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Politics : Liberalism: Do You Agree We've Had Enough of It? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: puborectalis who wrote (50512)	10/7/2008 9:26:51 AM
From: Hope Praytochange	1 Recommendation Respond to of 224901

It has fascinated me ever since: Why is it that some public figures are eventually willing to come out and say, "Yes, I sinned -- this is what I did" and . . . actually survive afterwards? And why is it that some public figures are unwilling to do this -- or do it in a way that makes their situation worse? It's your feeling that President Clinton -- it took him a few tries, but he eventually got it right? With Clinton, what you saw was someone who really nailed the central purpose of public confession in the 20th century. . . . The confession becomes this very powerful way for a leader to lay down power and say to the people, "I know I'm no better than you are. I know I'm just one of you. I'm a sinner like you." The sexual sin is a stand-in, it's a symbol. . . . When a sexual transgression comes out, it sort of confirms our fears -- if he'll cheat on his wife, he'll cheat on us. How do you think John Edwards did earlier this year? If only his advisers had called me. . . . This is a man who thinks he's special. He thinks he's got power because he deserves it. And in everything he said about his sin afterward, you see that attitude coming through. "It's just between me and God, you know, nobody else has anything to do with it. My wife has forgiven me." . . . It's that attitude -- the refusal to be called to account -- that really turns followers against a leader. Is there ever a danger of taking confession too far? I don't think you can ever go too far with your groveling. . . . But you can certainly get too detailed. washingtonpost.com