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Monday, February 28, 2011

Slain Congressional Staffer Tribute Video: "Roger and Out"


In Memory of Our Friend Gabe Zimmerman:
"As close to a purely good human being as I've ever known."


On January 8, Congressional staffer Gabe Zimmerman and five others died when a gunman opened fire at U.S. Representative Gabrielle Gifford's "Congress on Your Corner" event in Tucson, Arizona.

Congresswoman's Gabrielle Giffords organization released a video last Friday in honor of staffer Gabe Zimmerman, a Neil Young fan who passed away in the Tucson tragedy. He would have been 31 on Friday.

This video is set to Neil Young's song, "Roger and Out."

The video features a montage of photos and was posted on Giffords' Facebook page.

"We are thinking of our friend and colleague, Gabe Zimmerman, who would have turned 31 today," the posting said. "Though cut far too short, we honor a life well-lived. Our thoughts are with his family."

Many thanks Jonathan. What a friend you had indeed in Gabe. Our deepest sympathies.

10 comments:

  1. Thrash, you thanked Jonathan for this and expressed sympathy. Is this our Jonathan?? The video was so touching and the song was the perfect choice. What a horrible, unnecessary tragedy. So sorry to you for your loss Jonathan.

    Sandy

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  2. Very well done. My deepest condolences. Say no to guns.
    Jim
    Try to Remember Peace

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  3. Beautiful tribute. Deepest condolences.

    Geoff

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  4. Mother Nature on the Run2/28/2011 11:39:00 PM

    Kind of a nice thought to think Gabe was one of the many young people who found meaning and purpose while living with war. He was just 26 when it came out.

    Was he the Gabe who left comments?Our hearts are breaking for his family and friends.

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  5. Why do so may good people have to die so young?

    Nice tribute


    Stringman

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  6. @Sandy - no, not "our" Jonathan. This Jonathan was a colleague of Gabe.

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  7. "I dream about Billy. At first I liked having the dreams because I didn't think about what they meant. And I got to see Billy, his face, so clearly. I still see his face, usually his young face, his kid face more real than any photograph or memory. My sense of him is so strong I think he must be coming through from some completely foreign zone, a zone free of interference and boundaries. A zone that is out of this world. I wake up sweating, scared. Then I tell myself the clarity may be a direct correlative of how alive Billy is, how desperate he feels, how hard he's trying to get through.

    But in the dreams, Billy isn't desperate. He's just himself. I'm the one who is afraid, who knows something terrible might happen, has happened, will happen. I'm the one who can't stop it from happening."
    --Jayne Anne Phillips from Machine Dreams

    So terribly sad...thank you for a wonderful tribute to your friend. I travel often to Tucson and have been there probably fifteen times over the past four years. My dad was stationed at Davis-Monthan AFB for a time during WWII and his younger sister lived there for the last seven years of her life...so there's a family connection to this great and unique city.

    I'll be in Tucson again soon and will be thinking of Gabe and these other brave Americans. You're in my thoughts now and I'll take a walk down Congress Street in tribute to your sacrifice. Like the lightning in a desert storm during monsoon season, your flash was something that will never be forgotten.

    When I return, I have plans to visit San Xavier del Bac Mission and say a prayer for my dad and my aunt, who both loved this place so much. I'll say one for Gabe as well and hope that his spirit has found peace.

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  8. Maybe i'm too stupid to understand, but is there anybody who can explain me the following :

    the Belgian choir "Scala" will perform in the USA. One of the songs they cover is Radiohead's "Creep". They have to change the lyrics, cause the "f******" is not allowed on stage in the US of A.
    On the other hand, you buy a gun or any other weapon, and no one raises any question or doubt about your intentions ????

    try to explain that to your kids....

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  9. "Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear--not absence of fear."
    --Mark Twain

    "...I began to learn more about fear. As soon as fear begins to ascend...you come to believe you are part of a horrible experiment. Words and meanings were at odds. Words did not say what was being said nor even its reverse."
    --Don DeLillo from Americana

    Love and Mercy that's
    What you need tonight
    So Love and Mercy to
    You and your friends tonight
    --Brian Wilson

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  10. Perfect tribute...brought tears to my eyes. It boggles the mind how Neil Young's music can fit any occasion and is timeless. We lose too many young and bright people...far too many.

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