Creating Choas
Dear Friends,
Some of us are old enough to remember when Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley misspoke during the massive anti-war demonstrations at the 1968 Democratic Convention. Many demonstrators and, frankly, members of the media criticized the Chicago police for overreaching and excessive use of force.
Mayor Daley – never a shrinking violet – blasted police critics with these memorable words: “The policeman isn’t there to create disorder. The policeman is there to preserve disorder.” Obviously Mayor Daley misspoke, but there are many who seriously believe that Congress creates and directs disorder. In fact, we are considered by many to be disorder disbursers.
The three most stable institutions in a chaotic and unwinding world should be the family, places of worship, and the US House of Representatives. That reminds me of a joke I heard several years ago.
A doctor, an engineer, and a congressman were arguing over whose profession was the oldest. The doctor said, “Well, in the beginning, God created Eve out of Adam and that was surgical procedure.”
The engineer said, “Yes, but God also created order out of chaos, and that was an engineering move.”
And the congressman said, “Yes, but who created the chaos?”
Hopefully, no Member of Congress would end his or her retirement speech by saying, “Fighting, political tribalism, and chaos … my work is done!”
|