The Belgravia Dispatch: The Woes of the Overcome Administrator

November 11, 2006

The Woes of the Overcome Administrator

Andrew Sullivan digs up a marvelous quote from Tolstoy's War and Peace, which Andrew raises in the context of Donald Rumsfeld's exit:

It seems to every administrator that it is only by his efforts that the whole population under his rule is kept going, and in this consciousness of being indispensable every administrator finds the chief reward of his labour and efforts. While the sea of history remains calm the ruler-administrator in his frail bark, holding on with a boat-hook to the ship of the people and himself moving, naturally imagines that his efforts move the ship he is holding on to. But as soon as a storm arises and the sea begins to heave and the ship to move, such a delusion is no longer possible. The ship moves independently with its own enormous motion, the boat-hook no longer reaches the moving vessel, and suddenly the adminstrator, instead of appearing a ruler and a source of power, becomes an insignificant, feeble man...

The same goes for Dick Cheney too, by the way. It's almost enough to make you feel sorry for Mssrs. Last Throes and Stuff Happens. On television of late, when I glimpse footage of Cheney, it's not hard to see through his unpersuasive attempts to project the old swagger and 'steady at the helm' authority vibe. Its instead been replaced by a certain nervous skittishness, as events have totally overtaken his rosy nostrums, leaving him an immensely discredited national security player. And talk of things going "remarkably well" in Iraq (at the very time it descends into deeper civil war), not only provides rich fodder for late night comedians, but only further reinforces the insignificance of the now so discredited, overcome 'administrator' (to use Tolstoy's descriptive). Yes, these men have become much smaller given the fiasco of Iraq, as has their legacy. They are deeply diminished figures, and history will record this with penetrating, almost cruel, exactitude, one suspects.

Posted by Gregory at November 11, 2006 02:28 PM

Comments

These individuals may have been marginalized by their own failures, and we can hope they don't reenter the political sphere. But we can't minimize the damage they have caused, and we need to remember how they came to increase their power and extend their misguided policies. If, at some point, we are struck again by a terrorist attack we cannot allow fear and panic to dictate our response, or others will gladly assume their roles and take us down the wrong path once again.

Posted by: Tim at November 11, 2006 09:23 PM | Permalink to this comment

If Rumsfeld was insignificant, why was it so important to get rid of him?

Posted by: Helian at November 12, 2006 11:32 AM | Permalink to this comment

Rummy has turned out to be insignificant because he has failed the war in Iraq.

(And by the way, this emphasis on "war in Iraq" is probably why we got into this pickle in the first place. Wasn't there something about a banner saying "Mission Accomplished" way back when? If Rummy et al. had really thought about the whole scene from a *reconstruction* point of view, we might not have ended up in the mess we are in.)

Posted by: grumpy realist at November 12, 2006 07:19 PM | Permalink to this comment

While I regard myself as a stylist, I could not put things more directly than you have done in your closing sentence; only I would differ on one point which hovers, I believe, between style and substance: namely, I would strike the word 'almost' and let 'cruel exactitude' stand without attenuation.

Posted by: hyperpolarizer at November 12, 2006 10:21 PM | Permalink to this comment

When I try and put myself in the place of Rummy Or Dick I just draw a total freaking blank. What are they... How could they... why would...

The only answers to these unfinished questions come from either cyber-punk novels or Shakespeare. At times I genuinely find myself viewing these guys as characters, literary devices whose only purpose is to serve as a lesson for our children. Then I remember, or learn some new aspect of, what they have wrought and I feel ashamed of myself , as if I am not taking what they have done seriously.

Hilzoy over at ObsidianWings has a couple of good (terrible) posts up on what is going on in Iraq. What melts the irony meter is that she must have been using the admin login, as they are bylined "Moe lane".

Posted by: Pascal's bookie at November 13, 2006 08:18 AM | Permalink to this comment

It's almost enough to make you feel sorry for Mssrs. Last Throes and Stuff Happens.

I don't think so. Of all the bad actors in the tragedy that is/was the GWOT, these two have had the highest official positions (next to Bush, of course) and are the most responsible for the chaos in Iraq. I have always qustioned whether this "front" on the GWOT was necessary, and their wilful refusal to plan for worst case scenarios in it and deal with events on the ground has cost many American lives.

They have enormously damaged our credibility and image overseas by undermining one of the most fundamental humanitarian norms that states are supposed to honor: you don't torture your enemies.

I reserve special scorn for Cheney. The son-of-a-bitch has existed for decades in a corporate/government-elite cocoon of privilege. Minus the long hair and fingernails, he is as wacky as Howard Hughes was at the height of his madness. Too bad his excesses haven't been limited to the private sector, but have negatively impacted all of us.

Now that the Demos control Congress, the one thing I really wanna see is Cheney waterboarded to death (figuratively speaking, of course) in an endless stream of congressional hearings where he is called to account for his conduct. Bring on the "aggressive interrogation techniques!"

