Do you think it would be possible for folks in this area to tone down the Tim Russert gushfest just a little? Looking at print and TV, people have been eulogizing this man to the point of deifying him. Let’s be rational here. We all thought it was terrible that he died so young and so suddenly, but he was a journalist, folks. A journalist who happened to be from Buffalo, who happened to host a nationally televised program, and who liked to inject his cheers for the local sports teams in his signoffs. We expect his family and dearest friends to have many good things to say about him, and that’s reasonable.

But all I have heard from other people since his death is how we should start re-naming streets and buildings after him. One writer in the 6/29 opinion page of the Buffalo News thinks we should name the airport after him. Are you kidding? Why stop there? Why not erect a giant, golden statue of Russert in Niagara Square? Then people can have their children dance in circles around it, throwing flower petals at its feet.

This region’s obsession with anyone from Buffalo who happens to have a modicum of success outside of here borders on ridiculous. There are so many people who still live here who contribute greatly to society, yet the ones who obtain some national exposure are endlessly paraded in front of us. Whatever one’s opinion of Russert’s journalism was, it was always trumped by the fact that he was from Buffalo. And because he would say “go Bills” during football season, some people thought he was the greatest son this city has ever had. And these same people would admit to never having met this man!

Enough is enough now. He may have been a great guy to have a beer with, but he was a journalist. Had he cured a major disease or saved the country from some terrible tragedy, this marathon of eulogies would be slightly less absurd. Look at the Sunday death notices in the News; any one of those names as worthy of public mourning as Russert? If they were celebrities, perhaps.

By the way, I never met the man myself. But something tells me he would not have been so giddy about Buffalo had he actually lived here the last 25 years.

Bill Berryman
Kenmore