Rebuking Rowley

The Freedom Caucuses are amongst the better things happening in State politics today.  Louisiana is blessed to have one, and they have done some good work so far.  Much of the legislation they have written and passed has been excellent, but we cannot say the same thing for some of the resolutions they have written.  The Louisiana Freedom Caucus’s (LFC) condemnation of London (England) Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley is a case-in-point.  It fails rhetorically and strategically.

Sir Mark has threatened to extradite anyone in the United States who shares footage on social media of the immigration riots that have plagued England recently that he deems forbidden.  The LFC rightly objected and issued a stern reply to Sir Mark.  But the rhetorical form they chose doesn’t fit the situation at all.  They used a device suited for a cold, dispassionate legal brief (a repetitious list of ‘Whereas’ statements), not for bidding fiery defiance to a would-be tyrant.  Examples:

WHEREAS on the 4^th of July, 1776, the 13 British Colonies declared independence from England . . .

WHEREAS in 1787, the colonies adopted a Constitution . . .

WHEREAS given the fact that English laws related to the infringement of free speech have no effect in the United States . . .

This is the sort of thing that makes peoples’ eyes glaze over, rather than rise up in indignation against the oppressor and in solidarity with the oppressed.

A better example of rhetoric against a tyrant comes from a martyr celebrated on 14 August, St. Eusebius of Palestine (martyred near the end of the 3^rd century).  Here is some of the dialogue between him and the Roman judge:

Maxentius, whom the people stirred up by furious clamours against the servant of Christ, said to him: “Sacrifice to the gods freely, or you shall be made to do it against your will.” The martyr replied: “There is a greater law which says, Thou shalt adore the Lord thy God, and him alone shalt thou serve.”

Maxentius urged: “Choose either to offer sacrifice, or to suffer the most rigorous torments.” Eusebius answered: “It is not consistent with reason for a person to adore stones, than which nothing is viler or more brittle.”

Maxentius: “These Christians are a hardened race of men, to whom it seems desirable rather to die than to live.” Eusebius: “It is impious to despise the light for the sake of darkness.”

Had St. Eusebius answered as the LFC did – Whereas there is a greater law…; Whereas it is not consistent with reason…; Whereas it is impious…; and so forth – such statements would not have been nearly as effective as the brief, direct responses he actually gave.  We hope the LFC will keep things like this in mind in their future resolutions.

Rhetoric aside, there is also the problem of strategy.  In condemning Comm. Rowley, the LFC took too big of a swing and landed some blows on the English people at large with lines like these:

WHEREAS the rights of Americans have been inviolate since that time, though we readily acknowledge England’s failed attempt to retake the colonies, we respectfully remind the Commissioner how that fracas ended—with an enormous defeat of England’s Army at the Battle of New Orleans.  English casualties were high and the Royal Army was sent home without the treasure or property it craved; . . .

If the LFC really wants to make Sir Mark uncomfortable, they need to undermine his position of strength in England.  That is done by making common cause with the plainfolk of England, the people he is threatening just like Louisianans and other Southerners and the rest of the States with jail time for sharing videos on social media.  However, one does not make allies by mocking the history and valor of those English people, saying in effect ‘We kicked yo’ hineys once, and we’re ready to do it again.’

The LFC ought to say instead that they understand and value the deep cultural ties Louisiana and all the other States share with the English people.  From England we have inherited a wonderful Christian patrimony full of some the finest saints one will find in any land, from monastics like St. Guthlac and St. Hilda to missionaries like St. Willibrord to excellent rulers like St. Edwin and St. Ethelbert.  The influence of English literature is likewise profound:  Beowulf, the many and varied writings of St. Aldhelm and St. Bede, Chaucer, the language of the King James Bible, the poetry of George Herbert, the powerful works of G. K. Chesterton, T. S. Eliot, C. S. Lewis, and J. R. R. Tolkien; much more could be said in this regard.  There is also the English conservative political tradition that we draw from, with remarkable figures like John Henry Newman and Samuel Taylor Coleridge to name just two.  Not to mention that the States have inherited the basic structure of their political institutions from England (the three branches of government and how they interact, the bicameral legislature, county government, etc.).  And since the Great Feast of the Falling Asleep of the Mother of God has recently passed, we may also note that England (at Glastonbury) was one of the first places where the Christians venerated the All-Pure, Ever-Virgin Mary, beginning there with St. Joseph of Arimathea in the 1^st century.

This is the very history and culture totalitarians like Comm. Rowley are trying to erase and replace with a debauched pagan alternative.  The LFC and other good folks in Louisiana and the rest of the States should make every effort to shore up the Christian English culture here in North America and also in England.  Doing so is the surest way to force totalitarians like Sir Mark to retreat and find another line of work (as a Christian ethnos will not abide such people), one where they will no longer pose a threat to society at large.  Thus, instead of unnecessary insults, the LFC ought to be reaching out to Nigel Farage’s Reform Party (amongst others) about how they can help turn the tide in a better direction in England, which would benefit both the UK and the US.

The benefits of international contacts amongst conservatives/traditionalists/reactionaries extend beyond this one kerfuffle with Sir Mark, too:  exchanging and improving policy ideas, convivial fellowship and encouragement, warnings about approaching dangers that may have been overlooked, etc.

Ah well, c’est la vie.  Live and learn, as the wise ones say.  It is difficult to find perfection anywhere in the world.  May the Lord bless every good endeavor of the LFC.  We look forward to its work in the years ahead.

-By Walt Garlington