Editor, Ceres Courier,

Two political rising stars recently flamed out due to moral problems: Eric Swalwell, a California Congressman, and Graham Platner, a Maine U.S. Senate candidate.

The lesson here is that “power corrupts.” People just cannot be trusted with political power for an extended period of time.

Even those great Bible leaders Moses and King David fell flat on their faces for this reason. Moses was prevented from entering the Promised Land because of his fiasco at “Meribah.” David’s reputation has suffered greatly with Jews and Christians because he arranged for the death of Bathsheba’s husband and then married her.

Ancient democratic Rome was so sensitive to term limits that their chief executives, called “consuls,” were only allowed to serve for one year before they were turned out to pasture.

Abigail Adams, the wife of America’s second president, warned her husband, “Remember, all men would be tyrants if they could.” She knew what California and Maine need to learn.

America added term limits to the Constitution for our presidents in 1951 but set the term way too long. We also have failed to regulate terms for Congress and the Supreme Court.

We need to open our eyes to history. We are asking for trouble and we are getting it.

Kimball Shinkoskey

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