Friday, October 29, 2004
The problem with liberal is they are so pessimistic. The more liberal, the more pessimistic. They believe the world is going to hell and the only thing that can bring a modicum of relief is huge, expensive government. That's a problem. When I was growing up we didn't have a Department of Education (although there was Health Education and Welfare - which was, thank Goodness, pretty ineffectual) and we got great educations. With Department of Education up and running all these years, we are turning out millions of illiterates. Extrapolating, if we ever get a Kerry health plan, by the year 2040, we will have an average life expectancy of 35. Of course that takes care of the social security problem.
Wednesday, October 27, 2004
DNC Chairman Terry McAuliffe: "...We had better beat George Bush. If we allow this man to get four more years of running this government, our party today will cease to exist. No ifs, ands or buts. (I hope he is right)
Thursday, October 21, 2004
Boy do I know the feeling!
18-October-2004 -- Catholic World News Brief
KERRY SAID TO BE EXCOMMUNICATED
Los Angeles, Oct. 18 (CWNews.com) - A consultant to the Vatican has said Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry has incurred the penalty of excommunication from the Catholic Church.
The consultant made his statement in a highly unusual letter to Marc Balestrieri, a Los Angeles canon lawyer who formally sued John Kerry in ecclesiastical court for heresy.
Balestrieri, who launched his case earlier this year by filing a heresy complaint in Kerry's home archdiocese of Boston, told EWTN's "World Over" program on Friday that he had received an unusual, indirect communication from the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith regarding the pro-abortion stance.
That communication provides a basis, he said, to declare that any Catholic politician who says he is "personally opposed to abortion, but supports a woman's right to choose," incurs automatic excommunication. It also provided a basis for Balestrieri to broaden his canonical actions and file additional complaints against four more pro-abortion Catholic politicians: Democrat Senators Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts and Tom Harkin of Iowa; Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine; and former New York Governor Mario Cuomo, a Democrat.
The current action could be significant as it could undercut the entire debate over denying Communion to pro-abortion politicians. An excommunicated Catholic may not receive any of the sacraments of the Church, including the Eucharist, marriage, and even Christian burial. The type of excommunication outlined in the new information is called latae sententiae, which means that it occurs automatically and does not require a formal pronouncement by any Church official.
Balestrieri said he went to Rome in late August to discuss his canonical case with experts, including an official of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Less than 10 days later, he received a letter from Father Basil Cole, a Dominican theologian and consultant to the congregation based in Washington, DC, who said he had been "delegated" by Father Augustine DiNoia, undersecretary of the congregation, to give an unofficial response to the question that Balestrieri had submitted.
"I went to Rome in person to submit two critical questions to the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith," said Balestrieri. "The first: Whether or not the Church's teaching condemning any direct abortion is a dogma of Divine and Catholic Faith, and if the denial and doubt of the same constitutes heresy. The second: Whether or not a denial of the Church's teaching condemning every right to abortion also constitutes heresy. Father Cole, an expert theologian who studied the matter carefully, responded in the affirmative on both counts."
Father Cole wrote, "If a Catholic publicly and obstinately supports the civil right to abortion, knowing that the Church teaches officially against that legislation, he or she commits that heresy envisioned by Can. 751 of the Code [of Canon Law]. Provided that the presumptions of knowledge of the law and penalty and imputability are not rebutted in the external forum, one is automatically excommunicated ...."
Balestrieri said the response was unusual in several respects: that a response was provided to a layman at the request of the undersecretary in only 11 days, that the response was in writing, decisively clarifying the matter, and that it was in far greater detail than a typical official reply. "Normally, only a bishop may request such clarification of doctrine from the CDF, such responses usually take a much longer time to be received, and they are rarely made public," he said.
He also said that the original canonical complaint of heresy against Kerry had received so much response from the public that the tribunal of the Archdiocese of Boston has been deluged with thousands of letters from ordinary Catholics who wish to add their names to the complaint. The head of the archdiocesan tribunal reportedly told him that the case had not been rejected and was "now in the hands of the archbishop," that is, Archbishop Sean O'Malley of Boston.
