I rarely get choked up at the passing of an associate, friend or close family member. I am philosophical about death, and have little internal “Quickisms” that keep me from the distraction of grief (Like: He’s dead? More for the rest of us!) So I was surprised to find myself a little choked up by the passing of Saddam Hussein. Not as choked up as Saddam himself, but choked up nonetheless.
Saddam had some little quirks, but he also had some very inspiring qualities that I draw on daily. And he left us with some very important lessons (like, if you’re gonna act like someone with WMDs, you better have some WMDs. And an extra stash off-premise in case that little snoop Hans Glick finds the first stash).
Many people forget that Saddam also had many good qualities. But I’m not going to waste valuable time better spent plundering and conquering (Saddam would have wanted it this way), I will leave the touching eulogy in the hands of poet and philosopher Steve Martin, who put it into words even nearly better than my own:
OH, My SADDAM by Steve Martin
Oh, my Saddam, how I loved your funny little ways. The way you held your teacup; the way you enjoyed those who coaxed a smile from you. I love that you found a way to exist in this mixed up world, how you thought, “why be mean when you can be nice?” Saddam, I will miss the way you would point to someone and then they would be dead, the way your puppy Pluto became a rug… Continue reading at Steve’s blog…
Fare well, Saddam. Thanks for leaving me your legacy and thanks for all the no-bid contracts. I’m sure some day soon we’ll be together, though not too soon.
I’ll see you on that great veranda in the sky… or elsewhere…
Richard Quick, Esq.
The People’s Millionaire
