CBS News: The Death of Bertrand Russell (1970)

[hadrons]

Run time: 02:20 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kY3tJV6G2uY   Posted on YouTube: March 13, 2009 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: March 13, 2009 By DU Member: hadrons Views on DU: 867

 
The passing of the British philosopher, logician, mathematician, historian, advocate for social reform, and pacifist (father of the modern-day demonstration as he's referred to in the piece)

[derby378]

1. Uh, that's "Bertrand Russell"

Just FYI...

[hadrons]

2. oooops, I fixed it

[Towlie]

3. Wait. TV was black and white in 1970? Did we even have transistors then? I forget.

[hadrons]

7. LOL, towelie ... but to answer your question seroiusly about the B&W

The Vanderbilt news archieve (which has been recording these newscasts since the summer of 1968) used B&W recorders until 1979

[ljm2002]

4. Thanks so much for posting this!

Bertrand Russell is one of my heroes. I remember picking up his book "Why I Am Not a Christian" when I was in my early teens -- it opened up my mind to a whole different way of regarding things. It was in that book that I was first exposed to feminist thought too. And then to realize that he was an antiwar activist, a philosopher and mathematician: what a guy!

[Lautremont]

5. Well I guess I don't need to read the rest of his autobiography now that I know how it ends!

I am in fact halfway through it, and am incredibly impressed with the man. He went to jail for opposing the First World War, or at least Britain's participation in it. Very cool. Thanks for posting that video.

[jwlashta]

6. Nice piece

I've been reading Why I Am Not a Christian recently, and I was struck by his progressive thinking in his essays for the time (1910~30s). In his discussions of sex and privacy, one could probably rightly assert that his line of reasoning would have made him a champion of gay rights, for example. He thought it silly that people shy away from the subject of sex, an act which provides so much pleasure.

It was a shame the way he was vilified due to his religious beliefs. It was made even worse by the fact that the media would take quotes out of context as a means to skewer his views and defame him.

[underpants]

8. Do we all realize that there is rarely a "news report" over 2 minutes these days

We receive maybe one 3+ minute report per "news cast" usually after the second commercial and almost always dealing with health care because they assume that only old people still watch the news anymore.

[Towlie]

9. They seemed afraid to mention that he was an atheist as well.

I still have a copy of his book, Why I Am Not a Christian and Other Essays on Religion.

[TuxedoKat]

10. Thanks for sharing that

I didn't know that much about him. I bought a used book about him years ago but never
got around to reading it. I'll have to go dig it out now as I had no idea he led such
an interesting and rich life. He was way ahead of his time.