Roman statesman Cato the Elder was famous for (among other things) ending every speech before the Roman Senate, no matter what he was speaking about, with the above statement, which translates roughly as, “And furthermore I think that Carthage ought to be destroyed.” His goal, of course, was to keep that topic firmly planted in his listeners’ minds. And as those who follow history know, eventually Rome did get around to destroying Carthage and sowing the earth there with salt to prevent it from ever rising again.
It is with this in mind that I have decided to end each post in this blog from here until the statement becomes moot (or at least until I become bored doing it) with “And furthermore I think that Bush and Cheney ought to be impeached.” Because really, they ought to be. They have violated the Geneva Conventions and our own Constitution more times than I would care to count, practically eliminated the right of habeas corpus, instituted torture as an official government policy, and dragged us into a war of aggression under false pretences. They have repeatedly lied to the American public, shown their contempt for our laws and fundamental principles, and advanced their own (and Halliburton’s) interests to the detriment of us all. They should not continue to go unpunished for these crimes.
Thus I think that Bush and Cheney ought to be impeached.
-jane doe
1 comment
Comments feed for this article
May 24, 2007 at 6:15 pm
Sandman
Someone certainly should answer for the extreme loss (or surrender) of civil liberties in this country over the past few years. Whether it is the result of a totalitarian regime in this country or another, I can’t really say.
However, it seems to me that our country’s founders would have laid the blame squarely at the feet of the American people. Regardless of WHY these liberties have been infringed upon (that is, without placing blame on anyone in particular), I would have expected the Second Amendment rights/duties to have been executed long before now had the original spirit of this country not been heavily sedated.
I have to admit, however, that it is convenient to have such a prominent figure upon which to focus our disgust and blame. Unfortunately, I think that the true problem lies much closer to home than Washington. That’s too bad though because it would be nice to have an impeachment proceeding actually solve something. In fact, it would be nice to have ANY legal proceedings actually solve something instead of simply creating new heartache and disappointment. No, I think that until the people of this country wake up to the reality that our individual actions have consequences (as do our inactions) and that personal accountability and integrity (instead of rhetoric and posturing) are the real marks of a persons character, we’ll just continue our slide into waste and decay the way an opium addict slowly fades away and the light dies from his or her eyes.
Boy, aren’t I just a ray of sunshine today?
By the way, I’m not denying the wrongs our current elected officials have done. Nor do I deny the depths to which our business leaders have sunk. Nor do I deny the innumerable wrongs committed every day from small-towns to big-cities across this formerly great country by Bob and Betty Everybody. I’m saddened by it, of course. But not surprised.
I am, on the contrary, greatly encouraged by the good news one can occationally hear if one is watchful. News about people doing the right thing in spite of personal suffering or loss. The news outlets occationally sell this sort of story, but usually only at the end of a broadcast. The “Timmy fell down a well and the whole town came together to get him out” kind of feel-good-for-five-minutes story with which many commercial media outlets like to end their broadcasts. These stories are out there, but they aren’t “news” for most of us. I typically only learn about them by actually meeting the benefactor (the “do-gooder” may or may not blow their own horn…often not.) These are the sort of people who may be able to restore the light of life to the eyes of this country and bring about real change. These are the people who see a wrong and actually call it a wrong and then set about making it right. These are the people upon whom the hope of this country rests (in my opinion, of course.) And rarely, it seems, are these people in office.
As I sign off, I too would like to offer a famous quote (but I don’t think I’ll end all of my thoughts with this.) “They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” — Benjamin Franklin.
Although, perhaps a quote more fitting to the situation with the administration upon which you were ruminating would be “forgive them for they know not what they do.”