The Anthony Weiner sex scandal reveals why American politics is riddled with mediocrity. We live in a society so obsessed with uncovering the secret lives of public figures -- and holding them to absurdly unrealistic moral standards -- that only the naïvely optimistic, the mediocre, the hypocrite, the criminal or the totally clueless ever dare run for public office. They either don't know any better, have criminal intent or have everything to gain and little to lose. The smart ones with solid, stable careers and home lives hesitate to venture outside the relative safety of an anonymous life to distinguish themselves in any way. They fear humiliation at best -- and the utter destruction of their lives and careers at worse -- should they make an innocent misstep, or the media discover they had an impure thought or committed any kind of sexually adventurous act in their private lives.
Rarely in modern American politics do we find true leaders anymore who inspire and guide us with their wisdom. Among the current crop of career politicians -- those who have so far survived the harsh, invasive light of media scrutiny -- one is hard-pressed to find men and women of vision, personal courage and unwavering conviction. Instead you find hard-core professionals with public speaking coaches, image consultants, researchers and advisers to help them craft their positions on every issue. They have PR mavens to shape their public images; hairstylists to comb their hair and wardrobe consultants to select their clothes; and scores of other support staff that would make the massive posses of the most egocentric celebrity green with envy.
More...
0 comments
Post a Comment