Two years ago, the idea that America was in a war might have seemed like one of those anachronistic Bushisms which could be swept underfoot by the New Age of Light and Reason—Guantanamo and military tribunals would have to go as well. With Anwar al-Awlaki dead, the Obama Administration has again demonstrated that it can fight the Lord Voldemort War pretty well; it just can’t quite bring itself to make the case for what it must do.
I think that calling what began a decade ago the "Lord Voldemort War" is pretty apt. It's the dirty job that someone has to do. And that has been my frustration with the debate, such as it is, over our role in fighting terrorists and their supporters.
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Way back in the day there was a certain rable-rouser who was a prolific pain in the ass to the regime of the day. Once when he was hauled in by the authorities and they were about to summarily put him out of their misery he short-circuited his execution by asking his captors just how they figured they could do that to a Roman citizen (see Acts 22).
Yes, the Apostle Paul was a Roman citizen (by birth, no less) and entitled to have his case heard in an official court. The process of getting to that hearing added years to Paul's life and to our spiritual canon.
The interesting thing was, however, just how much weight that citizenship carried even when Paul was nowhere near Rome. No matter how much the local authorities may have longed to be rid of this "turbulent priest" (another historial reference to an abusive king), they did not dare deny him his due proceess.
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