George Carlin: 1937-2008

On Sunday the world lost a brilliant comedian, social commentator, philosopher, and friend. George Carlin died of heart failure at the age of 71.

Long before the advent of blogs, much less Occasionally Obvious or Offensive Comments, George Carlin was sharing occasionally obvious or offensive comments of his own. He was always one of my favorite comedians, if not the favorite. Carlin's ability to unabashedly lift society's veil to reveal the underlying truths was priceless. His ability to make people laugh was undeniable. He will truly be missed.

Although there has been an outpouring of fond remembrance and mourning for Carlin, including a piece by Kevin Smith; Carlin himself wouldn't want us to feel sad about his passing, and as he once said: "...you just say 'Gee, he was just here a minute ago'; that's how I want to be remembered."