Eliot Spitzer Resigned

Anyone else followed this story?

Mr. Spitzer was involved in prostitution. Interestingly, he hasn't been charged, and the information wasn't publicly released. Spitzer willingly acknowledged his failings, and has now resigned. Now, don't get me wrong. You don't have to know much about me to know how passionate I am about prostitution. I'm appalled that anyone would purchase another human being.

And, I wonder. Newt Gingrich, who is not the most stellar of role models, in spite of his time "dedicated to calling America back to our Christian Heritage", has managed to divorce 2 women, discuss details of his divorce settlement with number 1, while she had cancer and was in the hospital, and then had an affair with a woman young enough to be his daughter. . . He tries to run for presidency. And Christians support him. George Bush got the US into a war they had no business to be in, their young minorities are dying and they can't get out, but we'll crucify and try to impeach Bill Clinton.

I don't get Americans. I don't get their tawdry fascination with the private/sexual/religious/family lives of their politicians. I don't get why they expect their politicians to be perfect and without sin, but aren't like that in their own lives. I don't get why Eliot Spitzer is nailed to the wall, in spite of the tremendous good he has done, and the American public looks on, applauding, in between wallowing in the morass that is the Desperate Housewives/CSI/Grey's Anatomy - which glorify anything but the "christian' values that they expect their politicians to hold. I don't get why they call their fellow citizens hypocritical, but assume that as individuals they are right with God. C'mon USA today says that desperate housewives is the second most popular show - 22.8 million people watch it. Surely some of them are sitting in church nodding their heads and shouting AMEN as they go home to wallow in affairs, half naked pool boys and consumption crazy suburbia.

Newsflash: Politicians are people. They fall down. I'll let Mr. Spitzer say it best: "Our greatest glory consists not in never falling but in rising every time we fall."

Seems to me, if he's honest enough to admit he fell, admit he was wrong and is willing to try better the next time, that's the kind of politician you would want running your state.

Maybe it's just me though. I'm not sure what religion any of my elected officials are. I don't much care either. I expect spiritual counselling from my priest and my bible. I expect good public policy from my elected officials. The two aren't always one and the same. Seems to me that you can "fall down" and still pursue truth.


People always ask how Americans and Canadians are different. There's way number one.