public persona. The second one, not so much.
Here’s a link in case you’re interested: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-re-education-with-eli-lake/id1619523910?i=1000610421087