Balestrieri, a self-identified political independent, says that his actions come as a defender of the faith and Holy Eucharist from sacrilege and scandal, not as one focused on an electoral outcome. "Our victory can come as early as today: It would be for Sen. Kerry, who publicly calls himself a Catholic and yet in violation of Canon Law continues to receive Holy Communion, to repent of his grave sin and publicly recant his abortion advocacy."
The complete text of Father Cole's response as well as other details of the pending cases are available on the DeFide.com web site: (http://www.defide.com
KERRY SAID TO BE EXCOMMUNICATED
Los Angeles, Oct. 18 (CWNews.com) - A consultant to the Vatican has said Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry has incurred the penalty of excommunication from the Catholic Church.
The consultant made his statement in a highly unusual letter to Marc Balestrieri, a Los Angeles canon lawyer who formally sued John Kerry in ecclesiastical court for heresy.
Balestrieri, who launched his case earlier this year by filing a heresy complaint in Kerry's home archdiocese of Boston, told EWTN's "World Over" program on Friday that he had received an unusual, indirect communication from the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith regarding the pro-abortion stance.
That communication provides a basis, he said, to declare that any Catholic politician who says he is "personally opposed to abortion, but supports a woman's right to choose," incurs automatic excommunication. It also provided a basis for Balestrieri to broaden his canonical actions and file additional complaints against four more pro-abortion Catholic politicians: Democrat Senators Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts and Tom Harkin of Iowa; Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine; and former New York Governor Mario Cuomo, a Democrat.
The current action could be significant as it could undercut the entire debate over denying Communion to pro-abortion politicians. An excommunicated Catholic may not receive any of the sacraments of the Church, including the Eucharist, marriage, and even Christian burial. The type of excommunication outlined in the new information is called latae sententiae, which means that it occurs automatically and does not require a formal pronouncement by any Church official.
Balestrieri said he went to Rome in late August to discuss his canonical case with experts, including an official of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Less than 10 days later, he received a letter from Father Basil Cole, a Dominican theologian and consultant to the congregation based in Washington, DC, who said he had been "delegated" by Father Augustine DiNoia, undersecretary of the congregation, to give an unofficial response to the question that Balestrieri had submitted.
"I went to Rome in person to submit two critical questions to the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith," said Balestrieri. "The first: Whether or not the Church's teaching condemning any direct abortion is a dogma of Divine and Catholic Faith, and if the denial and doubt of the same constitutes heresy. The second: Whether or not a denial of the Church's teaching condemning every right to abortion also constitutes heresy. Father Cole, an expert theologian who studied the matter carefully, responded in the affirmative on both counts."
Father Cole wrote, "If a Catholic publicly and obstinately supports the civil right to abortion, knowing that the Church teaches officially against that legislation, he or she commits that heresy envisioned by Can. 751 of the Code [of Canon Law]. Provided that the presumptions of knowledge of the law and penalty and imputability are not rebutted in the external forum, one is automatically excommunicated ...."
Balestrieri said the response was unusual in several respects: that a response was provided to a layman at the request of the undersecretary in only 11 days, that the response was in writing, decisively clarifying the matter, and that it was in far greater detail than a typical official reply. "Normally, only a bishop may request such clarification of doctrine from the CDF, such responses usually take a much longer time to be received, and they are rarely made public," he said.
He also said that the original canonical complaint of heresy against Kerry had received so much response from the public that the tribunal of the Archdiocese of Boston has been deluged with thousands of letters from ordinary Catholics who wish to add their names to the complaint. The head of the archdiocesan tribunal reportedly told him that the case had not been rejected and was "now in the hands of the archbishop," that is, Archbishop Sean O'Malley of Boston.
Balestrieri, a self-identified political independent, says that his actions come as a defender of the faith and Holy Eucharist from sacrilege and scandal, not as one focused on an electoral outcome. "Our victory can come as early as today: It would be for Sen. Kerry, who publicly calls himself a Catholic and yet in violation of Canon Law continues to receive Holy Communion, to repent of his grave sin and publicly recant his abortion advocacy."
