"It was more than mere chance that brought Merry and Pippin to Fangorn. A great power has been sleeping here for many long years. The coming of Merry and Pippin will be like the falling of small stones that starts an avalanche in the mountains."
-Gandalf the Grey White
It was more than mere chance that last week started with news of Georgia Democratic Party chairman Mike Berlon receiving a reprimand from the state Supreme Court and having his law license suspended temporarily. Those two events were like the falling of small stones that starts an avalanche in the mountains.
Since then, more reports of Mike Berlon's legal troubles emerged and calls for his resignation grew louder.
Gandalf said, in Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, "[Sauron] will raze Minas Tirith to the ground before he sees a King return to the throne of men."
And much like the Dark Lord Sauron, I believe Mike Berlon will raze the Democratic Party of Georgia to the ground before he sees someone other than himself as leader of that organization.
Berlon is digging in and preparing for battle.
In an email to the state Democratic committee (posted in its entirety below), Thursday, Berlon requested Democrats to "respect the difference between my private law practice and my position as the Chair of the Party.
"My legal practice should never be a distraction for the Democratic Party of Georgia," Berlon emailed to the state Democratic committee, "but I am aware that it might become one if I don’t address these rumors directly. Instead of false information, I want to get the record straight."
Well, the record is public. Anyone can go to the Gwinnett County Courthouse, pull the pleadings relating to case number 13-A-04434-5, and determine for themselves if they believe Mike Berlon, chairman of the Democratic Party of Georgia, is a crook.
And you know what? Mike Berlon is right. His legal practice has become a great distraction for the Democratic Party of Georgia. It's all anyone is talking about.