11th Mar 2008
Politician Uses Prostitute; World in Shock and Disbelief
From today’s NYTimes.com, on Eliot Spitzer’s “scandal”:
The news was met with disbelief and shock in Albany, a capital accustomed to scandal. Some legislative assistants said they were too stunned to speak, and lawmakers gathered around television sets in hushed offices, trying to make sense of what had happened.
“We’re at a total standstill,” said Keith L. T. Wright, a Democratic assemblyman from Harlem. “Everybody is stunned. Everybody is absolutely stunned.”
Come on! It’s not like I’m pro prostitution, but isn’t this being blown a bit out of proportion? I first saw this over breakfast in my hotel room on Fox, saying something to the effect that Spitzer was “linked to a prostitution ring.” I checked out the NY Times, and they used virtually the same language in their headline. They’ve since softened it to “Spitzer Is Linked to a Sex Ring as Client.” Ah. So by “linked to a sex/prostitution ring” you mean he used a hooker? He was a John. Not the kingpin of the bloody thing. So someone who buys a bag of weed in Washington Square Park is “linked to a drug ring”?
More to the point, is the media going to hold all politicians to this standard? Honestly, people in Albany are “stunned…absolutely stunned” that a politician used a prostitute? What about NY Times journalists? None of those hard-bitten hacks have ever phoned a call girl?
I don’t give a damn about Spitzer’s career. I thought he was a good guy, but he’s bungled his reputation already with other nonsense in the last several months in office. And yes, I think the sex trade is exploitive, yadda, yadda. And if you’re going to play with fire, you risk getting burned, so I’m not apologizing for him and saying he shouldn’t get his comeuppance. But the Victorian attitude expressed by the media on this, as if he was accused of raping a child or being found out as a serial murderer, is a bit too much. Sometimes it’s just embarrassing to be an Amerikan.
Tags: amerika, media, politics, sex
They’re probably just hoping they can kick him out of office Clinton-style. It’s funny, I feel the same way about Obama as I did about Spitzer–he just seems so on it and cool and effective that some of it MUST be highly effective car salesman B.S. Let’s hope I’m wrong this time…
Kitten just stuck her foot in my coffee.
Tired and rushed, I will drink it anyway.
Realizing what I have come to
I will twitter this entry.
Then, I will comment it back to myself.
Has it really come to this?
The previous comment was actually me.
I thought it was funny.
On topic, I think Spitzer is cool. I’d still vote for him for president.
Hmm. That’s creepy. Someone is spoofing me in my own comments field. This is the real Rick E. Bruner, but the comment above was someone else. I feel an IP block coming on…
Ah. I see. now I read Pablo’s comment for context. Okay, Pablo’s cool. IP block lifted.
Rick, I’d like to get in contact with you. Please send me a message.
I thought the kitten comment was almost haiku-like in its formulation.
Maybe something like this:
Kitten just stuck her foot in my coffee.
Tired and rushed,
I will drink it anyway.
Thanks, for taking my spoof in good humor.
you find it absurd that the Old Grey Lady reports that the public face of the legislatures reaction is not “Wohoo! illicit vagina! where do I sign! you go boy!” ? what would you have them say? and the fact that your avarage Times hack who is not a feghela rules on the pay-to play trim like it’s
take a whore to work day-everyday is kinda specious. I’m sure the Times is itching to say
things like “For hire slut makes top politico’s Dick Big”