TheBlackSwede
New member
Ok, it's all over the news, we've all heard about it, and while it's really nothing new (seems every-other month theres some new new scandal), I'm very curious to hear your takes on it, as opposed to the vitriolic reactionary and judgmental responses issued in the mainstream media.
For me, I view it as a tragic symptom of our cultural flaws. About the only action of his I take issue with is the lying, both to his wife and the country. I know we all (myself included) tend to prefer the whole "living openly and honestly" path, but in a culture where any sort of non-monogamy outside of "casual dating" is greatly frowned upon, it would seem we do a piss-poor job of encouraging people to be honest with their personal lives/sexuality.
As much as I want to believe that what people are taking an issue with is his lack of honesty, deep down, I know that's not the core of the problem. Hell, we still have people in government stating publicly, repeatedly, "I'm not gay!", and then finally, "Yes, I'm gay" following a damning scandal. Yet, incredibly, these sorts of scandals do not draw the same ire as things like "Weinergate", even though the person in question has been lying for years about their desires and behavior, both to the public and their families. We seem to be forgiving of this because most people are now at least somewhat accepting of homosexuality, yet amazingly, in spite of the shockingly high percentage of infidelity in couples, we cannot be forgiving of our very nature as human beings.
It's really quite tragic.
For me, I view it as a tragic symptom of our cultural flaws. About the only action of his I take issue with is the lying, both to his wife and the country. I know we all (myself included) tend to prefer the whole "living openly and honestly" path, but in a culture where any sort of non-monogamy outside of "casual dating" is greatly frowned upon, it would seem we do a piss-poor job of encouraging people to be honest with their personal lives/sexuality.
As much as I want to believe that what people are taking an issue with is his lack of honesty, deep down, I know that's not the core of the problem. Hell, we still have people in government stating publicly, repeatedly, "I'm not gay!", and then finally, "Yes, I'm gay" following a damning scandal. Yet, incredibly, these sorts of scandals do not draw the same ire as things like "Weinergate", even though the person in question has been lying for years about their desires and behavior, both to the public and their families. We seem to be forgiving of this because most people are now at least somewhat accepting of homosexuality, yet amazingly, in spite of the shockingly high percentage of infidelity in couples, we cannot be forgiving of our very nature as human beings.
It's really quite tragic.