IAP Political Forum

Is there any way we can save them? Would someone volunteer to compile them? It may be easier for a Mod. I would but my time is limited until Oct. 8th.

He definately set the standard for posting in this section.

He has 732 posts over at IAP, and are we talking just the ones within the P&R section?

I don't know. I know some of his posts were just simple quips or responses, but some were excellent.

Any ideas?

How long will the old IAP be up. Maybe we can flag certain posts, or threads to be saved?

Barney,

We can start a thread, and members can go through his posts and select ones to bring over themselves...so that particular posts that have a particular meaning to someone can be preserved...and maybe a short comment on why the post has meaning to them.

How's that?

we could also go in and split out all of his posts but then you would lose the content of the thread in many cases.  You see IAP is gonna be archived so it would be good to keep everything in tact. 

Good ideas, both of you - that's why I spread the positive karma to ya... ;)

thanks Barnes.... we're gonna have to copy and quote all of his posts if you like.

Maybe we could sticky it at the top of P&R as  memorial to Stephen... if we made the first post his Obit, and then following in no particular order some of the posts that made him a valued and treasured member at IAP.   Sort of like a tribute.  We would probably not have everything but members could go in and capture an essence of who he was as an individual.

What do you think about that?

This is a good idea.

we seem to be missing posts

Respect and prudence suggest that transfering pieces of his writing would be a poor idea.

While it seems appropriate to transfer the Obit thread so that people can leave messages for the fellow's family, it may be upsetting to them to see the uses to which his posts could be put.

What do you mean?

Hello
Can I introduce myself? I’m Callum, I’m Old Silver Linings son.  On the old forum somebody asked for Jenny to say what happened at the congregation in Dad’s memory, and since I’m sorting out his papers and things and am probably the most likely to carry on contributing here the lot fell on me.

The congregation was at the college chapel – with not a hint of irony.  Dad always recognised our human need for ritual and wouldn’t have minded having his send-off in a ritual place.  It was well attended by a lot of academics – all his department of course – and lots of outside friends.  Pretty full in fact.  Jenny asked Mum to sit with her in the main family row – nice gesture I thought. She’d obviously been talking and they’d arranged for her to do a reading that was very schmaltzy – about how love is what remains when you stop being ‘in love’.   There were the usual tributes from colleagues, and from some of his past students – of course he never was a proper member of staff but did loads of support and tutoring.  Some of his old business colleagues were there and one gave a nicely humorous account of a time when they worked on a project in Portugal.  Best of all was that Felipe got there from Venezuela.  He told the assembly about how Dad had paid for him (and Marana and Thoc) to get an education and how much they had all benefited – all professionals now in different disciplines.  Felipe’s a property and human rights lawyer – and Dad was SO proud of him, it just suited his anti-globalisation, anti-big-battalion views.   Apart from that we had a few musical interludes -  a movement from one of the Brandenburgs (the one with flute and violin… can’t remember which now) and Nimrod for us all to wipe tears away and a tongue-in-cheek record of Hi Ho Silver Lining (he always rued missing the hippy revolution!). 

That’s it.  He was a good guy.  Super Dad – taught me all he knew and ruined my life (joke) by making interested in philosophy (this was years before he went back to college to study formally).  Always had quite a rivalry to get equal qualifications!  But I reckon his degree was better since he got it in his 60s – its easier thinking when you’re younger – well it looks like that now I’m older.   He didn’t indoctrinate though, I have to say – Alison’s almost a NUN.  And Jenny’s kids are all different in their views, and we all think that he was the main influence on our lives – I don’t quite get how he managed to help each of us develop in our own way.  Certainly find it hard to be one thing to one of my kids and something different to the other.  I suppose Dad was just himself and was open and supportive and just let us fly.

Jenny sends her regards and wishes you all well.

Callum


By the way, on the question of saving some of his posts (the better ones I hope!)  I think we would be honoured if you did that, and I don’t think any honest people would pay attention if some asses tried to screw up his memory. 

By the way again, I just tried to get to the second page of one of these topics and the link doesn’t work properly.  I think it needs a ‘.html’ putting on the end.  In fact I think I’ve something to write on that topic. 

The owner of the site is aware of the problem.

I am thinking of what to do with regards to your Dad's obit and his posts (bringing them on over)...but the problem with the site right now makes me hesitate at the moment.

Welcome Callum, and if you intend on carrying the baton for your Dad, you have some very big shoes to fill indeed.

Wow, how on Earth did I miss this?