is how many of the ones crying "you're so mean!" are the folks who regularly point fingers and call others nasty names in these pages. They are themselves no strangers to the kind of ugly bigotry that Helms made popular, but let people who are different from them take a single opportunity to lambast a monster, and suddenly they're on the side of civility.

As Captain Buck Murdoch said, "I guess irony can be pretty ironic."

Conservatives use their political power to irrationally and sadistically inflict pain on people they dislike - liberals, the poor, blacks, gays, environmentalists, drug users, etc. Why then should they expect the victims of this hate to respond to the death of a conservative icon with tea and sympathy?

Clearly there is a difference between irrational hatred and justified hate. Unfortunately, conservatives - as well as many liberals it would seem - would have us believe that irrational hatred is justified and justified hate is irrational.

What a pompous, treacherous, hypocritical bastard.

Good riddance.

"Jesse Helms was a kind, decent, and humble man and a passionate defender of what he called "the Miracle of America." So it is fitting that this great patriot left us on the Fourth of July. He was once asked if he had any ambitions beyond the United States Senate. He replied: 'The only thing I am running for is the Kingdom of Heaven.' Today, Jesse Helms has finished the race, and we pray he finds comfort in the arms of the loving God he strove to serve throughout his life."

— President Bush.

"While I think some of the comments in the letters are mean-spirited, those of you calling for civility should consider Helms' example. From comments like "she's not your garden variety lesbian" to saying President Clinton would need a body guard to come to NC, Helms was unsparing in his attacks on people who disagreed with him or didn't live by his "principles." I'm not sure he'd be any more civil than some of those here if his ideological opposite had been the one who died."

He lived a disgusting, ugly life. His political career was based on the destruction of 3 or 4 men by vicious racist, homophobic and jingoistic garbage.

When a person dies, we should celebrate his life in all the manner in which it was lived. I'm going to go take a shit. That's the best way to celebrate the life and accomplishments of this repulsive asshole.

Before you compare the nasty comments about Helms with what he said and did, you need to remember that none of us had the power to anything that would diminish his life in any way. On the other hand, Helms's words and actions had a very real affect on many people's lives to this very day and dancing on his grave is a small consolation.

As someone who lived in NC for almost all of Helms' "service," I have three comments with respect to this article and the letters about it:

1. There was a cognitive dissonance to Helms' graciousness that was revealed in spades come election time, i.e., he would lie, cheat, and steal to hold on to power. For example, when running against Jim Hunt in 1984, one of his ads included a chart of NC tax revenues under Hunt's governorship. Revenues increased dramatically over this range because- in a large part thanks to Hunt- NC was growing rapidly in terms of both overall population and new businesses opening shop (most notably in Research Triangle Park where companies like IBM and predecessors of GlaxoSmithKline established large presences). In the ad, however, rather than crediting Hunt with helping to fuel the growth the ad deceitfully and incorrectly claimed that these were tax increases that occurred under Hunt. And if things were really tight, he could always be counted on for a late-in-the-campaign underhanded surprise, like the now famous "white hands- you had to give your job to a minority" ad run against Harvey Gantt in 1990. These are just a couple of numerous examples of ads designed to appeal to the lowest common denominator and give that slice of the populace considering taking the high road for a change excuses for staying in the ditch. To me, cognitive dissonances like this equal disingenuousness to the extreme. When self-righteousness is another ingredient, it becomes the hypocrisy so typical in ideologues. You can't be gracious part-time and genuinely be gracious.

2. This is your typical posthumous, sugar-coated article where they have gone to the deceased's disciples for their information without doing any further research. Take, for example, this statement: "He ... was in the Navy during World War II." Sounds great, doesn't it? In NC it was well known to those willing to listen that Helms' was stationed in NC for the whole of WWII where he served as a "radio recruiter." That's not to say he didn't serve his country, but considering the sacrifices made by others it's at least worth some qualification.

3. While I think some of the comments in the letters are mean-spirited, those of you calling for civility should consider Helms' example. From comments like "she's not your garden variety lesbian" to saying President Clinton would need a body guard to come to NC, Helms was unsparing in his attacks on people who disagreed with him or didn't live by his "principles." I'm not sure he'd be any more civil than some of those here if his ideological opposite had been the one who died.

North Carolina's last "great white hope"

Finally reached the end of his old Dixieland rope

He left this world with the rancid scent

Of pork rinds on his breath

While America celebrated its independence

And the glad tidings

Of his long overdue death.

For what it's worth, I'm a straight white male, and I'm pleased as punch that right now the Hounds of Hell are feasting on that bastard's entrails.

It's the bestest 232nd birthday present ever.

And for anyone wrapped up in the notion that this is a terrible way to act after another human being has died, I refer you to Hunter S. Thompson's obit of Richard Nixon: http://www.theatlantic.com/unbound/graffiti/crook.htm

Anything less than outright glee right now would dishonor the man. He was a racist, homophobic scumbag of the worst order. Let's never forget it.