Thursday, August 03, 2006

Bertrand Russell's Long and Well-Placed Life

The great Bertrand Russell was born in 1872. He died in 1970 a few months before he would have turned 98. He died not of "natural causes" exactly; he died of the flu.

Not only is that a long life, especially for someone born in 1872, but it crosses so many major changes in the world. The world in 1970 is amazingly different from the world in 1872. Think about the technological, political, and social changes.

If he was born in 1872, he probably remembers things from 1880 and maybe even before that. Can you imagine?

On top of that, think about the work of Russell. Think about the things he said and did. This was a man who was born in 1872!! How many of his peers were this progressive and this effective at being progressive?

Someone needs to make a movie about this man's life. He has had a number of biographical works written about him. I haven't read any of them. Maybe one of them is ripe for a screenplay? No? Please? Someone?

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