I will give Nancy Pelosi credit for an inadvertent statement of truth. As she took possession of the gavel as new Speaker of the House, she said that she was accepting it in “a spirit of partnership, not partisanship.” No major differences of opinion allowed! One of my legal dictionaries defines “partnership” as “a combination by two or more persons . . . for the purpose of business for their common benefit.” How often do the politicians openly admit that they are participants in a one-party system, “a combination for their common benefit”?
The media eagerly takes up the establishment mantra that “power in Congress has shifted from the Republicans to the Democrats.” What power? With only a very small handful of exceptions, neither the House nor Senate have seen fit to exercise any independent authority of late in Washington. They have as much “power” as “the decider-in-chief” allows them to have, and they are happy for the morsels so accorded them.
With the Iraq war the one issue about which most Americans are desirous of some fundamental change, and with the Democrats taking a firm “don’t rock the boat” policy in that regard, the illusory “change” taking place in Washington may make increasing numbers of people aware that the state is a one-barreled power structure with no intentions of ever bringing about any significant change in anything – other than to increase its power over people. The lesson may become so obvious that, to paraphrase H.L. Mencken, even editorial writers may take notice of it!
Perhaps Nancy can place a few walnuts beneath her gavel before she pounds it. That way, at least, something productive can come from her expenditure of energy.
8:31 pm on January 4, 2007
