We Need To Ask Horrible People: “Do You Think This Is Going To End Well?”
From today’s Daily Stoic: The Stoics were not unacquainted with awful people. They saw tyrants. They saw cheats. They saw toxic egomaniacs and insatiable ambitions. And what was their reaction to most of these people? Aside from a general wariness and a desire not to be corrupted by them, mostly the Stoics pitied these types. Certainly this is how Marcus Aurelius wrote about someone like Alexander the Great. He almost seemed sad for him. Like, dude, how did you think this was going to end? Did you think conquering the world was going to make you happy? Did you actually think that fame and glory would fill that hole in your soul?
Looking at the top echelon of the U.S. federal government, one might say the same: “Indeed. How did you think this was going to end? Did a life of villainy seem to be a sustainable mode of getting through your years on this planet?”
How does the future of Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta appear now? When Jeffrey Epstein goes away for life, and it becomes clear exactly how he broke federal laws to protect him, does he think the judiciary is going to let him walk?
It’s possible that Trump will stave off all 16 criminal investigations against him between now and the 2020 election, but it’s barely conceivable that none of this legal morass will come crashing down around him when he’s no longer president. Yes, he defecates on a gold-plated toilet, but I certainly don’t want to be him. Would any sane individual?