This particular saying, attributed to Jesus in the Gospels, has always intrigued me. While it seems fairly certain from the context that the reference was to the Gospel of the Kingdom preached by Jesus - it would start as a little secret, but soon be hailed about in public - I have always taken it to be a dictum that governs life in general. That is to say, what all of us wish could stay hidden forever will not, especially the less attractive, more underhanded aspects of our lives. The harder we work to conceal our own wrongdoings, our own nefarious actions, the more likely it will be that what we have worked so hard to keep under wraps will one day become general public knowledge.
I have been thinking about this particular phrase as the revelations continued this week about the rampant abuse of power, neglect of injured troops, and the Scooter Libby verdict all became part of our national dialogue. Each case - the firing of US Attorneys for political reasons; the conditions as Walter Reed and other Army medical facilities; the entire structure of the Administration's take-down of a war-critic - while horrible in itself, also shows a much broader contempt for just about everything contemporary Americans hold as sacrosanct. Most of all, these issues are clouded in secrecy, misdirection, and obfuscation - Bush Co. did not want any of this coming to light. Indeed, the VP has a consistent record of maintaining that the Executive Branch has no obligation to inform even Congress of its doings, let alone the public. And yet, the word is getting out, and I do believe I hear a clock ticking, ever so much louder, in the background.
What is even more amazing is the fact that, with little effort, through much haggling, and under fierce criticism from progressives, the Democratic Congress at less than two months of age in this session has already done more to uncover rampant Republican abuse of power than was accomplished in six years of Republican control; imagine what the rest of the session will look like! I am not saying that the obstacles Democrats in Congress face aren't real; I am also not suggesting that the criticism of progressives is unwarranted or ill-conceived. Far from it; we need to hold these folks' feet to the fire. I believe, in fact, that we are now discovering all this nonsense precisely because the Dems are feeling the pressure both from outspoken progressives and the public in general.
We are witnessing the unraveling of another Republican Administration and its secretive attempts to use its power for placing a partisan stranglehold upon the country. While I do believe that the attempt would have succeeded at any rate, the fact the attempt was made, on a number of fronts, only shows the desperate need for a reinvigorated press, a reinvigorated two- or multi-party system, and a restoration of the balance between Congress and the Executive Branch. It also shows that, far from being a specific prophetic witness to the power of the Gospel, Jesus' little dictum is a good rule to remember whenever we think we are going to succeed keeping our misdeeds hidden.
Virtual Tin Cup
