Submitted by Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
With apologies to Archbishop of Canterbury John Morton, I’m offering this version of his famous “fork”:
You’re a young idealist standing for the highest office in the land. Against many odds you’ve offered a candidacy of hope and change to an electorate tired of both war and the prior Administration that got them into those wars. There are rumors of widespread atrocities committed by that Administration in response to a horrific terrorist attack on American soil where thousands of your countrymen died. In your capacity as an US Senator, you’ve been briefed on several of these and you see a pattern developing. You’re a Constitutionalist; a lawyer; and a principled man, but you recognize the nation faces a real threat of nuclear holocaust at the hands of committed, well-funded terrorists supported and protected by renegade states and even some of our allies. These terrorists have a fanatical zeal and value martyrdom above self-preservation. You believe that if they acquire weapons of mass destruction the question will not be if millions of people will die, but which millions of people will die.
Riding a groundswell of promise and belief in your promises to restore American values, the electorate sends you to the nation’s capitol to change the way things have been done. During the course of the election, it has become clear that the drain on the economy caused by war, corruption, and old-fashioned greed has left the country in dire financial straits.
On January 16th you are briefed by the nation’s intelligence communities. You are told definitively that the intelligence community has engaged in extraordinary measures to fight America’s enemies which you conclude amount to torture, illegal renditions, detaining innocent people, and even Executive Orders approving the killing of persons deemed enemy combatants. You’ve inherited a Gulag within sight of the American coast and during the campaign you’ve vowed to close it. You are told that many senior members of the permanent intelligence community were aware of and approved the illegal measures employed in defense of the country. Losing these people would severely cripple efforts to defend the country as they form a sizable amount of the intelligence community’s institutional knowledge and memory. You’re also told that these senior intelligence officers have been promised immunity for their actions by the earlier Administration.
You convene your economic advisors who explain to you that the emergency measures adopted by your predecessor and designed to prop up the failing economy may well work but it will take time,and any shock to the nation could disturb this fragile trust building process. If the stimulus fails, the resulting shock could send the nation and Europe into a full-blown depression crippling the efforts to fight terrorism.
Moderate governments in the Mideast have come to you seeking aid to fight the fundamentalist movements that are fueling terrorist recruitment and sponsorship. They tell you that to continue the fight means more money and intelligence from the US or their efforts will be severely handicapped.
What do you do?
A. Continue the illegal policies of the past Administration reasoning that this is war and that your primary goal is to defend the nation at all costs. These repugnant policies seemed to have had some effect in curtailing the terrorist threat and your calling off the dogs is a real risk to your viability as a leader if you’re wrong and another deadly attack occurs on US soil. Another successful attack could throw the markets into a death spiral and the recovery might not occur for decades. You continue with the stimulus program and avoid any investigation of earlier illegal acts concluding that any shock to the fragile economy caused by the turmoil will reap more evil than it alleviates. You also avoid any investigation to eliminate the possibility of crippling the intelligence community. You share money and both illegally obtained and legally obtained intelligence with the friendly Arab states.
B. You reason that principle trumps expediency and stop all illegality. You immediately order investigations into the prior Administration’s handling of the war. You make public the results and bring indictments against wrongdoers. You do so even in the face of prior pledges of immunity reasoning they are void ad initio given our treaty obligations and on principles of international law. You make Herculean efforts to replace the intelligence officers lost to the investigations and you build morale by explaining your policies as being in the nation’s long-term best interest. You do what you can to stabilize the economy but you will not compromise in your efforts to prosecute those who have violated the law. You tell friendly states and Europe you understand their concerns about such a policy but you adhere to the adage that “let justice be done though the heavens fall.”
C. You adopt a middle ground approach reasoning it is best for the country that the economic recovery not be affected by criminal investigations of the American intelligence community and the prior Administration. You believe any move otherwise could lead to a weakening of American strength at the worst time and make that nuclear holocaust against an American city more likely. You change the illegal policies of the prior Administration to stop torture, curtail renditions and if absolutely necessary only to countries that will not use torture. You employ death warrants abroad and only against those your intelligence agencies tell you present a clear and present danger to the US. You fully support friendly states abroad against extremists and provide intelligence to them as well as cash.
D. Your Choice.
Now, the tough part: Defend your choice — and no changing facts that you don’t like in our “hypothetical situation.”
~Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Binary thinking is a trap for the small minded and those incapable of dealing with complexity. The nature of reality is analog, not binary. Absolutes are more defined by preconceptions of the viewer as skewed by point of observation than they are created by actual transaction. Very little in the world is purely one thing or another.
Elaine , I was talking about those who consider that because they have lived longer they can tell others that it is wise to be dishonest and suggest that anyone who does not agree with them is just naive . I hope you are not the one I was referring to.
Mespo,
“I try to deal in reality. The reality is that your guy is irrelevant to the election. You may want him to be relevant. You may really, really, really want him to be relevant but polling says he’s not.”
The only candidate that isn’t trying to start a war with iran is irrelevant?
The only candidate who wants to end the massive police state we are erecting in america is irrelevant?
The only candidate who actually believes in due process of law is irrelevant?
Frank:
Mespo is just too old to realize there are absolutes [not vodka]. And that most things are black or white when you get down to the bone. The gray comes in when you start making excuses for bad actions or behaviors.
Lawyers make a living finding the gray, translation: figuring a way to blame someone else so their client doesnt take the full brunt of the punishment for his stupid act.
Bron, Thank God there are lawyers like Jonathan Turley as otherwise after seeing some of the posts here I would have started to believe what people say about lawyers. Some of the comments here suggesting that this post was some sort of neutral intellectual exercise stink so bad of narcissism that you literally have to pinch your nose . By the way , sometimes those punishable acts are not just “stupid” they are very well planned evil acts . But I do believe in the right to have a lawyer unlike this president who wants to detain people indefinitely without access to a lawyer .
