I’m currently reading The Far Arena by Richard Ben Sapir, the story of Roman gladiator Lucius Aurelius Eugenianus, frozen in a glacier for 1900 years who is brought back to life. Pretty good book. But here’s the quote, from the gladiator to the people he’s dealing with – the Russian doctor who revived him, the America petroleum geologist who dug him up, and the Norwegian Catholic nun who provides translations for his ancient Latin. The gladiator has killed someone, and his keepers are trying to figure out what to do about it. The nun suggests that they should go to “the authorities.” Eugeni responds:
“The authorities? The authorities?” I laughed. “Why is it people think the authorities are some form of gods with either great justice or great, cunning evil, rather than the same plodding fools they see in their daily lives, and most of all in their mirrors?”
And just a bit later:
“The purpose of an authority is to remain an authority, not dispense justice.”
As I said, pretty good book.