The complete text of Father Cole's response as well as other details of the pending cases are available on the DeFide.com web site: (http://www.defide.com
Wednesday, October 20, 2004
18-October-2004 -- Catholic World News Brief
KERRY SAID TO BE EXCOMMUNICATED
Los Angeles, Oct. 18 (CWNews.com) - A consultant to the Vatican has said Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry has incurred the penalty of excommunication from the Catholic Church.
The consultant made his statement in a highly unusual letter to Marc Balestrieri, a Los Angeles canon lawyer who formally sued John Kerry in ecclesiastical court for heresy.
Balestrieri, who launched his case earlier this year by filing a heresy complaint in Kerry's home archdiocese of Boston, told EWTN's "World Over" program on Friday that he had received an unusual, indirect communication from the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith regarding the pro-abortion stance.
That communication provides a basis, he said, to declare that any Catholic politician who says he is "personally opposed to abortion, but supports a woman's right to choose," incurs automatic excommunication. It also provided a basis for Balestrieri to broaden his canonical actions and file additional complaints against four more pro-abortion Catholic politicians: Democrat Senators Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts and Tom Harkin of Iowa; Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine; and former New York Governor Mario Cuomo, a Democrat.
The current action could be significant as it could undercut the entire debate over denying Communion to pro-abortion politicians. An excommunicated Catholic may not receive any of the sacraments of the Church, including the Eucharist, marriage, and even Christian burial. The type of excommunication outlined in the new information is called latae sententiae, which means that it occurs automatically and does not require a formal pronouncement by any Church official.
Balestrieri said he went to Rome in late August to discuss his canonical case with experts, including an official of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Less than 10 days later, he received a letter from Father Basil Cole, a Dominican theologian and consultant to the congregation based in Washington, DC, who said he had been "delegated" by Father Augustine DiNoia, undersecretary of the congregation, to give an unofficial response to the question that Balestrieri had submitted.
"I went to Rome in person to submit two critical questions to the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith," said Balestrieri. "The first: Whether or not the Church's teaching condemning any direct abortion is a dogma of Divine and Catholic Faith, and if the denial and doubt of the same constitutes heresy. The second: Whether or not a denial of the Church's teaching condemning every right to abortion also constitutes heresy. Father Cole, an expert theologian who studied the matter carefully, responded in the affirmative on both counts."
Father Cole wrote, "If a Catholic publicly and obstinately supports the civil right to abortion, knowing that the Church teaches officially against that legislation, he or she commits that heresy envisioned by Can. 751 of the Code [of Canon Law]. Provided that the presumptions of knowledge of the law and penalty and imputability are not rebutted in the external forum, one is automatically excommunicated ...."
Balestrieri said the response was unusual in several respects: that a response was provided to a layman at the request of the undersecretary in only 11 days, that the response was in writing, decisively clarifying the matter, and that it was in far greater detail than a typical official reply. "Normally, only a bishop may request such clarification of doctrine from the CDF, such responses usually take a much longer time to be received, and they are rarely made public," he said.
He also said that the original canonical complaint of heresy against Kerry had received so much response from the public that the tribunal of the Archdiocese of Boston has been deluged with thousands of letters from ordinary Catholics who wish to add their names to the complaint. The head of the archdiocesan tribunal reportedly told him that the case had not been rejected and was "now in the hands of the archbishop," that is, Archbishop Sean O'Malley of Boston.
Balestrieri, a self-identified political independent, says that his actions come as a defender of the faith and Holy Eucharist from sacrilege and scandal, not as one focused on an electoral outcome. "Our victory can come as early as today: It would be for Sen. Kerry, who publicly calls himself a Catholic and yet in violation of Canon Law continues to receive Holy Communion, to repent of his grave sin and publicly recant his abortion advocacy."
The complete text of Father Cole's response as well as other details of the pending cases are available on the DeFide.com web site: (http://www.defide.com
KERRY SAID TO BE EXCOMMUNICATED
Los Angeles, Oct. 18 (CWNews.com) - A consultant to the Vatican has said Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry has incurred the penalty of excommunication from the Catholic Church.
The consultant made his statement in a highly unusual letter to Marc Balestrieri, a Los Angeles canon lawyer who formally sued John Kerry in ecclesiastical court for heresy.
