Cogito Ergo Non Serviam
Oath Keeper Founder Gets 18 Years for Insurrection
Stewart Rhodes founder the Oath Keepers as a vanity project that would allow him to live a life that was a pale imitation of the delusions going on in his head. The man has likened himself to George Washington in the coming American Revolution, and yesterday, he compared himself to Nelson Mandela, a political prisoner. The Oath Keepers is a terrorist organization that led the actual attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021. When he was sentenced to 18 years in prison, the judge stated that Mr. Rhodes continued to be a threat to American democracy. If so, 18 years in custody for seditious conspricacy is inadequate.
"Mr. Rhodes led a conspiracy to use force and violence to intimidate and coerce members of our government into stopping the lawful transfer of power following a presidential election," federal prosecutor Kathryn Rakoczy said. "As the court has just found -- that is terrorism."
Mr. Rhodes has a different perspective, one in which he is the hero rather than the villain of the story. "I believe this country is incredibly divided. And this prosecution -- not just of me, but of all J6ers -- is making it even worse. I consider every J6er a political prisoner and all of them are being grossly overcharged," he said.
Judge Amit Mehta sided with the government. "You are not a political prisoner, Mr. Rhodes," Judge Mehta said, adding that he presents "an ongoing threat and a peril to this country." He added that what we "cannot have is a group of citizens . . . prepared to take up arms in order to foment a revolution. That\\'s what you did. We now all hold our collective breaths every time an election is approaching. Will we have another Jan. 6? That remains to be seen."
Indeed, it does because Mr. Rhodes is an ongoing threat and peril to the nation. That implies that even in prison, he threatens the institutions and norms the rest of America supports. One of the key components to prison as a punishment is that the convict is removed from decent society so that the crime cannot be committed again. But if the crime is threatening the Republic, of still trying to bring it down, then logically the convict will continue to commite the crime even while in prison. And there is an outside chance he could succeed. In other words, being in prison merely makes his amibition harder to achieve, but it does not make it impossible.
American democracy is a horribly flawed beast, and if one were to sit down and write a constitution now, it would look very little like the system the US uses. However, there are some things about it that are worth defending and then some. This journal approves of a free press, no state religion, election of leaders and civilian control of the military. Mr. Rhodes does not. This journal believes that defending the US Constitution is worth it. Mr. Rhodes does not.
History teaches a few relevant lessons, both involving dictators who ruined Europe. First, there is the Austrian failed painter, Herr Hitler. The second example is Naopleon Bonaparte. Now, one is not comparing Mr. Rhodes to either of these mass murderers. One merely points out that these instances are illustrative of why the current situation needs changing.
Herr Hitler got himself elected Chancellor in 1933, but in 1923, he led an attempted coup against the Weimar Republic. The Beer Hall Putsch ended in failure, and Herr Hitler and his comrades went to jail. Death was a possible penalty, and how much happier would European history been if he had not lived beyond 1924?
As for Emperor Napoleon I, the man was defeated in 1814 during the War of the Sixth Coalition. The victors sent him into exile on the Mediterranean island of Elba. He befriended some of his captors and escaped. After that, he returned to France in the 100 Days, raised an army and faced the future Duke of Wellington at Waterloo. That led to the deaths of 50,000 more. How much better would it have been to execute the emperor rather than exile?
Mr. Rhodes is not as capable as those two, but he wanted to play the same game. Tolerant societies cannot tolerate the intolerant, as Karl Popper taught. Mr. Rhodes needs to be dealt with, but prison seems inadequate. Does he deserve death? He is not important enough. Prison is the least bad option.
© Copyright 2023 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Ubuntu Linux.
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