Posted by: Redhand at November 13, 2006 12:23 PM | Permalink to this comment

	« Concessions... \| Main \| B.D.'s Party Allegiances » November 11, 2006 The Woes of the Overcome Administrator Andrew Sullivan digs up a marvelous quote from Tolstoy's War and Peace, which Andrew raises in the context of Donald Rumsfeld's exit: It seems to every administrator that it is only by his efforts that the whole population under his rule is kept going, and in this consciousness of being indispensable every administrator finds the chief reward of his labour and efforts. While the sea of history remains calm the ruler-administrator in his frail bark, holding on with a boat-hook to the ship of the people and himself moving, naturally imagines that his efforts move the ship he is holding on to. But as soon as a storm arises and the sea begins to heave and the ship to move, such a delusion is no longer possible. The ship moves independently with its own enormous motion, the boat-hook no longer reaches the moving vessel, and suddenly the adminstrator, instead of appearing a ruler and a source of power, becomes an insignificant, feeble man... The same goes for Dick Cheney too, by the way. It's almost enough to make you feel sorry for Mssrs. Last Throes and Stuff Happens. On television of late, when I glimpse footage of Cheney, it's not hard to see through his unpersuasive attempts to project the old swagger and 'steady at the helm' authority vibe. Its instead been replaced by a certain nervous skittishness, as events have totally overtaken his rosy nostrums, leaving him an immensely discredited national security player. And talk of things going "remarkably well" in Iraq (at the very time it descends into deeper civil war), not only provides rich fodder for late night comedians, but only further reinforces the insignificance of the now so discredited, overcome 'administrator' (to use Tolstoy's descriptive). Yes, these men have become much smaller given the fiasco of Iraq, as has their legacy. They are deeply diminished figures, and history will record this with penetrating, almost cruel, exactitude, one suspects. Posted by Gregory at November 11, 2006 02:28 PM Comments These individuals may have been marginalized by their own failures, and we can hope they don't reenter the political sphere. But we can't minimize the damage they have caused, and we need to remember how they came to increase their power and extend their misguided policies. If, at some point, we are struck again by a terrorist attack we cannot allow fear and panic to dictate our response, or others will gladly assume their roles and take us down the wrong path once again. Posted by: Tim at November 11, 2006 09:23 PM \| Permalink to this comment If Rumsfeld was insignificant, why was it so important to get rid of him? Posted by: Helian at November 12, 2006 11:32 AM \| Permalink to this comment Rummy has turned out to be insignificant because he has failed the war in Iraq. (And by the way, this emphasis on "war in Iraq" is probably why we got into this pickle in the first place. Wasn't there something about a banner saying "Mission Accomplished" way back when? If Rummy et al. had really thought about the whole scene from a reconstruction point of view, we might not have ended up in the mess we are in.) Posted by: grumpy realist at November 12, 2006 07:19 PM \| Permalink to this comment While I regard myself as a stylist, I could not put things more directly than you have done in your closing sentence; only I would differ on one point which hovers, I believe, between style and substance: namely, I would strike the word 'almost' and let 'cruel exactitude' stand without attenuation. Posted by: hyperpolarizer at November 12, 2006 10:21 PM \| Permalink to this comment When I try and put myself in the place of Rummy Or Dick I just draw a total freaking blank. What are they... How could they... why would... The only answers to these unfinished questions come from either cyber-punk novels or Shakespeare. At times I genuinely find myself viewing these guys as characters, literary devices whose only purpose is to serve as a lesson for our children. Then I remember, or learn some new aspect of, what they have wrought and I feel ashamed of myself , as if I am not taking what they have done seriously. Hilzoy over at ObsidianWings has a couple of good (terrible) posts up on what is going on in Iraq. What melts the irony meter is that she must have been using the admin login, as they are bylined "Moe lane". Posted by: Pascal's bookie at November 13, 2006 08:18 AM \| Permalink to this comment It's almost enough to make you feel sorry for Mssrs. Last Throes and Stuff Happens. I don't think so. Of all the bad actors in the tragedy that is/was the GWOT, these two have had the highest official positions (next to Bush, of course) and are the most responsible for the chaos in Iraq. I have always qustioned whether this "front" on the GWOT was necessary, and their wilful refusal to plan for worst case scenarios in it and deal with events on the ground has cost many American lives. They have enormously damaged our credibility and image overseas by undermining one of the most fundamental humanitarian norms that states are supposed to honor: you don't torture your enemies. I reserve special scorn for Cheney. The son-of-a-bitch has existed for decades in a corporate/government-elite cocoon of privilege. Minus the long hair and fingernails, he is as wacky as Howard Hughes was at the height of his madness. Too bad his excesses haven't been limited to the private sector, but have negatively impacted all of us. Now that the Demos control Congress, the one thing I really wanna see is Cheney waterboarded to death (figuratively speaking, of course) in an endless stream of congressional hearings where he is called to account for his conduct. Bring on the "aggressive interrogation techniques!" Posted by: Redhand at November 13, 2006 12:23 PM \| Permalink to this comment		Reviews of Belgravia Dispatch "Awake" --New York Times "Always-Worth Reading" --Andrew Sullivan "Honorary Chair--American Appeasement Blogs" --Hugh Hewitt Recent Entries McCain: Let's Compound the Blunder! Georgia On My Mind Should We De-Emphasize The Terror Threat in U.S. Foreign Policy? (Very Belated) In-House News Straits of Hormuz Quotable More Predictions Predictions, Predictions! A 'Sick Man of Europe' Reprise? Addingtonism (Belatedly) Ripe For A Comeuppance? 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