The Negative Voice
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2003-01-29 - 1:38 p.m.

I (Heart) Lincoln and Mechaieh

Mmm... Opera 7. Opera 7 has improved Javascript support. Opera 7 seems to be just fine with "Blog This" (as long as I have the auth cookie first; otherwise it chokes) and it groks the bits that insert time and date into my diaries. I can dig it.

Apparently my karma was flowing well yesterday. Only minutes after daring the audience to make my life more interesting, I got a gift package from Mechaieh and her BYM. I'm already devouring Lincoln: An Ethical Biography. Reading the introduction reminded me of the short shrift we seem to be giving ethics these days. I can't remember the last time I felt like anyone in higher office was making a deliberate ethical choice when he made policy. Usually it all seems to come down to expedience. I'm looking forward to seeing how Lincoln came to push that line back.

I'm certainly not claiming Lincoln wasn't motivated by expediency. His stand on slavery- opposing its expansion without seeking to abolish it where it currently existed- can only be a product of expediency over ideology. I'm comfortable with that, though. Being ethical doesn't mean you have to be a kamikaze. See what is right, and do what you can to move in that direction. And most importantly, if you're a politician, try to emulate Lincoln's ability to be clear about what you stand for, what you want, and what you're doing. In that way, more than anything else, the Shrub has been a pathetic letdown.

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