A substantive and thoughtful post Pezz; thank you. And, while I agree that what we're seeing is the ol' pendulum aswingin' back, I do have to nit-pick one part of your otherwise accurate statement
>>The Republicans... continue to push the self righteous moralizing...
No they don't. The Democrats are the ones that keep bringing up morals. The Republicans are mostly talking about ethics and the law. It seems to me that the Democrats have a vested interest in trying to make the debate about morality because they can't legitimately argue ethical or legal relativism.
And now, another idealistic attempt to sway someone's opinion about the basic issues at hand.
If you think this is just about social evolution or ideological warfare you're grossly mistaken. We are dealing here, from both directions, with some very delicate issues about the relationship between us, our elected leaders and our legal system. How we deal with these issues will have a lot to do with what kind of times we live in when we're done with all this changin'. This is not a time to be partisan in either direction; it's a time to be wholly and calmly rational.
Some years ago I was living in Florida, and I decided to drive across the country to see my family. On the way I was stopped by the police twice: once for a faulty tail-light (that somehow "came back on" when I pulled over) and once for following too closely. Neither time was I charged, but both times I was very carefully checked out. It was obvious that I was pulled over because I was out of state with Florida plates and that could mean {drugs}. Luckily I wasn't on any drugs and didn't have any drugs, but you can be certain that if I had given them any cause, they would have searched me, and if I had had anything on me they would've busted my ass. Despite the fact that their purported reason for pulling me over had nothing to do with drugs.
Now, aside from relative position and power, and specific details of the supposed infractions involved, (and ignoring the fact that I wasn't charged with anything); how is this any different from the situation the President is in?
If I had had anything on me and had been busted I would've been mighty pissed off, just like Bill. And I would've thought I got a pretty raw deal, just like Bill. But that would've been my tough luck.
(Hopefully) just like Bill.
And please, before any of you even start, all of the foregoing "Bill" references were about perjury and obstruction, not adultery.
Regards,
BLT |