Balestrieri, who launched his case earlier this year by filing a heresy complaint in Kerry's home archdiocese of Boston, told EWTN's "World Over" program on Friday that he had received an unusual, indirect communication from the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith regarding the pro-abortion stance.
That communication provides a basis, he said, to declare that any Catholic politician who says he is "personally opposed to abortion, but supports a woman's right to choose," incurs automatic excommunication. It also provided a basis for Balestrieri to broaden his canonical actions and file additional complaints against four more pro-abortion Catholic politicians: Democrat Senators Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts and Tom Harkin of Iowa; Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine; and former New York Governor Mario Cuomo, a Democrat.
The current action could be significant as it could undercut the entire debate over denying Communion to pro-abortion politicians. An excommunicated Catholic may not receive any of the sacraments of the Church, including the Eucharist, marriage, and even Christian burial. The type of excommunication outlined in the new information is called latae sententiae, which means that it occurs automatically and does not require a formal pronouncement by any Church official.
Balestrieri said he went to Rome in late August to discuss his canonical case with experts, including an official of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Less than 10 days later, he received a letter from Father Basil Cole, a Dominican theologian and consultant to the congregation based in Washington, DC, who said he had been "delegated" by Father Augustine DiNoia, undersecretary of the congregation, to give an unofficial response to the question that Balestrieri had submitted.
"I went to Rome in person to submit two critical questions to the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith," said Balestrieri. "The first: Whether or not the Church's teaching condemning any direct abortion is a dogma of Divine and Catholic Faith, and if the denial and doubt of the same constitutes heresy. The second: Whether or not a denial of the Church's teaching condemning every right to abortion also constitutes heresy. Father Cole, an expert theologian who studied the matter carefully, responded in the affirmative on both counts."
Father Cole wrote, "If a Catholic publicly and obstinately supports the civil right to abortion, knowing that the Church teaches officially against that legislation, he or she commits that heresy envisioned by Can. 751 of the Code [of Canon Law]. Provided that the presumptions of knowledge of the law and penalty and imputability are not rebutted in the external forum, one is automatically excommunicated ...."
Balestrieri said the response was unusual in several respects: that a response was provided to a layman at the request of the undersecretary in only 11 days, that the response was in writing, decisively clarifying the matter, and that it was in far greater detail than a typical official reply. "Normally, only a bishop may request such clarification of doctrine from the CDF, such responses usually take a much longer time to be received, and they are rarely made public," he said.
He also said that the original canonical complaint of heresy against Kerry had received so much response from the public that the tribunal of the Archdiocese of Boston has been deluged with thousands of letters from ordinary Catholics who wish to add their names to the complaint. The head of the archdiocesan tribunal reportedly told him that the case had not been rejected and was "now in the hands of the archbishop," that is, Archbishop Sean O'Malley of Boston.
Balestrieri, a self-identified political independent, says that his actions come as a defender of the faith and Holy Eucharist from sacrilege and scandal, not as one focused on an electoral outcome. "Our victory can come as early as today: It would be for Sen. Kerry, who publicly calls himself a Catholic and yet in violation of Canon Law continues to receive Holy Communion, to repent of his grave sin and publicly recant his abortion advocacy."
The complete text of Father Cole's response as well as other details of the pending cases are available on the DeFide.com web site: (http://www.defide.com
Tuesday, October 19, 2004
Hope you enjoyed the "speculative fiction" on The Plan presented yesterday.
Monday, October 18, 2004
The Kerry Plan
When John Kerry becomes President in January, he will put in his Plan, which he has alluded to, but not provided details as of yet. But the Plan details have been leaked. And it is brilliant.
While the Republicans have mocked Kerry about the impossibility of funding his health care program, the Kerry Team has known that the Plan provides for more than enough to not only pay for the health plan, but to fund social security forever. And, in fact, increase social security entitlements.
I t has other benefits that fit in with his philosophy and beliefs.
How?
In January, immediately after taking his oath of office, John Kerry will immediately order all troops out of Iraq and will abandon all military equipment, weapons and ammunition to the Iraq forces. At the same time he will order the immediate disestablishment of 75% of all US forces. The forces will be limited to 25% of the current base space. Most bases will be closed.
