The Rake Magazine

What is being handed over in this illustration is the fasces, the Roman symbol of power. Look up "fascist" in the dictionary, if you wonder where the word came from.

I was on vacation two weeks ago and so missed most of the tempest in a teapot blown up by Keith Ellison's conflation of Bush's exploitation of 9/11 with Hitler's exploitation of the Reichstag fire to set the stage for his assumption of power in Germany.

Ancient historian and author Robert Harris wrote a piece with a similar thesis almost a year ago for the NY Times. But, instead of invoking the Reichstag fire, he dredged up the Lex Gabinia, which was used by Pompey Magnus to basically seize dictatorial powers in ancient Rome. Mediterranean pirates raided Ostia, the port of Rome. And although they were small in number, the pirates were made out to be such a threat that the Roman Senate emptied the treasury, raised a huge navy, gave Pompey the means to gain unlimited power, and sent him after them.

Of course, until Julius Caesar came along just behind Pompey, there was no actual dictatorship in Rome, but Pompey and Caesar were both able to wield absolute power by virtue of the wealth they were able to accumulate because of their ability to use the military to plunder provinces and, in turn, influence elections.

Since it's no secret that the fathers of this country were students of the Roman republic, and modeled our form of government after the Roman system, (right up until it was destroyed forever by Julius Caesar,) it wouldn't be a bad idea to at least consider Harris's contention that al Queda bears a striking resemblance to the Mediterranean pirates...and that Dick Cheney is the very reincarnation of Pompey. (Actually Harris doesn't say that; I do.)

Never happen here? But there's one more parallel to note. The pirates, some of whom were Roman citizens, disappeared into prisons on an island not far off the coast of Italy, never to be allowed trials, never to be released.

Sicily it was then. Not Guantanamo. We'd never do anything like that.

I know you'll find this incredible, but it seems that the last several presidents have tried to keep their Surgeons General quiet about politically sensitive scientific and medical issues.

From Reagan trying to silence Koop about AIDS to Clinton being sensitive about the news that needle exchange programs were actually working to limit disease, presidents have been reluctant to give the people the facts and let politics fall where they may.

Of course, it's no big surprise that the main offender is the current occupant of the White House.

Aside from trying to muzzle former SG Richard Carmona about tobacco and stem cell research, the Bushies also faulted him for attending--get this--the Special Olympics.

Why? Because the Special Olympics have been supported for a long time by a "certain" family. And you know that, no matter how wonderful the cause, if the Kennedy family supports it, it must be wrong.

Zheng Xiaoyu died for our sins

When one thinks about the rule of law here in the United States, it can only lead to confusion. The Bush Justice (is that an oxymoron?) Department can put innocent people in prison for political reasons, but lets the guilty ones go.

China, on the other hand, who isn't exactly known for its sense of justice when it comes to its own people, sure knows where to come down when someone threatens their livelihood. For when Zheng Xiaoyu was convicted of taking bribes to approve medicines that killed people, China hanged him faster than you can say "mentally retarded Texas man."

Don't harbor any illusions that Zheng paid the price because he harmed the people who had taken the phony drugs. He was executed for throwing a wrench into the Chinese economy. If we can't trust their drugs, we certainly can't trust them not to use poisonous paint on Thomas the Tank Engine or put poison in our dog food.

Nevertheless, one has to ask what ought to be the penalty for distributing poisonous drugs in this country. The New York Times has written a few stories lately about Minnesota doctors who have taken money from drug companies to promote the prescription of their medicines for "non-indicated" uses. There is real evidence that these prescriptions have severely damaged people.

But in this country, bribery for "legitimate" business purposes doesn't seem to be a crime. In this country, what it leads to is ever increasing profits. Americans would "never, never" do what Chinese officials have done, would they? Well, they have. The difference is that, here, they get away with it.

Do you remember Lester Crawford? He owned stocks in companies he was regulating while he was head of the FDA. That's not all. If you want to make yourself sick, read this.

His penalty? A little fine, and a nice fat job as a lobbyist.