I have just received the sad news that Rhis passed away on his boat sometime last night or this morning (May 20-21). It seems that the extra exertion required to get back to his boat, toegther with his already weakened state, might have triggered a stroke which caused him to fall and hit his head. He was discovered by his family today.
Apparently his last conversation yesterday was to stress how much he appreciated all of the messages that everyone here has sent him, and how loved he felt as a result. He also told his partner that he intended to log on to 5F last night to say hello, and that he had come to realise that covid was a far worse disease than he had thought it was, and he regretted his earlier attitude towards it.
I will let everyone here know about how the family is planning to handle the funeral arrangements etc. Perhaps we should arrange a 5F meetup at some point to celebrate what a presence he has been in our lives all these years.
I second @Evvy_dense ās thoughts. I particularly liked his naming coventions like tewwowist. Just hope heās gone to a better place. Condolences to all his family for the loss of one unique guy.
This is very saddening. Brother Rhis has been a fascinating presence for us for many years - he truly was a one-off - - I will miss reading Rhisā inimitable commentary, replete as it was with his wonderful turn of phrase and inventive neologisms. Schlub and mooncalf are just 2 words I picked-up from Rhis - I often use them and Rhis always comes to mind - - Iāll remember the fellow with immense fondness.
Thanks, Aly - I wish you and all the very best on this sad day X
He spoke to my wife and me about so many things in the brief time we met, and his realisation of covid was one of them. There was other things, but now isnāt the time.
Iād like to meet up, and Iād like to send flowers or a donation.
Thank you Aly, and so sorry about this news. Not a lot more to add except that as a relative newcomer to 5filters I found RG very welcoming, and sometimes combative lol, which was great encouragement to ājoin inā. (I am not a joiner-in.) He believed that after entering Bardo there would be rebirth and if thatās the case Iāll be looking out for Rhisiart.
I only knew Rhis from his postings and our interactions on three different political message boards, Media Lens, Lifeboat News and this site, yet the strength of his online personality was such that I feel like I knew him well and I feel sadness and grief to learn of his death. Please give my regards and condolences to his family and friends, and tell them that, just with his online words on quite small message boards he was able to transcend the limitations of online discourse and become āsomebody you knew and likedā. He was, like all of us, one of a kind, but Rhisās one of a kind was of a higher dimension, he was able to disagree with wit and style but keep the conversation going. He also seemed quite unafraid. I regret never having met him in person.
āI regret never having met him in personā Me tooā¦
Oh noā¦you know he was one of the few people, despite our differences, who really shared fellow feeling with me, this is the most dreadful newsā¦my condolences to all his friends and familyā¦Iāve lost so many of my friends and family in recent years now my dear friend Rhisiartā¦Iām gonnaā have serious words with the universe this morningā¦ RIP āOm bhur bhuvah svahaā so long and thanks for all the gearā¦
I know from very personal and recent experience that grief can lead us into anger, but one thing we cannot do is to kill the messenger. Aly was always treated as a brother by Rhis and would be horrified by your reaction and would tell you to āchill broā ā . As much as our personal opinions of political issues differ I have never believed that Aly lied or spoke with malice or with intent to hurt and in regard to Rhisā statements he would certainly never misrepresent him, imo he deserves at the very least the words - āsorry mateā!
I only met Rhis once but it was an honor and a pleasure and I just know he would hate his passing to be the source of ill-will between us all on this site for which he had enormous respect.
Seeing this news this morning was a bit of a jolt! Thanks for the photo Aly and what a face! Such powerful vibes and charisma.
Go well Rhis! Youāll be sorely missed here - it wonāt be the same now. You were the heart of this place and TLN before that and the MLMB before that and I imagine in many, many other places. I had a couple of quiet beers out in the garden just now thinking about you and watching the sun going down and although we never met I feel really sad. God bless, Rich.
I havenāt insulted anyone, beyond the Covidian loons.
I wonāt take it to a different thread. I will take it to a different place and say au revoir to this board.
I honour my friend Rhis, and have good memories of him.
Incidentally, how you can deny that the Government hasnāt been murdering elderly people in care homes and hospitals is beyond belief, since thereās a mountain of evidence (I can almost guarantee that this post will now be deleted).
Rhisiart was a steadfast support and ally to me and to women during some painful discussions on these boards over the years. I didnāt agree with him about everything but found him very wise about many things, including the basic life that we all share.
He and his family have been through a harrowing couple of weeks. Iām glad that he made it back to his boat since that seemed really important to him. From his writings itās clear that he was self actualized and lived a fulfilled life with loving relationships. Thank goodness he didnāt have to suffer or be away from his home for a long time.
Go well and thank you for the shared laughs and moans.
You encouraged some good rebellious independent thinking.
And generously shared a lot of kind advice re fighting cancer with CBD.
See you on your boat for a dram and maybe a toke on the other side; or not. Who knows.
I would endorse all these comments, other than Robās unnecessary insult to all of us. Even though I have some sympathy for his views, there is a time and place for them and itās not here or now.
The circumstances where I came to read this sad news are worth mentioning, as they came at the very end of a long day of special significance. Iād just driven home from Canberra, where Iād spoken at a discussion group on War and Ukraine, in favour of Russia and alongside Tony Kevin, former Ambassador and public dissident, who is now shunned by all media and nearly all former colleagues. As a mere humble cheese maker and rustic this is an unusual and welcome experience! Following this I visited the Russian embassy to pick up our passports and visas for a week in Moscow in June on the way to Europe. Itās four hours plus drive home, with plenty to think about, and how our path to this holiday, stopped for 3 years by the scamdemic, is finally going to happen, barring some major development. I stopped a few times, but finally getting near home stopped to photograph the late sunset - and finally saw the beautiful crescent moon Iād been looking out for, alongside Venusā¦
There was much to talk about so I never got to look at the message from 5 Filters amongst my emails till 11.30 pm and just before closing.
I say all this because Rhisiartās philosophical outlook always included an attachment to nature and putting lifeās dramas and disasters in perspective; itās why I like to get up in the middle of the night and look at the constellations, for reassurance even at the worst times. Iām sure Rhis would have understood.
So on pondering on this rather sad outcome I saw there was also a good outcome - finally ending his life in the place where he felt at home, and probably avoiding an inevitable slow decline and further illness. Iām also so glad to hear how he liked our messages, and many thanks Ali for conveying them.
As I think I said before, I did have the pleasure of meeting Rhis, back around 2016 and after his first fall. We had hoped to repeat the meeting in Augustā¦ but perhaps weāll be able to meet one or two of you. Or you might need to come and visit me after the UK classifies me as a security threatā¦
I never believed in reincarnation, much as Iād like to - but always considered his many interesting alternative views - and the strength that they gave him.
