Tuesday, March 7, 2006

Eulogy for Rhino Dear Rhino's Blog Readers, The following eulogy was delivered at Rhino's San Francisco service by Audrey Wells: Gary Rhine was so many things to so many people. At the top of his blog, he self-described as a political activist, satirist, fifth generation San Franciscan, filmmaker, father, paramedic and Indigenous rights activist. And there was more, of course - greatest husband in the world, excellent percussionist, pilot, precious friend. What a Renaissance man! Like Leonardo Da Vinci, he was not just an artist, but also a man interested in the weights and measures of things. He liked to explain, and understand, and challenge himself and learn. He loved knowledge. And he wrote. He wrote the way most of us breathe in and out. It was part of who he was at his very core. A few months ago, Gary finished a script he was writing based on a book called Ember from the Sun. It’s the story of a girl, born into our present day world, who is actually a Neanderthal. Because she is different, she quickly becomes hunted --- but she uses her instincts to return to her ancestral home. How did she do it? She let the truth of who she was be her guiding light. And it seems to me that Gary cared about that theme a lot. That “the truth of who you are will guide you in your life”. The truth of your ancestors. The truth of your family. The truth of your actions. Gary frequently wrote about those themes in Rhino’s Blog. He threw his net wide, brought in a universe of information, and somehow distilled it for the rest of us so that we could read his blog and know more afterwards, understand more, make more sense out of the world. Sometimes his blog was a call to action, sometimes scathing satire as he beat up on the “Dubya Shrub” once more, and always, an act of empowerment, a refueling station for activists, emotional shelter for the hopeful, for anyone who believed that together we could change the world. Rhino's Blog was read in Panama, Indonesia, Hungary, Egypt, Greece, Austria, United Arab Emirates, Iran, Norway, China, India, the Philippines, Italy, Japan, Sweden, France, Mexico, Korea, Australia, the UK, Canada and of course, right here where we needed him most. About 85 thousand people a day read Rhino’s blog. Gary’s webmaster, Jim Woolum, told me that. He had only met Gary once in person. But when I called to tell him Gary had passed he said to me that ”Gary Rhine was one of the most enlightened men I have ever known.” Rhino’s Blog was an important political meeting place in cyberspace for progressives. “I don’t make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts,” Gary quoted Will Rogers, a man he resembled in many ways. Rhino’s Blog was brilliant, encyclopedic, fearless, and funny: December 21, 2005 Rhino’s Blog --- “Holiday Season Insight. According to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, male reindeer drop their antlers at the beginning of winter, usually late November. Female reindeer retain their antlers till after they give birth in the spring. Therefore, according to every historical rendition depicting Santa’s reindeer, every single one of them, from Rudolph to Blitzen, had to be female.” “We should have known,” Gary writes. “Only women, while pregnant, would be able to drag a fat man in a red velvet suit all around the world in one night, not get lost, meet an impossible deadline, and do it all out of good will.” Gary loved women, starting with his mother, from whom he inherited a capacity for life and joy, and who raised him to be a friend to women. He loved his daughters. The Rhinettes, he called them. He talked about his daughters all the time, talked about them like being their dad was the adventure of a lifetime: the river crossings, the mountain climbs and double rainbows, the dangers, victories and rope bridges, the blessings, the rigors, the fun of being father to three beautiful, brilliant women. On the day three months ago when Leah got married, his chest actually did seem to swell with pride. Calm, even, unflappable Gray, flustered with excitement, almost foolish with love and pride for Leah. He spoke of Odessa with the awe and respect usually reserved for hurricanes. He loved her brilliance and power. He believed she could do anything. And Emme. One day I took a walk with Gary, the most modest guy in the world, but he could not stop boasting about Emme. She had a job at the General Accountability Office, which reports directly to Congress, and they wanted to give her high security clearance. In order to do this, they were going to have to investigate her background, and Gary just knew they were gonna get to him. What if they found out about the time he got arrested at Disneyland for smoking marijuana on his eighteenth birthday? What if they found out about all his protesting? What about the blog? He was worried. ”Tell them you’re just like the girl in Dharma and Greg,” he said. “It’s not your fault who your dad is.“ She got the clearance by the way, I know you’re all worried about that. Yes, Gary loved women. But he really loved one woman. “Mrs. Rhino” he called her in the blog. Splitting Irene from Gary, Gary from Irene - how is that possible? It’s like ripping the sun from the sky and telling it to live elsewhere. It makes no sense. No sense at all. Anyone who knew them, knew they had the most extraordinary husband and wife bond, that spanned the spectrum of the love that’s possible between two people. St. Exupery said “Love does not consist in gazing at each other - but in looking together in the same direction.” That was Gary and Irene. They looked at the world together, discussed what should be done, and did it. They were lovers. Partners. Friends. What Gary didn’t give to his family, he gave to the rest of us - his extended family - and to humanity at large. And he wanted us to do the same. Listen to Rhino's Blog, December 19th, 2005: “In this stretch of history, when a gang of neo-robber barons have been so successful in their efforts to blatantly steal from so many, give to so few, and be so uncaring as to how many may suffer and die as a result, it is that much more important for those who still believe in the power of love over money to reach out and offer some warmth and nurturing to our friends, relatives and fellow inhabitants of this flying rock we call Earth.“ Gary Rhine. Rhino. Like the animal whose name he took, he was rare. There aren’t many like him on the planet. And so we have to make more like him, by raising our children, raising ourselves to the level of his expectation. We have to fight apathy and negativity and do good work in his name. How do we go on without our friend? This was so cruel, so sudden. None of us are prepared. Is he still here? Can we still talk to him? Well, here is what Gary wrote in his blog. Irene, Shirley, girls, sons, sister, brother, this is for you: “When the night is longest, the sun is farthest, and the earth the barest, I’ll be there with a bottle of wine, a basket of fruit, a flashlight, or if need be, just me, by your side.” I want to leave you with this: Rhino’s Blog July 20, 2005 - Know Your History -On this day in 1952 - MRS. RHINO exits her mother’s womb -On this day in 1989 Burma military orders house arrest for Aung San Suu Kyi -On this day in 1923 - Inspired hero of the Mexican revolution Pancho Villa dies, ambushed in Parral, Mexico. Villa had teamed up with the anarchist Emiliano Zapata to overthrow the corrupt conservative government. Pancho Villas’ dying words: “Don’t let it end like this - Tell them I said something!” Gary - You said something. And we’ll never forget it. about Rhino's Blog 2:01:17 PM''''comment

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Rhino at his daughter Leah's wedding in October

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