Communists

There has never been a communist country, only socialist countries ruled by parties that called themselves communist. These days, the last major 'communist' country, China, isn't even socialist anymore, but comes close to the sort of corporatism Chiang envisioned. I doubt Mao would approve.

Acton

Quotes from John Dalberg-Acton, Baron Acton

(as pertinent now as ever)

Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men.

There is no worse heresy than that the office sanctifies the holder of it.

The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections.

Be not content with the best book; seek sidelights from the others; have no favourites.

The issue which has swept down the centuries and which will have to be fought sooner or later is the people versus the banks.

Every thing secret degenerates, even the administration of justice; nothing is safe that does not show how it can bear discussion and publicity.

The danger is not that a particular class is unfit to govern. Every class is unfit to govern.

There is no error so monstrous that it fails to find defenders among the ablest men.

At all times sincere friends of freedom have been rare, and its triumphs have been due to minorities, that have prevailed by associating themselves with auxiliaries whose objects differed from their own; and this association, which is always dangerous, has been sometimes disastrous, by giving to opponents just grounds of opposition.

Universal History is ... not a burden on the memory but an illumination of the soul.

There is not a more perilous or immoral habit of mind than the sanctifying of success. [said of Oliver Cromwell]

The strong man with the dagger is followed by the weak man with the sponge.

The science of politics is the one science that is deposited by the streams of history, like the grains of gold in the sand of a river; and the knowledge of the past, the record of truths revealed by experience, is eminently practical, as an instrument of action and a power that goes to making the future.

Liberty is not the power of doing what we like, but the right of being able to do what we ought.

ICE, a poem

ICE

Come join us in ICE
You needn’t play nice!
Take out your frustrations
On folks from other nations!
Forget past rebuffs
We’ll give you handcuffs!
Don’t even think twice
Come join us in ICE!

Come join us in ICE
Make them pay the price!
We know that you’re bitter
You said so on twitter
Before it went X — 
You might finally have sex!
Is that enough to entice?
Come join us in ICE!

Stephen Brooke ©2025

were I more ambitious I could expand this into a song though I don't normally do topical 

Mandate

There was no mandate in the 2024 presidential election. There was no mandate in 2020 nor in 2016. All three were essentially coin-tosses, with a few thousand votes here and there making the difference.

Indeed, all the elections in this century have been very close. We are divided into two camps, nearly equal in numbers. The two-party system helps to perpetuate this divide, stifling any other voices.

One doesn’t like the current administration? The only alternative is to vote for the other party. We end up voting against someone more than we do voting for someone.

On Abortion

Abortion access shows up on several state ballots this year, including here in Florida. I favor the amendment here. Being quite libertarian, I absolutely believe in the right of a woman to control her own body. The question then becomes whether or not another body is involved. Just when does a fetus become (or should be considered as) a human person?

No one can honestly claim to know. We may have our beliefs but those beliefs can not be forced on others. This is why I advocate a sensible compromise, whether it be ‘viability’ or ‘quickening.’ Setting the cutoff at less (or banning abortion altogether) is very much imposing ones beliefs rather than depending on any sort of medical knowledge.

I personally dislike abortion and would prefer it only be a resort when the woman’s health is in serious danger. It is not for me to impose that view on anyone else. It must remain a choice for the woman, ultimately—not the state, not the doctors.

And definitely not you and me.

Theory, a poem

A graphic of a poem I wrote a few years back. It is likely to show up in next year's published collection, which will feature more of my 'light' verse.