Enough Already...

I was a little disappointed at the lack of interesting news over the weekend. Then the Idaho Statesman Journal revealed this little gem. I really have no interest in engaging in this debate. For the sake of everyone, I wish it would just go away. Alas, I can’t resist making a few comments.

1. First, when did “allegations [that] can't be disproved” (taken from the article) become factually sound. I’m no expert on ethics in journalism, but shouldn’t the burden of proof be little stronger before we start destroying lives?
2. Second, who cares? Sure an arrest in an airport bathroom for lewd conduct by a Senator is interesting. Good for a laugh, etc. But is it really that much more unbecoming of a public official than, I don’t know, drunk driving? We don’t run someone out of town for endangering the lives of others. Why then, for an embarrassing, but victimless crime.
3. Should we really be that surprised that an allegedly gay man is embarrassed to reveal his sexual preferences—particularly a married Idaho Senator from a generation other than the current one. It seems to me that everyone who is calling Craig a liar and a hypocrite and claiming he is an enemy of civil rights is doing a far greater disservice to the gay rights movement by further stigmatizing the very thing he was supposedly trying to hide. Shameful.
4. Why is everyone so shocked to discover lying and hypocrisy between private and public life—especially by a politician? As far as I can tell, the matter is not that much more disgraceful than this act. Granted lewd conduct and paying for sex is illegal (we addressed the relative triviality of this argument in (2)), the rest is just private. I have no desire to know how many times, in what position, where or with whom someone is having sex. Okay, infidelity might bring into play the character of an elected official. But again, people have looked past this on countless occasions.
5. I see no significant motivation for reporting this on such a scale aside from (1) desire to sell newspapers, (2) desire to get personal attention, and (3) desire to destroy someone’s life. So, either you’re a tabloid, an attention whore or a total asshole. I find all three far more disgraceful than lying about being a homosexual.
6. Finally, anyone who is reading this and saying, “but what about Monica Lewinsky (use whiny voice)?” go ahead and just slap yourself upside the head. I agree, you cannot defend one without defending the other. There are important similarities between the two and there are important differences. But really, “they did it to us, so we can do it to them (pout, pout)” is not a valid argument.

I’m certain Craig will resign before the end of his term or not seek reelection. Either way, his political career and legacy are destroyed (and probably his personal life to a large degree) and unless these allegations are totally false there is no one to blame but himself. Still, if I were from Idaho I would cancel my subscription to the Idaho Statesmen before I jumped on the bandwagon chastising the Senator.

My God, politics are disgusting. I will say no more.