Someone Needs To Ask, Might as well be me

[peckery]

Reagan's state funeral this past week was the first state funeral for a president since LBJ. No argument he was one of the greater presidents we have had, and history will certainly bear this out.. Most of us can agree on this.
Now, having said that, does anyone else feel that the whole four day thing was a little over the top? If he were a sitting president I think it would of been appropriate but not for a retired president. Just the cost alone of the fly bys is more than we will all make in the next 10 years. Closing down the government for a day? More money than I can imagine. From what I have heard on the radio and television, the Reagans had planned the services all out ahead of time down to dignitary seating charts. It just struck me as a little over the top.
Again, no disrespect here AT ALL. (I once met him even at his office in Century City in the elevator. Very nice man) Is it that a bigger than life man needs a bigger than life send off??

[MDF3530]

Apparently, each President, when they take office, is given a choice of funerals to be paid for by, you guessed it, the taxpayers. Even Nixon's funeral was covered. Reagan apparently wanted one with all the bells & whistles.

[maisky]

The others can do what they want, but I will settle for a simple one with only 3 days of drinking and orgies in celebration....

[Kassia]

Nixon could have had all the bells and whistles too, but he stopped himself. Said that he didnt want "all those Washington types looking down on him."

how did the Peckery and the Gipper get together??

[Sea Dog]

Actually as far as State Funerals go that was pretty low key. Most funerals in Arlington get the caisson and firing party, I think Flag Officers get the band. those of us who are a little older that remember the JFK and Churchill funerals can add some details but they had bunches of band, platoons of Heads of State, Ambassadors, VIPs, marching military units from several countries, etc. It was less than Eisenhower, MacArthur, and Bradley got. Even Mother Teresa got a bigger parade for her funeral and she got a gun carriage instead of just a caisson. Even had the gun on it. Go back and look at the funerals for Lord Mountbatten and Lady Di.

From http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/funerals.htm

Arlington is the only cemetery in the world that offers on a regular basis a "full" military honors funeral, available at the families request to officers and warrant officers. A full honors service
consists of a procession to the gravesite with a horse drawn caisson, a marching band, a marching escort of troops, and a four man color guard. The chaplain joins the procession as well, in front of the caisson, and behind the escort, band, and color guard. Once at the gravesite, the service is identical to the standard honors service above, with the exception that the band plays while the casket is taken to the grave and while the flag is being folded, the entire element that makes up the full honors ceremony remains throughout the service.

Just be glad the idea that a funeral train was appropriate didn't take root and come to fruition. Instead of four hours from DC to Simi Valley it would have been at least 4-5 days. Actually I think a funeral train would have been interesting.

[SCShamrock]

I think, Peckery, that what really gets the attention of folks conscientiously aware of government spending in a situation like this is the new (a relative term) form of news coverage that started with the OJ Simpson trial. 25 hours a day, all news all the time. It's just like 9-11, the war in Iraq, hurricanes, etc. Each news outlet refuses to be outdone by another, so they keep dragging it on and on and on and on and on and on and on, oh boy!!!

So far a Reagan's out-processing goes, I admit it was a little pricey. But at the same time, here was a man respected not only by most Americans for how he served them, but for much of the world and how he served it. Personally, I think Reagan did more to serve all of mankind than any president in history. I grew up going to schools with bomb shelters and being told horrific stories about what the USSR could, and would do to us. RR was the man in office when all that changed. So yea, he deserved it----IMHO.

[Kassia]

Pricey for DC and the CHP but not much more. Remember all the military and most of the cops were on regular work days, they would be training or flying etc. So there wasn't a whole lot expended that wouldn't have been expended in this or the next quarter anyway.

[Annabelle]

I didn't think Reagan's was over the top. It's normal to have a fly over, so what!
JFK's funeral was far more elaborate to me than Reagan's.
I'm with Maisky, give me a good bar brawel anyday! And everyone talk about how crazy I was and I'll be happy, actually since I won't hear any of it do you think I'll really care?"
I'll be sitting in heaven looking down on my crazy friends with a glass of wine laughing at all of the funny lies they will be telling about me.