Color me impressed, but I got my knowledge on and Betty Ford was, by all accounts, a refreshingly candid, blunt, honest and principled woman. Her Wikipedia page had the following summation from the NY Times and several Presidential historians:
"Mrs. Ford's impact on American culture may be far wider and more lasting than that of her husband, who served a mere 896 days, much of it spent trying to restore the dignity of the office of the president." The paper went on to describe her as "a product and symbol of the cultural and political times—doing the Bump along the corridors of the White House, donning a mood ring, chatting on her CB radio with the handle First Mama—a housewife who argued passionately for equal rights for women, a mother of four who mused about drugs, abortion and premarital sex aloud and without regret."
In the days of endless media spin and cable news nonsense, I think too many people change themselves and their image to fit the expectations of the media message machine, the days of people in the public eye who aren't afraid to speak their minds is probably fading fast. If only people could be more like Betty Ford... and for that, and many other reasons, she'll be missed.
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