PrintJanuary 14, 2007
Aussiegirl, R.I.P. (updated)
The blogger known by her screen name Aussiegirl, whose website Ultima Thule we have often linked to, has died at the age of 59. I only learned of it this morning, via Lucainne.com, where a tribute appears. A final post appeared yesterday at Ultima Thule, informing readers of her sad end.
I got to know Aussiegirl from the comments section at Lucianne.com, and we had corresponded over the years. When she became ill, we discussed her prognosis, and my understanding had been that although her operation had stressed her body, she was recovering nicely. Thus her death comes as a great shock.
Aussiegirl wrote insightfully about many topics, from the philosophical and aesthetic to the practical. She was a deep student of Ukrainian history and politics, and the geo-strategy and fate of Eastern Europe was always on her mind.
I offer my condolences and prayers to her family and friends. She is a great loss to us all.
Update: Herb Meyer writes:
I got to know Aussiegirl from the comments section at Lucianne.com, and we had corresponded over the years. When she became ill, we discussed her prognosis, and my understanding had been that although her operation had stressed her body, she was recovering nicely. Thus her death comes as a great shock.
Aussiegirl wrote insightfully about many topics, from the philosophical and aesthetic to the practical. She was a deep student of Ukrainian history and politics, and the geo-strategy and fate of Eastern Europe was always on her mind.
I offer my condolences and prayers to her family and friends. She is a great loss to us all.
Update: Herb Meyer writes:
I was among those dozens of people - hundreds, probably - who was lucky enough to have an email relationship with Aussiegirl. As readers of her Ultima Thule blog well know, she was among the sharpest political observers working in the blogosphere. Her essays and comments about politics, and sometimes science and even music, were original and wonderfully insightful. She loved freedom, hated those who opposed it including the communists and the radical Islamists, and desperately wanted our country to fight and win the war.
Her private emails were a total blast. She was hilarious, and her bubbling good humor about the stupidities of politicians often had me falling out of my chair. She was also one of the warmest, friendliest human beings I've ever had the luck to encounter. Her emails would veer seamlessly from politics, to music, to movies, to what-did-you-have-for-dinner.
Aussiegirl was like a sister I'd never met, and didn't even know I had. She was a splendid human being, and I'll miss her very much. So will we all.
