Pete Seeger has died, another nail in the coffin of the Greatest Generation. Though I might sometimes think he was a bit naive, one cannot argue with his success in the limited areas he tried to effect. In a world wracked by political cynicism and self interest, Seeger reminds us that there are large issues which the average person can effect for good, one by one, by being involved on his or her local level. His contributions to folk music – and especially its revival in the 1950s-60s cannot be underestimated. When today’s rock is forgotten, children will still be singing his songs. Like many liberals of his day He was enamored of revolutionary Russia until the truth of the Stalinist regime became public. In time he learned to effect change – a bit at a time – within the system, never forgetting that the people are what the system should be all about. Being attacked by Joe McCarthy has become a badge of honor for those, like Seeger, who love their country enough to speak truth to power. He was also a devoted family man. Marrying his wife Toshi in 1941, raising three children, and building their own home in Cold Springs. I have friends there and he is loved and respected even by the powerful men of that wealthy town where he himself has always been involved. His wife died last July. I know that just a few days later he was again giving school concerts. RIP.