Cicero

Salus populi suprema est lex.
The good of the people is the supreme law.
~Cicero
 
Cicero
 
If Cicero were
Commander-in-Chief
What would he say
In the 21^st century?
He would say
Something like this,
Perhaps;
Judge a nation by its laws,
Not by its people.
But, how do you judge an enemy?
Judge an enemy by its morals, perhaps,
Not its manners.
No, that can’t be right.
Cicero would not start with
A verb like judge.
If the good of the people
Is the supreme law,
Then what is good?
Interesting that it should be of
And not for.
What is good of the people
Might not necessarily be good
For the people for a short while.
Although, long-term, good is good, right?
Of and for unite at some point,
But of should always come first.
The wait is where the confusion happens,
Where our enemies strike.
War, for example, well War
Can be good of the people
But not good for some of those people,
Or other people.
Collateral damage is not a thing.
There is just damage, through and through.
But Good must fight Evil’s War,
Lest Good be extinguished.
Good’s victory usually leads to peace,
Because Evil rarely has enough
Money or, importantly, Men.
But there’s always one or two
That are spared,
One or two that are
The Real Collaterals.
What would Cicero say
In the 21^st century?
He might not qualify
The law as supreme.
Perhaps, Cicero would say
Something like this:
The good of the people is
The law;
Or,
The good of the people
Is in the people;
Or,
The good of the people
Is in the gods worshipped;
Or,
The good of the people
Is in the Supreme God worshipped;
Or, substitute worshipped for warshipped.
Faith feels important these days.
Faith, really, has been important always.
But,
Cicero would not use in,
Even though I would.
Cicero would probably write this,
Still, in all capitals, as then:
THE GOOD OF THE PEOPLE
IS THE SUPREME LAW.
But who knows what he would say?
What one would say and one would write
Is not the same, perhaps.
I will write this:
The Good of the people
Is the supreme command.