If there is an afterlife, I would picture Nelson Mandela laughing his ass off at this.

His policy would have been, "This is funny, not an issue. Let's worry about real shit."

The selfie thing was overblown bullshit though. It was a massive several hours long service with parts that were celebratory, of course it's not all going to be somber reflection. Heaven forbid people have fun.

Agh

I completely disagree. Anytime humanity can find something to collectively laugh at in a time of loss/disaster/sorrow it's fucking awesome.

Well, laughing at dead people is pretty common these days; it's how our culture copes, like a post-modern wake. And lest we forget, Mandela *was* controversial. Mandela's been suffering from Mother Theresa Syndrome for decades now, and in his case, I guess, our rose-colored glasses aren't entirely unjustified. But we should take care to remember that Nelson Mandela was not a saint; he was a nuanced figure, a flawed man who spent his later years working for peace and genuine social justice, despite shadows of violence and illiberal, authoritarian politics in his past. He was a human being.

Besides, having your memorial service signed by a man in the grips of a quasi-religious schizophrenic breakdown is an awesome way to go.

Mandelagate; NEVAR 4GET! Teach the Controversy!

ASL? Asshole as a Second Language?

That's five.