Kennedy's Death Continued Awful Family Tradition

CLEVELAND - Hard to believe that it has already been 10 years since John F. Kennedy, Jr. died in an awful plane crash off the coast of Martha's Vineyard.

But shocking as it were, the tragedy was easy to believe due to the Kennedy curse.

Ten years ago today, Kennedy, 38 at the time was piloting a small plane that he owned with his wife Carolyn Bessette and sister-in-law Lauren as his passengers. Sometime after nightfall, the modest aircraft crashed into the Atlantic Ocean due to JFK Jr.'s disorientation with the controls coupled with the poor visibility in the sky that evening. For a short time after the crash, Kennedy's relatives grew worried when he never showed for a cousin's wedding, which he was headed to.

Hope that the three might be found alive was crushed when their belongings began washing up on shore. By July 22, their bodies had been recovered by ocean divers and a memorial service commenced the following day.

It may seem crass to say it, but Kennedy's awful death was anything but surprising when viewed against the backdrop of his families' long history of colossal tragedy. JFK Jr. had certainly known all about unspeakable grief; his father, President Kennedy was assassinated in 1963 when the younger man was just about three years of age. Four and a half years later, his uncle Robert was gunned down as well. This is all on top of another uncle of his being killed during the war many years before his birth.

Less known about the family is JFK Jr.'s aunt having a lobotomy in the 1940's and essentially living as a vegetable thereafter and JFK and wife Jackie having a stillborn child in the early '60's. More famously, another of JFK Jr.'s uncles, Ted Kennedy got tangled up in the infamous "Chappaquiddick Incident" in 1969 that nearly sent him to prison for murder. There were freak deaths of cousins in 1984 and 1997 and a high-profile rape trial of another in 1991.

In short, JFK Jr.'s 1999 death fit right into family tradition, as awful as that sounds. With such a successful, wealthy and prosperous family, they were also incredibly snake bitten and highly unfortunate.

If unspeakable tragedy comes with wealth and fame, I don't want it anymore.