This will ensure that the United States will not have the military capacity, offensive or defensive, to take any action without a coalition of allies. We will never again allow ourselves to take unilateral or preemptive military expeditions without meeting the “Global Test.”
While the Republicans were calling Kerry a “flip-flopper,” in fact he was evolving a fully integrated plan – The Plan – to meet all of his goals: get out of Iraq, Health Care for everyone, fully funded social security forever, and destroying our military capacity to act alone.
And the dumb Republicans never saw it.
Saturday, October 16, 2004
BASIC LIBERAL PHILOSOPHY PROBLEM
The basic philosophical problem with liberalism is immaturity. The favorite word in the liberal lexicon is "fairness". The problem, as my grandmother explained to me, "is life isn't fair." As children, we'd call out, "No fair ? do over." That's fine when you're nine. It doesn't work when you are an adult. Unless you are a liberal.
Then there is no problem.
"Mr. Jones, you earned a college degree, got a good job and earn a good living. Mr. Smith is a high school drop out and a major drug user. He has never held a job for more than a few weeks and has no money. We'll just take half of your money. Mr. Jones, and give it to him.
"IT'S ONLY FAIR!"
That's not fairness, it is communism.
I don't have any problem giving to the those in need. I have a real problem with the government stealing our money to do 'their good deed.' It probably makes millionaire (by inheritance) Ted Kennedy feel good to redistribute $30,000/year Joe Schmoe's to the poor. It doesn't do it for me. Even in the name of fairness. Making it even worse, I trust reputable charities to distribute my contributions more than I ever will the government.
The basic philosophical problem with liberalism is immaturity. The favorite word in the liberal lexicon is "fairness". The problem, as my grandmother explained to me, "is life isn't fair." As children, we'd call out, "No fair ? do over." That's fine when you're nine. It doesn't work when you are an adult. Unless you are a liberal.
Then there is no problem.
"Mr. Jones, you earned a college degree, got a good job and earn a good living. Mr. Smith is a high school drop out and a major drug user. He has never held a job for more than a few weeks and has no money. We'll just take half of your money. Mr. Jones, and give it to him.
"IT'S ONLY FAIR!"
That's not fairness, it is communism.
I don't have any problem giving to the those in need. I have a real problem with the government stealing our money to do 'their good deed.' It probably makes millionaire (by inheritance) Ted Kennedy feel good to redistribute $30,000/year Joe Schmoe's to the poor. It doesn't do it for me. Even in the name of fairness. Making it even worse, I trust reputable charities to distribute my contributions more than I ever will the government.
PRESIDENTIAL RACE OR CinC RACE?
Has anyone else noticed that we don't have a presidential race going this year? It is a race for the country's Commander-in-Chief.
Don't get me wrong. CinC is an important -- very important --role. In fact, the first one mentioned in Article 2, Section 2 of the Constitution. But it is not the only one a president is responsible to execute.
"The Executive Power shall be vested in a president.." As such, he runs the executive agencies and has the authority, with the advice and consent of the Congress (usually the Senate), to enter treaties, appoint officers and federal judges, etc.
Executive experience has historically been recognized by American voters. Let us look at the record since WWII:
F DR -- governor --executive
Truman -- VP and FDR died --executive
Ike -- CinC, European Theater -- executive
JFK -- senator (exception to rule -- proving it)
LBJ -- VP and JFK died --executive
Nixon -- VP -- executive
Ford -- VP -- executive
Carter -- governor -- executive
Reagan -- governor -- executive
Bush '41 -- VP -- executive
Clinton -- governor -- executive
Bush '43 -- governor -- executive
THE SUMMARY:
Executive experience: 11
Senatorial experience: 1
CONCLUSION:
Executive experience WINS
Senatorial experience LOSES
CURRENT CHOICES:
Bush '43 -- governor -- executive
Kerry -- senatorial experience (believe me, a LT (junior grade) is not an executive)
It's called leadership. Any questions?
Has anyone else noticed that we don't have a presidential race going this year? It is a race for the country's Commander-in-Chief.
Don't get me wrong. CinC is an important -- very important --role. In fact, the first one mentioned in Article 2, Section 2 of the Constitution. But it is not the only one a president is responsible to execute.
