A00066 - Mikhail Gorbachev

I was taken aback last week by the passage of Mikhail Gorbachev.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/30/world/europe/mikhail-gorbachev-dead.html 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikhail_Gorbachev 

I never met the man, but while watching BBC America and DW News (the German news program), I saw a familiar face. William Taubman, one of my Amherst College political science professors, wrote a biography of Gorbachev and was interviewed by both news programs regarding his views on the passing of Gorbachev.

https://www.npr.org/2017/09/10/547560506/gorbachev-is-a-gripping-sympathetic-and-detaile 
 
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2022/08/31/mikhail-gorbachev-biographer-taubman-00054292 

It is rather sad that a man who did so much to make this world a safer place is viewed with such disdain in his own native land. However, in Germany, he is regarded as a great hero because his actions -- his tearing down the Wall -- led to the reunification of Germany. 

Putin sadly is following in the footsteps of Stalin rather than those of Gorbachev .... and the whole world weeps. 

Have a great Labor Day. 

Everett "Skip" Jenkins
Fairfield, California 
September 5, 2022
Labor Day 

P. S. I received my Amherst College calendar for the 2022-23 academic year. The calendar provides a number of scenic pictures of the campus which bring back many fond memories of days long ago. It also notes the major American national and religious holidays. As is my custom, I typically edit the calendar by adding some major holidays of my own. Accordingly, on my Amherst College calendar for 2022-2023 I have added Henrietta Lacks Remembrance Day (August 1), United States Afghan Withdrawal Remembrance Day (August 30), 9/11 Remembrance Day (September 11), Gandhi Remembrance Day (October 2), Bernadette Soubirous Remembrance Day (January 7), Martin Luther King Remembrance Day (January 15), and Nelson Mandela Remembrance Day (July 18). Additionally, based upon what I have observed in the last six months (and the last week) I have also added Mikhail Gorbachev Remembrance Day (March 2). I think some annual remembrance of a good, decent man would be beneficial for us all.

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