People's Will Is Expressed Through Bosses (Blast From The Past)

After any war, the use of force throughout the world is almost taken for granted. Men involved in the war have been trained to use force and they have discovered that, when you want something, you can take it. The return to peacetime methods governed by law and persuasion is usually difficult. We who have long boasted that, in our political life, freedom in the use of the secret ballot made it possible for us to register the will of the people without the use of force, have had a rude awakening as we read of conditions in McMinn county, Tenn., which brought about the use of force in the recent primary. If a political machine doe snot allow the people free expressions, then freedom-loving people lose their faith in the machinery under which their government functions. In this particular case, a group of young veterans organized to oust the local machine and elect their own slate in the primary. We may deplore the use of force but we must also recognize the lesson which this incident points for us all. When the majority of the people know what they want, they will obtain it. Any local, state or national government, or any political machine, in order to live, must give the people assurance that they can express their will freely and that their votes will be counted. The most powerful machine cannot exist without the support of the people. Political bosses and political machinery can be good, but the minute they cease to express the will of the people, their days are numbered. This is a lesson which wise political leaders learn young and you may be pretty sure that, when a boss stays in power, he gives the majority of the people what they think they want. ...

"A successful crime is called virtue;the good obey the wicked men; Justice lies in the force of arms, fear oppresses laws." Seneca

The Battle of Athens took place in August of 1946 when G.I.’s, who returned from WWII, took up arms against corrupt politicians and party bosses who avoided justice, ignored the United States Constitution and refused to hold fair elections.

AdminMods please pardon this blast from the past. I know it's not current news, but I expect few here have heard of the Battle of Athens, and fewer still know that Mrs. Roosevelt wrote about it soon after it occurred.

Current relevance is sustained as This week, Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett claimed a proponent of fair elections made a “terrorist threat” by merely referencing the heroic actions of McMinn citizens. The TBI, who Sec. Hargett sent to visit the fair election proponent, called the Secretary’s claim “unsubstantiated.”

Hopefully Sec. Hargett will find the time this weekend to read up on his Tennessee history. He can start with the Tennessee Blue Book his own office publishes which recounts the heroic efforts of Tennessee citizens who took up arms against corrupt politicians.

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