"The Executive Power shall be vested in a president.." As such, he runs the executive agencies and has the authority, with the advice and consent of the Congress (usually the Senate), to enter treaties, appoint officers and federal judges, etc.
Executive experience has historically been recognized by American voters. Let us look at the record since WWII:
F DR -- governor --executive
Truman -- VP and FDR died --executive
Ike -- CinC, European Theater -- executive
JFK -- senator (exception to rule -- proving it)
LBJ -- VP and JFK died --executive
Nixon -- VP -- executive
Ford -- VP -- executive
Carter -- governor -- executive
Reagan -- governor -- executive
Bush '41 -- VP -- executive
Clinton -- governor -- executive
Bush '43 -- governor -- executive
THE SUMMARY:
Executive experience: 11
Senatorial experience: 1
CONCLUSION:
Executive experience WINS
Senatorial experience LOSES
CURRENT CHOICES:
Bush '43 -- governor -- executive
Kerry -- senatorial experience (believe me, a LT (junior grade) is not an executive)
It's called leadership. Any questions?
BAILING OUT
I've been posting for just under a year. I'm planning on closing down shortly after the election. This is mainly due to a limiting of my access. But I did want to repeat some thoughts firdt. They are above.
I've been posting for just under a year. I'm planning on closing down shortly after the election. This is mainly due to a limiting of my access. But I did want to repeat some thoughts firdt. They are above.
Saturday, October 09, 2004
Bush, Kerry go toe-to-toe in quarrelsome debate
Bush set the tone immediately Friday night, losing no time in going on the attack in response to Kerry’s answer to why people thought he was “wishy-washy.” Kerry detailed several issues on which he said he agreed with the president in principle, including education reform and tax policy, but he said he thought Bush had gone about implementing them wrongly, leading people to think he was unclear.On second view, I'd call it a tie. But Bush needed to be more aggressive.
Friday, October 08, 2004
BUSH LOST
I hate it, but he did not do well.
That's my take.
I hate it, but he did not do well.
That's my take.
I'll be watching tonight. This could be a very important debate. I'll post my take on it tomorrow after I've had some time to absorb it. I hope Kerry does something incredibly stupid.
Wednesday, October 06, 2004
Well, the pundents are mixed, but for my money Cheney won handsomely.
Tuesday, October 05, 2004
Justices Show Inclination to Scrap Sentencing Rules
By the time the first day of the new Supreme Court term ended on Monday, there seemed little doubt that criminal sentencing in the United States was about to change. But what form the change might take, how drastic it might be, and whether defendants or prosecutors would benefit the most remained very much open to question as the court heard arguments on the constitutionality of federal sentencing guidelines that have been in effect for 17 years.This could end up being the most important "first Moday in October" since the Supremes started meeting.
A series of Supreme Court decisions, culminating in June with the invalidation of the sentencing guidelines in the Washington State, established the principle that juries, and not judges, must rule on the facts that are the building blocks of a criminal sentence.
Bremer criticizes troop levels in Iraq
The former U.S. official who governed Iraq after the invasion said yesterday that the United States made two major mistakes: not deploying enough troops in Iraq and then not containing the violence and looting immediately after the ouster of Saddam Hussein.He's probably right in retrospect. Perhaps we should have had a military administrator vis-a-vis McArthur.
Sunday, October 03, 2004
I disagree on Greenblatt's take, but I love his use of Shakespeare:
Friends, Americans, Countrymen...
Friends, Americans, Countrymen...
Two bitter rivals stand up to address an immense, anonymous crowd. The rules have been set in advance: they will speak from the same platform; they will not address each other directly; they will limit their discourse to certain set topics. The stakes are immensely high: no less than the fate of the nation and of the whole world.
Sound familiar? The scene is from Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar," written and first performed more than 400 years ago as the opening play in the newly built Globe Theater. Brutus and Antony stand over the corpse of the assassinated Caesar. Nothing will bring Caesar back. The question is the future course of the damaged republic.
