Well, after a much deserved vacation and a little undeserved computer trouble, here I am. I know this is old news, and everyone is completely tired of Anthony Wiener and his well publicized little buddy, the little part being purely speculation as I did not view the offending photos.
But what is the deal?!! Politicians, most of whom are men, and sex scandals? Bill Clinton, John Edwards, Arnold Schwarzenegger, John Ensign, the list goes on and on. Back in the good ol' days, dutiful wives were just supposed to put up with their husbands' roving eyes and look the other way. Those two wild and crazy guys, John and Robert Kennedy were well known and in some circles most likely given the "we're not worthy" "Wayne's World" arm waves for their exploits involving Marilyn Monroe and various assorted reputed mob girlfriends.
What is it about powerful men and sex? Is it the thrill of the chase? The thrill of being caught? The thrill of appearing to be a pillar of virtue and morality while all the while living a double life as some kind of sex freak? I'm not a psychiatrist, nor do I play one on TV, so I can only speculate like everyone else. Maybe the feeling of invincibility is just too overwhelming. Perhaps the ego boost of going from being just your average Joe to being a household name.
Sean Hannity brought up a very good point. He said that something seems to happen to some people who get elected to public office. When they get to Washington they become surrounded by all the trappings and entrapment that go with it, and some where along the way they forget the meaning of being elected by the people, and of being a "public servant". I also heard someone bring up the notion of character. That the definition of character is what you are doing when no one else is looking. That speaks volumes in this case.
But there is of course, another side. For some women, a powerful man in a position of authority and being seen as somewhat unattainable is a very attractive prospect. Perhaps another side of "the thrill of the chase." All of these things must play into throwing family, career, and caution to the wind, and being fully convinced that your behavior will not ultimately be found out, and you will wind up on a podium somewhere apologizing for lewd pictures being sent to people who did not ask for them, and not knowing why your Congressional, Senatorial, or Governor's office was not the perfect place to hide your sex toys, or in Arnold's case, your love child.
We could be stuck with the fact that powerful men and bad behavior just sort of go together like chips and beer. And there will always be women who are attracted to them. We can only hope it remains the exception and not the norm.
