The assassination attempt on Rep. Giffords has gotten American politicians worried about their safety. I say, get out of the kitchen if you can't stand the heat. Politics has always been a nasty business. I imagine that the first politicians were cavemen from our distant past—the head caveman was hogging all the women, and his political opponent bashed him over the head with a rock and took his place.
I have always thought that the "sacrificial king" style of ruling would be the way to go—each year, a new king is elected, and he has absolute power for one year, and then he is put to death, and a new king is elected. That's what I call a "term limit." The theory is that the king knows that he has one year to make his mark in history, and he will try his damnedest to do so. Corruption isn't a factor, because he won't live to enjoy any ill-gotten gain. The only weak point that I can see is, who the hell would want the job? It would have to be a supreme egoist; hmm—I guess any politician would fit that bill.
At any rate, has the Giffords thing really changed how American politicians think? Will they all go around thinking that they have a target painted on their backs? Are they now going to demand bodyguards at public expense? Popemobile type conveyances? American politicians seem indignant at the idea that they will have to keep looking back over their shoulders from now on, but that's been a way of life for politicians in most of the rest of the world.
Hey, maybe dueling between politicians will come back into style.
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