Sunday, March 31, 2024

The saying "Cheaters make bad leaders"

We have a lot of sayings in our society that are useful reminders of common wisdom, like "a stitch in time saves nine."  We also call these sayings adages, maxims, or aphorisms.  An adage that should be in our minds when we think about politics is, "cheaters make bad leaders."

Until recently, the most famous cheater in American history has been LBJ, Lyndon Baines Johnson, our 36th President.  His most famous cheat was for the 1948 Democratic runoff for a US Senate seat.  I have more details in this post:  LBJ Did Steal an Election, April 21, 2019 (https://robertcanrightsblog.blogspot.com/2019/04/lbj-did-steal-election.html)

So very many people died in his tragic mishandling of the Vietnam War.  Over 58,000 American military servicemen died in Vietnam.  The number of civilian deaths has been estimated at 2 million.  Although the documentary, The Fog of War, featuring Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, covers war in general, it also covers the Vietnam War.


The way Vietnam was mismanaged by LBJ was a tragedy.  If LBJ had not cheated his way into the Senate, he would never have become JFK's vice president.  Actions have consequences.  A consequence of people cheating to achieve positions that they do not deserve is that the people's choice is subverted and the fundamental premise of our system of government is destroyed.

We have throughout our history relied on the wisdom of the American people to chose their leaders, but cheating cancels the will of the people.  

We should always remember:  Cheaters make bad leaders.



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