Thanks for the reading list .Have you read Erich Fromm ?
http://www.salon.com/2012/02/02/aclu_sues_obama_administration_over_assassination_secrecy/singleton/?mobile.html
Frank:
no worries.
Read these other people from East Bumfuque, Texas:
Jean Baptiste Say
John Locke
Frederic Bastiat
Walter Williams
Thomas Sowell
Peter Schwarz
John Lewis
Mark , “18 year old” , guess you don’t know the 18 year olds who can teach you a few things about honesty. If age is something you are going to put someone down then I feel even more sorry for you .
Sorry bron my above comment was in response to his highness, not directed to you .
Actually doesn’t matter old or young , I don’t care for either if they support or are dishonest themselves . I know that must be odd to hear for you as in your world those are the people to be admired for their wisdom .
Frank:
Our generation got screwed by the one before ours. The 60’s saw the rise of the progressives writ large. It didnt really get going until the children of the depression started coming to power. But I dont know if you can blame them, my grandmother and grandfather had a real hard time in the depression and it scared the everlovin S out of them. It was so brutal it changed lifetime behaviors for both of them.
Government certainly isnt the answer to curing the ails of society, each of us needs to do his/her part. Be as self reliant as you can and dont expect other people to pay your way, but you have to admit that when you reach the end of your rope there should be some options open to you. Like charity or maybe a mutual aide society you can belong to, to help defray costs or provide retirement or health care.
Any government instrument for social welfare could be privately funded and operated by individuals. Some individuals, such as the mentally or physically handicapped, who cannot work or dont have access to charity or family do need to be helped by society, meaning government. Some very few individuals truly are in need of government help.
“Your highness if you use the leftover brain cells you will realize that Ron Paul is 76 ….”
***************
You’re right. He’s 76;he just has the ideas of an 18-year-old freshman, political science major from East Bumfuque, Texas.
Your highness if you use the leftover brain cells you will realize that Ron Paul is 76 and I admire and respect him . I don’t admire and respect the old people who confuse dishonesty with wisdom , get it ?
FRank:
Steve’s dead and worse yet was over 50 when he died. I ‘m surprise you listen to him since since he’s one of our generation’s corrupt brainwashed folks. He was an expert in Presidential politics, too … wasn’t he? Or do you just pull out the musing any famous “old” person to prove your points?
Keep talkling. I feel like I’m contributing to your education. Maybe we’ll get you to the point of edification where you can tell me where I went wrong factually to suggest that Paul has no chance to get nominated much less win, and therefore is irrelevant. Looks like an all-nighter to me.
http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2012/02/change-you-can-believe-in-two-wars-ended.html Another opinion from a Ron Paul sympathizer
Your highness you are the one who knows the truth. We just don’t understand your wisdom forgive us for “pouting and sulking ” Guess Steve jobs was also pouting when he said that he is annoyed by this president as all he can do is to give reasons why he can’t do something !
Frank,
Seriously, all you’ve done here is make assertions and call people names. The only “facts” you’ve presented are from FOXNews, the American version of Pravda. Put very plainly Ron Paul is a racist, bigot, not just from his newsletters but from his being a guest speaker at the John Birch Society
40th Anniversary Bash. Probably, in your world being a bigot is not telling lies. “Asperse” me all you want, it’s deliciously funny and makes me look good with each flailing diatribe.
“It’s just sad how brainwashed people are and since the age group that votes the most is similarly clueless we end up with the kind of morally corrupt people we have seen lately in the that position.”
*********************
Just priceless! Will you true patriots be picking up your marbles now or do you have more pouting and sulking to do. GIve us “brainwashed” folks a call when you decide to enter the real world and we’ll explain that life is full of grays and lots of contradictions.
By the way, please have at cleaning up all the corruption. Can’t wait to see how you do compared to our generation. I’ll match score cards with you.
We’ll see your Ron Paul and raise you a King — and a Bobby Kennedy.
Frank,
“It’s just sad how brainwashed people are and since the age group that votes the most is similarly clueless we end up with the kind of morally corrupt people we have seen lately in the that position .”
Are you talking about elderly people like me? I don’t consider myself brainwashed or clueless.
Blouise: “mespo, It is your scenario and your rules and I agree to the guidelines you have imposed.
My choice is “D” which would firstly be a complete repudiation of the Gerald Ford legacy (the country and the economy are too weak to handle the rule of law) in that I would hold the top officials responsible and direct the Justice Department to seek indictments against Tenent, Goss, Hayden, Negroponte, McConnell, (maybe Kerr), Bush and Cheney. I would provide total immunity to any personnel who served under these individuals for truthful testimony under oath. Then I would employ the rest of “C”.
My reasoning would be very clear … none of this could have happened on the scale it occurred without the concurrence and orders of the top officials so those same top officials will carry the entire blame. Now, privately, to those who served under these men and followed their orders … career advancement is not something you can look forward to … just thank your lucky stars that this time around the big fish are the only ones who will be looking at four walls in ADX Florence.”
=========================================
Blouise,
Excellent answer. I concur.
Something a bit telling in the scenario and the guidelines though; don’t ya think?
Totally agree with you Tony ! It’s just sad how brainwashed people are and since the age group that votes the most is similarly clueless we end up with the kind of morally corrupt people we have seen lately in the that position . Guess they ARE representing the voting majority .
Frank:
Don’t feel bad, we’ve all missed Ron Paul’s point whatever it was. As for MIke S, he’s no shoe polisher.