It is worth noting that Shakespeare lived in a monarchy, not a republic. Elizabethan society had little or nothing comparable to what observers of modern democratic societies call the public sphere - the shared space where competing views on politics, economics, foreign policy and moral values are aired. (Parliamentary debates were closed to the public, and transcripts were strictly prohibited.)
This makes it all the more striking that Shakespeare depicts the world's destiny as determined by the rhetorical performances of two men standing up at a pulpit and speaking out to an agitated populace that demands a public reckoning: "We will be satisfied! Let us be satisfied!''
The crowd wants to know why Caesar has been murdered. The honorable, principled Brutus addresses himself to the wisdom of his listeners. Assuming that his audience is capable of assessing and rationally judging his actions, he lays out a complex and seemingly contradictory argument: "As Caesar loved me, I weep for him. As he was fortunate, I rejoice at it. As he was valiant, I honour him. But as he was ambitious, I slew him. There is tears for his love, joy for his fortune, honour for his valour, and death for his ambition."
In the heat of the moment this is a lot for anyone to process: how could Brutus have shifted from friend to foe? Are his deeds the mark of inconsistency or thoughtfulness? How could he be for and against the same man? How is it possible to keep in focus the noble principle for which he says he has acted?
Antony takes a different tack. He addresses not the listeners' heads but their gut feelings. And, weeping ostentatiously, he puts his own feelings on display: "Bear with me. My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar." Never mind that anyone looking closely and coolly should be able to see through the pretense. The wily politician Antony manages to convince the crowd of his absolute sincerity: "I am no orator as Brutus is - But, as you know me all, a plain blunt man."
His cunning speech appeals at once to his listeners' fears, aroused by the ghastly spectacle of violence, and to their greed. To every Roman citizen he gives 75 drachmas. The handout, absurd at such a moment of public crisis, is magically effective. The mob erupts and, as Antony had calculated, Rome is plunged into a cycle of violence that he can exploit for his own political ends.
Did it have to end like this? What if Brutus had honed his message more successfully? And what if the crowd had glimpsed something in Antony's face when he did not know he was being observed that gave away his cynical scheme? The course of history - the collapse of order, years of bloodshed, wasted lives and treasure, the loss of liberty - would have been startlingly different.
Have we learned something about listening to political oratory that Shakespeare's "friends, Romans, countrymen" did not know? Thursday night's debate seemed to me surprisingly revealing. I expected boilerplate, and of course was not totally disappointed in that, but there was something more. To my surprise, substantive differences between President Bush and Senator John Kerry emerged.
One man, the incumbent, insisted again and again on the need at all costs to avoid mixed messages. Everything for him was reduced to an apparently simple war-making strategy and a single enemy. The other man, the challenger, had a more complex account of the task. He expressed commitment to winning the war, but doubted its wisdom; he honored the sacrifice of our troops, but lamented our relative isolation from the rest of the world.
And then something entirely unexpected happened: the lengthy rulebook had called for the television cameras to focus exclusively on whichever man was speaking, but the networks flouted the ban and allowed the audience to see how each candidate responded to his rival's words. The effect was startling.
Senator Kerry principally addressed his remarks to the moderator, Jim Lehrer, and when President Bush was speaking he watched attentively and jotted occasional notes. The president, for the most part, seemed more effective at facing the camera directly when he spoke; he understood that the task was not to persuade Mr. Lehrer to vote for him but to persuade the crowd. However, as many have noted, when he evidently thought he was unobserved he disclosed an astonishing range of emotions: confusion, annoyance and something like rage.
It was a revealing and unnerving sight, something like seeing into Antony's head when he addresses the Roman crowd. Will it make a difference to have seen what we have seen? I believe it will.
Saturday, October 02, 2004
New Qaeda Audiotape Urges Muslims to 'Carry On the Fight'
A new audiotaped message made by Al Qaeda's second-ranking leader and broadcast Friday calls on young Muslims around the world to "carry on the fight" even if the group's leaders are killed or captured.Another sign Osama may have bought the farm.
The message by the leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, was broadcast on the Arab satellite television channel Al Jazeera, and intelligence officials in Washington said a review by the Central Intelligence Agency had concluded that it was authentic.
Friday, October 01, 2004
Kerry OK, but President looked Bushed.
