A dangerous man is no more

Scratched.

Strange news.  You will have heard it before you read this.

A dangerous man is dead. What does it mean?

There is a story I've heard repeated about John Lennon.  Perhaps you've heard it.  (Osama bin Laden to John Lennon... how's that for a jarring segue?)

The story takes place in that period when John was living as a recluse, in an apartment in New York, where he kept little company and mostly stayed hidden with Yoko and their son.  The legend goes that one day as he was wandering around Manhattan, taking advantage, perhaps, of one of the last places on Earth that afforded him any anonymity, he happened upon a hotel or a convention hall (the story is not specific) where was being held a Beatles convention.  On a lark, he went inside.  Among the activities, and the vendors selling Beatles memorabilia, someone was organizing a John Lennon Lookalike contest.  According to the story, John entered the contest... and in a sublimely ironic twist, was awarded third place!

Seems plausible, doesn't it?  Would you have recognized the authentic John Lennon?  Or would the myth of John Lennon overwhelm the man?  Although John Lennon the man has been dead for over 30 years, John Lennon the legend lives on.  Has grown, in fact. 

Now, about Osama bin Laden...