[Silur]

Personally I feel much more offended for being silenced on account of "not speaking ill of the dead", etc, than of someone telling me that a person, deceased or otherwise, is not to their liking. This is even more true in the case of public figures, since their effect on society and the world around us is so much more profound. As I stated in the thread regarding what constitutes a great person, the above mentality has prevailed for numerous years regarding the late Swedish prime minister Palme. The fact that I despise the man doesn't change because he's dead, but for some reason it is not acceptable to say so. In the case of Reagan, my sentiment at the time of his presidency was that he was the single worst thing to have happened in global politics since Maggie Thatcher. That also has not changed because he's dead. In fact, the only thing that puts him in a slightly better light is GW Bush.

There is a strange hippocrisy regarding death in western society, where even the worst of people get portrayed in a better light when dead. In most cases the obituaries of despicable individuals are nothing but insults to those who have suffered at their mercy. The only conselation is that the person is in fact dead and can't cause you any further harm. I do not wish death upon anyone, but there are quite a few I simply will not mourn for.