My jaw literally dropped when I heard this. I won’t even try to introduce it, just listen to it for yourself and be prepared to use both hands to hoist that jaw of yours back up.

I really, really wasn’t going to say anything bad about Ted Kennedy after the sad news of his passing.. I contemplated posting something short, just to pass along my thoughts, prayers, and condolences to the Kennedy family for their loss. I know that losing any loved one is difficult, and even despite the political differences I had with Ted Kennedy, I still respect his humanity and the pain that his family must be going through because of his death. But in the end, I decided against it; I didn’t think I should say anything, because this is a political blog and I didn’t think he should be dragged into political issues now that he’s gone (a la the way the Democrats are now trying to invoke his memory in order to pass their massive health care bills.)

But after hearing this, I just had to say something. Because my heart, thoughts, and prayers go out to the Kopechne family too. I can’t even begin to imagine how much hearing something like this would hurt, knowing that the man responsible for their daughter’s death now laughs about the fact. I don’t think there’s anything Ed Klein could say to make this sound any better. Sorry, but I rarely ever dare to joke about something that I feel great remorse for.

But then again, I’ve never run away while someone else was dying due to my mistake. I’ve never hid in a hotel room, trying to come up with an alibi, while a young woman spent unimaginably harrowing hours struggling in an air pocket inside of my drowned automobile, before ultimately dying a horrific, drawn-out, cruel, and painful death.

Maybe you just had to be there to get the joke. I’m sure Mary Jo would have laughed too, right?