A "gleeful report" from Cicero on one of his own speeches:
"When Clodius had betaken himself to speech-making at meetings and used my name to stir up ill-feeling, ye gods, what battles, what havoc I made! The onslaughts upon Piso, Curio, the whole bunch! How I pilloried irresponsible age and licentious youth!"
in Robert Harriman's Political Style, p. 103.
Newsweek covered "Intimigate" last week, and an editorial by Jonalthan Alter suggests that under rare circumstances, journalists should leak the names of their confidential sources to other journalists. I like the idea of this kind of check-and-balance system. Alter's point that politicians leak for their own purposes, and will continue to do so, is - I think - right on. How else can corruption be uncovered if those who are closest to it exercise no discretionary judgement?
