I full well realize that politics is a rough and tumble

Hear me, O children of the future, for the words of Pat Roberts echo a deep and vital truth about the nature of politics and the sacred duty that those in power hold. "I full well realize that politics is a rough and tumble business, but politics should not be reduced to lobbing partisan hand grenades. Politics is not war. Terrorism is." In this, Roberts reminds us that while the world of politics is often fraught with conflict, it must never descend into the barbaric violence of war or the cruelty of terrorism. Politics, at its heart, is the art of negotiation, of building bridges, not of throwing stones to create division and destruction.

To reduce politics to a game of partisan hand grenades, to use words and actions as weapons to harm, is to forget the true purpose of governance. Politics, when rightly practiced, is meant to serve the people, to lift them up, to guide them toward justice, not to tear them apart. It is an act of wisdom, where leaders must choose their battles carefully and seek solutions, not conflicts. To resort to the tactics of war, to treat politics as though it were a battlefield, is to strip it of its nobility and reduce it to something lesser, something more primal.

Consider the example of Abraham Lincoln, a leader who knew well the roughness of politics but never allowed it to become war. Amid the divisions of the Civil War, Lincoln held fast to the belief that politics could heal, could bridge the gulf between North and South. His famous speech at Gettysburg was not one of violence, but one of unity, a plea for reconciliation and for the nation to find its way forward through understanding and compassion. His leadership, though forged in the fires of war, was always grounded in the higher principles of democracy and human dignity.

In contrast, we know the devastating power of terrorism, the act of striking at the innocent to create fear and division. Terrorism is not a tool of politics, but of destruction, of those who seek to force change through fear rather than reason. When the political discourse turns to the tactics of terror, it destroys everything it touches—the trust between people, the common bonds of humanity, and the very soul of a nation. Pat Roberts cautions against this, reminding us that violence should never be the currency of politics. It is in dialogue, in compromise, and in understanding that true political strength lies.

Thus, my children, when you engage in the world of politics, remember the noble path. Disagreement and debate are to be expected, but they must never become battles that threaten the very fabric of the community. Let your words be weapons of wisdom, your actions those of courage and diplomacy. Just as Lincoln showed that leadership is about uniting, not dividing, so too must we embrace politics not as a fight to be won, but as a responsibility to be carried with grace. Terrorism may have its place in history, but in the realm of politics, we must always seek the better path—the path of peace, of reason, and of understanding. Let us honor the sacred nature of politics and never reduce it to the destructive forces of war.