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"Whether or not we supported Alaric in his campaign to sack Rome, it is now our patriotic duty to rally behind him. Alaric is now the ruler of all Romans, not just those who smear their faces with blood and smell strongly of dung."

(Published on the occasion of GWB's 2001 inauguration)
From The New Republic, January 22, 2001. Partial transcript below. Follow pastebin link in next post for complete alt text. BIPARTISANSHIP, CIRCA 410 A.D. Finally, the divisive battle that has gripped our nation for months has come to an end. There can no longer be any doubt of the ultimate result: Alaric and his Visigoth horde have won, and the emperor, Flavius Honorius, has lost. Whether or not we supported Alaric in his campaign to sack Rome, it is now our patriotic duty to rally behind him. Alaric is now the ruler of all Romans, not just those who smear their faces with blood and smell strongly of dung. We must all show the graciousness, good humor, and dignity that Honorius demonstrated as he fled on horseback with his servants in the dark of night. If one thing has been proved by this long battle, it is that our system works. The Visigoths worked hard for this outcome: They pillaged our temples, burned our crops, and carried off our women. As a result, they now deserve our support, as well as our respect. Yes, some may continue to question aspects of Alaric's campaign. We have previously noted our concern about the Visigoths' strategy of stripping naked and running into battle making high-pitched screaming sounds, as well as their controversial decision to slay our elders and eat their entrails in the Forum. The Visigoths' scorched-earth strategy—and, again, we would have preferred for them to have scorched only some of our earth-struck many of us as overly aggressive. But, in the end, Alaric and his barbarian horde were simply using every method available to them in a flawed and often confusing process. No battle is perfect, and inevitably some children are going to be impaled on stakes and their lifeless bodies paraded through the streets. Those tactics don't make the result of this contest any less legitimate.
January 24, 2025 at 8:49 PM