Clicking on banner ads enables JWR to constantly improve
Jewish World Review Feb. 20, 2001 / 27 Shevat, 5761

Bill O'Reilly

Bill O'Reiley
JWR's Pundits
World Editorial
Cartoon Showcase

Mallard Fillmore

Michael Barone
Mona Charen
Linda Chavez
Ann Coulter
Greg Crosby
Larry Elder
Don Feder
Suzanne Fields
James Glassman
Paul Greenberg
Bob Greene
Betsy Hart
Nat Hentoff
David Horowitz
Arianna Huffington
Marianne Jennings
Michael Kelly
Mort Kondracke
Ch. Krauthammer
Lawrence Kudlow
Dr. Laura
John Leo
David Limbaugh
Michelle Malkin
Jackie Mason
Chris Matthews
Michael Medved
MUGGER
Kathleen Parker
Sam Schulman
Amity Shlaes
Roger Simon
Tony Snow
Thomas Sowell
Cal Thomas
Jonathan S. Tobin
Ben Wattenberg
George Will
Bruce Williams
Walter Williams
Mort Zuckerman

Consumer Reports


Bread and circuses


http://www.jewishworldreview.com -- IT is ironic that the movie "Gladiator" has been nominated for 12 Academy Awards, because this film chronicles a past era that America now seems to be embracing.

Comparisons between the ancient Roman Empire and the United States are nothing new, but these days more and more Americans seem to be ready to break out the togas and head down to their local Nero Sporting Complex for some good old-fashioned carnage.

Our symbolic alliance with ancient Rome begins in the political arena. Fifty percent of Americans who were eligible to vote in last November's presidential shoot-out, declined to exercise that privilege. That means half of the adult population in the United States doesn't care about their country. These non-voting people are chock-full of excuses, but apathy and laziness are the bottom line.

And don't think the politicians don't get this; they certainly do.

They also know that another 30 percent of American adults (15 percent on the left, and 15 percent on the right) are so glued into their ideology that rational thought is impossible. These are the people who will make any excuse to avoid seeing Bill Clinton for the corrupting presence that he is, and these are the people who will support George W. Bush no matter what he does.

We have seen both on display in the aftermath of the Marc Rich pardon. Once again, Clinton has done something so outrageous and inexplicable that it almost defies belief.

I got a great kick out of seeing the corrupt Mr. Clinton pardon a wealthy fugitive who allegedly evaded $48 million in taxes. This is the same Bill Clinton who adamantly opposes any tax cut for the wealthy . How phony is this guy Clinton?

Then Mr. Bush comes along and says he doesn't care about investigating the Marc Rich pardon and wants to "move on." What?

There is possible bribery in play here, Mr. President. Don't you want to know what really happened in this case? Apparently, Bush is more interested in the short-term success of his administration than the long-term strength of the country.

But like the Clintonistas, the Bush-Masters rush to the defense of their guy. "He can't jeopardize his agenda by alienating the Democrats," they say. "He must stay above the fray."

Well, bullfeathers. The most important issue in America these days is not tax cuts, or prescription drugs or even improving education. The most important issue is honest government . President Bush must embrace that concept, or the country will continue to decline in the moral arena.

Just as ancient Rome did.

At one time the Tiber Tigers were a disciplined society that imposed civilization and order on an unruly world. But then the masses of Romans began watching "Survivor," "Temptation Island" and the XFL. Wait a minute, sorry, that's us. The Romans actually began wallowing in orgies and feeding Christians to the lions at the Coliseum. They also tolerated corrupt leaders if the economy was good. Uh-oh, sounds like us again.

Anyway, it is easy to get confused these days. Going to the polls once every four years to vote for a president is apparently too taxing for half of us. It is much easier to go see "Hannibal" or click on the computer and dial up porn.

So with 50 percent of Americans not willing to vote, and another 30 percent parading around as ideological zealots, the politicians only have to worry about 20 percent of the citizenry actually thinking about stuff. And, as Bill Clinton proved, you can fool a good portion of this 20 percent with a little lip biting, some concern about "the children" and a good dose of entitlement spending on special interests.

Caligula would have loved this scenario. In reality, he had to spend a lot more to keep the population from interrupting his debaucheries. Those lions and tigers did not come cheap, and feeding those Jesus lovers until the beasts could chow down on them was another heavy expense.

Luckily, Cal and his fellow Roman tyrants were running a budget surplus, thanks to their plundering Gaul. That surplus, and the moral apathy it bought, allowed the good times to roll in ancient Rome, and perhaps for us in modern day America.

But the good times never last forever. And when the Huns finally do show up -- things could get quite dicey if government corruption is allowed to exist unchecked and the leadership is forever busy "moving on."



JWR contributor Bill O'Reilly is host of the Fox News show, "The O'Reilly Factor," and author of the new book, The O'Reilly Factor: The Good, the Bad, and The Completely Ridiculous in American Life. Comments by clicking here.

Up


02/06/01: How the Clintons do it
01/30/01: The Bush dilemma
01/24/01: I have been investigating Jackson's finances for the past two years
01/17/01: Sifting Ashcroft's record

© 2001 Creators Syndicate