Mitch

O CAPTAIN! my Captain! our fearful trip is done,
The ship has weather'd every rack, the prize we sought is won,
The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,
While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring;
But O heart! heart! heart!
O the bleeding drops of red,
Where on the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.

O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;
Rise up--for you the flag is flung--for you the bugle trills,
For you bouquets and ribbon'd wreaths--for you the shores a-crowding,
For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning;
Here Captain! dear father!
This arm beneath your head!
It is some dream that on the deck,
You've fallen cold and dead.

My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still,
My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will,
The ship is anchor'd safe and sound, its voyage closed and done,
From fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won;
Exult O shores, and ring O bells!
But I with mournful tread,
Walk the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead. (Walt Whitman 1865)

O Captain Skkorp...you gave us all ASFN, and thus you gave us all not only by far the best forum ever created for Cardinal fans, but you gave us all each other and were the one to create this family...and most of all, you led us with your inimitable wit, your humor, your undying loyalty to the perennial underdogs the Arizona Cardinals, and your passion for effective rhetoric.

Whenever I saw your name on a thread or a post my mouse couldn't get to it fast enough. I believe many of your posters here will say the same. When I was getting bashed, whether I deserved it or not, you always had a kind word and encouraging advice. I have saved all the PMs we shared, and will cherish them forever. You always wanted to know if I and my family were well. You always made me laugh, and you always made me jacked out of my mind to be an Arizona Cardinal fan!

As you float your way to heaven...it gives me great joy to think of you now free of the earthly tethers, such as your wheelchair, and I picture you climbing galactical watertowers with fellow veteran Pat Tillman and sitting together on top of the universe cracking jokes, talking philosophy and smashing volleys of witticisms back and forth. I also know where you will be on Saturdays and Sundays...roaming the skies above and between South Bend and Glendale.

It also give me great comfort to know that you actually leave this world having seen the Cardinals win the NFC Championship and play in the Super Bowl. Last year when your health was waning, we would have never believed what the Cardinals were going to accomplish. What I will always consider one of the great privileges of my life was to be able to share in that unprecedented Cardinal euphoria with you. I think everyone at ASFN will echo this sentiment.

Well, Jim, O Captain, my Captain...

Thank you for being a great and stalwart American...you made us proud...and kept us free...

Thank you so much for your leadership and your wonderful friendship...

I love you buddy...

As Dorothy said to the Scarecrow: "I will miss you most of all."

Rest in peace, O Captain, rest in peace.

TigToad

Oh no. This is devestating news. Even after he stepped down from here, so often Jim's voice of reason in a thread would keep it moving positively. There was a time a year or so back I stopped posting and Jim convinced me to keep on writing.

He will be missed in a very real sense.

Mitch - thank you for the great post, but the news it carries saddens me greatly.

__________________
"We need our fans on their feet being loud"
-Michael Bidwill, August 11th, 6:13pm KTAR

Vermont Maverick

Walt - Very nice tribute.

I shared a couple EMails with Jim, not too many, but I'm glad to say that I did. Sad news, but Jim has a legacy that will stand here on this board.

az jam

Nice tribute. A sad day for all who share this board. My thoughts and prayers are for Jim and his family.

Mitch

Right on, VT! Jim reached out to all of us in own way, and was especially encouraging to new posters or those who hadn't posted in a while. Jim loved to hear from everyone. He gave everyone a voice on this forum.

RonF

He will be truly missed, he was the heart that beat the way for so many of us Cardinal fans.

Reddog

Nice job Mitch. I will fondly remember some lazy sideline August days catching up with Jim at training camp. Does anyone know how we can reach his wife? She was always there by his side and right in there with the Cards passion.

cardsfanmd

HOLY ****!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!

I had no idea Jim had passed. I dont even know what to say.

RIP Skorp

__________________
"Your job is not to talk in the media or have an opinion. It's your job to go out there and produce and do what you're asked to do. We play receiver. If it comes hard, we've got to catch it. If it comes soft, we've got to catch it. If it's high, we've got to catch it. If it's low, we've got to catch it. It's part of our job description. As long the ball's coming my way, you're never going to hear me complain."

-Larry Fitzgerald

Redheart

Thanks Walt.

Good-bye Jim, thanks for the friendship; until we meet again...

__________________
Be Kind.

ASUCHRIS

Excellent work Mitch, you echo what many of us feel regarding Jim. I was just thinking the other day how nice it was to go into a Cards season with a legitimate chance...a damn shame we won't be able to enjoy it with him.

bg7brd

RIP Skkorpion. I will miss your posts.

chickenhead

RIP - So glad the Cards made it to the big one. What a great site. Keep posting, everyone.

Catfish

Mitch, --- I have always valued and treasured your words on this forum, (BUT NEVER MORE THAN NOW). What a wonderful tribute to a truly gifted citizen of life. Skorp truly did lead this ship and keep it on course. He will be sorely missed. My thoughts and prayers are with him and his family. (How deep must his loss be felt there, if it has such a profound impact here)? Thank you Mitch for putting into words, what I never could have done!!!

Jersey Girl

It is truly a sad day, but I will take some solace in the fact that Jim was ready and left this world on his terms. Still, that will not make me miss him any less.

CardLogic

__________________

"...fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, but wiser people so full of doubts." - Bertrand Russell

"Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please."
-Samuel Langhorne Clemens (Mark Twain)