People in glass houses

Edwards had an affair and the world is aghast. We Puritanical Americans like to pretend that we observe some sort of stringent moral code. In our minds sexuality is a sort of taboo subject and heaven forbid we ever break the sanctity of our marital vows. However, sentencing a criminal to death doesn’t seem to conflict with our morals, does it?

Yes, I believe cheating is wrong as all parties involved suffer in one way, shape or form. I don’t condone the act of “cheating” in any way – whether it was on your 9th grade Algebra exam or on your boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse/etc. But why are we so concerned with what happens in a bedroom between two consenting adults? I have always held the steadfast belief that I could care less who my elected official is sleeping with as long as he/she takes care of the tasks at hand.

We are a nation that glorifies and idolizes people such as Paris Hilton, a girl who is famous for banging her boyfriend while being video taped. We hurry to the nearest store to buy said tape yet we become a virtual lynch mob when our President or Senator or elected official has an affair.

Francoise Mitterand was the President of France from 1981 to 1995. It was an “open secret” that Mitterand, while married, had a mistress AND a daughter with his mistress. The mistress and their daughter lived not far from where he resided with his wife. He did his job and, in some ways, he did his job well. What happened in his personal life behind closed doors remained his business. It did not effect his job and therefore there was no need to sensationalize his indiscretions.

Edwards has stated that this affair transpired 2 years ago and he and his wife have dealt with it. Regardless of this statement, whether true or not, the issue should be between the three parties involved – Edwards, his wife and the other woman. However, two years later, the media is happily opening old wounds for this couple and ruining a career in the process.

The Conservative Right wingers will grab on to this story and use every opportunity to decimate this man and the paparazzi and media are only happy to oblige. They will use this as a means to promote their ever important platform – “the moral decline of America” – and they will spout their hateful words and religious rhetoric.


The only thing that is morally wrong with America is that we feel it is our right to invade someone’s personal life. It’s water cooler politics – gossip is fact and work record counts for nothing.
And at the end of the day, after the Conservative Right has successfully ended another promising political career and gotten the nation fired up, they will toddle off to their mistresses while their spouses clean up the shit they’ve left behind.