Man and Superman
I'm going to go off on a little bit of a rant here. Some of it's directed at myself. Some of it's directed at those I compete against. And the rest against the public.
The other day, I had asked a close friend of mine to go out and have a beer. This friend happens to be an elected official. The day was hot, my stress was high, and the deck at the legion cabin directly adjacent to the Missouri river, with the cool breeze blowing off it looked so inviting. (Take me away Michelob light, take me away...)
His response? "Why don't you come over here and we can sit on my deck?" Which you can translate to "I'm an elected official, and I'm absolutely terrified of having an alcoholic beverage in public." Dammit! I want to sit in the cool river breeze and relax! Not sit in a hot folding chair overlooking the trailer adjacent to his yard. And yes, elected officials live next door to mobile homes.
His discomfort with being seen in public with an alcoholic beverage in his hand is a symptom of a disease caused by me, my opponents, and the public. We expect our elected officials to be like superman - above all of us. Chaste, pure, and infallible. They don't drink alcholic beverages, they don't get overweight, they don't stumble and fall, and so on.
No wonder you can't get many of the best and brightest to run for office. They know what scrutiny they'd be up for. They think "Gee, I make all the money I'll ever need. And you want me to run for office where my every nail clipping will be examined with a microscope? Screw that."
You would think there's an "US" magazine for politicians, catching all their public foibles for the enjoyment of millions of readers everywhere.
Forty-some years ago, everyone in the White House press corps knew that JFK had a "special friend or two" on the side. But they didn't print it out of respect for the office. Now, If an elected official breaks wind, it's reported on. We've come a long way, but now it's movement too far in the opposite direction.
I may have mentioned in an earlier post, that these men and women in office are human. No more, no less. In other words, they're as big a screw-ups as the rest of us. So why can't we realize that?
As I've said, I'm as guilty as the next political hack. Recently, I noted an elected official being cited for a minor offense in the paper. Something that would raise eyebrows, but nothing really earth-shattering. I threw the clipping away a few days later because it wasn't a comment on their electability. It had nothing to do with their performance of their job. Saving and using it in an election might have brought a day's embarrasement for them, but nothing more.
Mt. Blogmore was noting that people have been spreading rumors that John Thune's marriage was in jeopardy. And through crack investigative reporting, it was discovered that it wasn't remotely true. Even if it was, why do we care? It has nothing to do with his performance of his job.
So, I'm throwing down the gauntlet. Let's stick to the office, and issues that pertain to the ability of elected officials to do their job. And you can throw away those clippings about my guys too.
And then maybe, I can go enjoy an ice cold beer on the deck of the Legion Cabin with my friend.
The other day, I had asked a close friend of mine to go out and have a beer. This friend happens to be an elected official. The day was hot, my stress was high, and the deck at the legion cabin directly adjacent to the Missouri river, with the cool breeze blowing off it looked so inviting. (Take me away Michelob light, take me away...)
His response? "Why don't you come over here and we can sit on my deck?" Which you can translate to "I'm an elected official, and I'm absolutely terrified of having an alcoholic beverage in public." Dammit! I want to sit in the cool river breeze and relax! Not sit in a hot folding chair overlooking the trailer adjacent to his yard. And yes, elected officials live next door to mobile homes.
His discomfort with being seen in public with an alcoholic beverage in his hand is a symptom of a disease caused by me, my opponents, and the public. We expect our elected officials to be like superman - above all of us. Chaste, pure, and infallible. They don't drink alcholic beverages, they don't get overweight, they don't stumble and fall, and so on.
No wonder you can't get many of the best and brightest to run for office. They know what scrutiny they'd be up for. They think "Gee, I make all the money I'll ever need. And you want me to run for office where my every nail clipping will be examined with a microscope? Screw that."
You would think there's an "US" magazine for politicians, catching all their public foibles for the enjoyment of millions of readers everywhere.
Forty-some years ago, everyone in the White House press corps knew that JFK had a "special friend or two" on the side. But they didn't print it out of respect for the office. Now, If an elected official breaks wind, it's reported on. We've come a long way, but now it's movement too far in the opposite direction.
I may have mentioned in an earlier post, that these men and women in office are human. No more, no less. In other words, they're as big a screw-ups as the rest of us. So why can't we realize that?
As I've said, I'm as guilty as the next political hack. Recently, I noted an elected official being cited for a minor offense in the paper. Something that would raise eyebrows, but nothing really earth-shattering. I threw the clipping away a few days later because it wasn't a comment on their electability. It had nothing to do with their performance of their job. Saving and using it in an election might have brought a day's embarrasement for them, but nothing more.
Mt. Blogmore was noting that people have been spreading rumors that John Thune's marriage was in jeopardy. And through crack investigative reporting, it was discovered that it wasn't remotely true. Even if it was, why do we care? It has nothing to do with his performance of his job.
So, I'm throwing down the gauntlet. Let's stick to the office, and issues that pertain to the ability of elected officials to do their job. And you can throw away those clippings about my guys too.
And then maybe, I can go enjoy an ice cold beer on the deck of the Legion Cabin with my friend.
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