A genuinely nice guy

You know, when Reagan died back in June, 2004, they had a state funeral and all that, but somehow, I don't recall people remembering Reagan with the same fond words I've heard used when discussing Jerry Ford this past week.

It's as if people are realizing that he might have been the last decent Republican elected to the Presidency. The last for a long time. On the Democratic side, I think Jimmy Carter will receive the same across-the-board admiration when he's gone.

In retrospect, except for a few partisan jibes at Bill Clinton in the 1990s, Ford stayed out of the Republican bile-fest that represented the Reagan and Bushes years. He was a genuinely good guy who did what he could to do good without doing harm.

There will be a serious shortage of such guys in the future.

Maybe there always was.