Vaclav Havel, Dissident Playwright Who Led Czechoslovakia, Dead at 75

[xchrom]

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/19/world/europe/vaclav-havel-dissident-playwright-who-led-czechoslovakia-dead-at-75.html?_r=1&ref=global-home

PRAGUE — Vaclav Havel, the dissident playwright who wove theater into politics to peacefully bring down communism in Czechoslovakia and become a hero of the epic struggle that ended the Cold War, has died. He was 75.

Mr. Havel died Sunday morning at his weekend house in the northern Czech Republic, his assistant Sabina Tancecova said said.

Mr. Havel was his country’s first democratically elected president after the nonviolent “Velvet Revolution” that ended four decades of repression by a regime he ridiculed as “Absurdistan.”

As president, he oversaw the country’s bumpy transition to democracy and a free-market economy, as well its peaceful 1993 breakup into the Czech Republic and Slovakia.






*** sir, you are gone too soon

[90-percent]

1. Vaclev was a hardcore Zappa fan.

http://www.radio.cz/en/section/curraffrs/frank-zappas-connections-to-prague

From the link above:

Then, in January 1990, Vaclav Havel appointed Frank Zappa as "Special Ambassador to the West on Trade, Culture and Tourism," much to the disgruntlement of U.S. Secretary of State, James Baker, who is famous for declaring: "You can do business with the United States or you can do business with Frank Zappa." Still, Vaclav Havel's friendship with Frank Zappa grew, and Zappa shared his ideas about increasing tourism to Czechoslovakia, and explained the concept of credit cards which were then an unknown quantity in this part of the world. It was Frank Zappa's brief interlude in the world of international trade and diplomatic relations—and the vantage-point was Prague.







Zappa eviscerated Baker’s wife Susan, along with Tipper Gore, during the national debate on rating rock records back in 1985:

http://www.theroc.org/roc-mag/textarch/roc-08/roc0816b.htm

It has been a pet semi-theory of mine that James Baker did some black op’s to Zappa’s health and Doctors that led to his premature death. Frank went to five Doctors and it was the SIXTH that found the prostate cancer, too late by that time to cure.

RIP Vaclev!


-90% Jimmy

[Odin2005]

5. Oh, that is hilarious!

[Robb]

2. RIP. A good man.

But let's not sugar coat things. There was a hell of a lot of violence leading up to the Velvet Revolution.

[kestrel91316]

6. I support the use of violence to overthrow Soviet-style communism.

Totalitarianism is never a good thing. Pacifism has its limits.

[Robb]

8. Oh, I'm down with it. Just a pet peeve of mine.

Anyone who says the Velvet Revolution was "nonviolent" wasn't in Prague in July and August. People died.

[Botany]

3. A truly great man

I visited Prague shortly after the velvet revolution and the Havel signs were everywhere.

[Odin2005]

4. RIP, Vaclav!

What is with the Czechs and the love of the absurd? This is the same country that produced Kafka.

[RZM]

7. RIP to a brave man n/t

[Botany]

9. kicked

[Fire Walk With Me]

10. His writings on humanity and freedom up to and a little into his time in office

are amazing. Being in office may have worn him down a little, at times.

I consider him a true humanitarian, a true patriot to the spirit of humanity and to freedom in general. Held in highest esteem.

If you have not read any of his essays, please press the google button on your computer as hard as you can.

RIP!

[Dewey Finn]

11. Gone much too soon.

He was a giant.

[DeathToTheOil]

12. Too soon indeed

Unlike Chickenhawk Hitchens, whose online hagiographies are wholly unwarranted.