Monday, March 6, 2006

Pax Fristiana

From Glenn Greenwald, quoting ABC News:

"Majority Leader Bill Frist and committee Chairman Pat Roberts of Kansas have recently been trying to play peacemakers." Is that what they call people these days who try to block investigations into allegations from law-breaking by the President of the United States?

Somehow I think Frist's "peace" is more like the Pax Romana imposed forcefully by Julius Caesar than the "peace that passeth all understanding" that Jesus talked about. And I think the Founders were fonder of a little healthy competition -- you know, the kind that plays itself out in HEARINGS where different politicians take different sides, and in OVERSIGHT when one branch "jealously" guards against overstepping by the others -- than they were of the "peace" that results from unquestioning obedience to a monolithic power.

But then, Bill Frist and Pat Roberts never pretended to follow Jesus or swore to protect and defend the Constitution, did they?

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Peacemakers? Try "Widowmakers".