The Opinion Page: The Milquetoast Madam

It's no secret that sex scandals sell... especially here in Washington, DC. There's just something to that intersection of sex and politics that gets people talking. And the case of the "D.C. Madam" seemed to have all the ingredients: sex, politics, power, and, of course, that little black book. But, when it came time for 20/20 to name names, it turns out most of the men who were supposed to be "high-ranking" just weren't newsworthy. But, as Lily Burana put it in the Washington Post yesterday, you just can't top a sex scandal for spectator sport. So, what is it about Washington sex scandals that get us so worked up?

 

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I don't think feeling happy about the exposure of the sexual dalliances of hypocritical politicians has to be written off as schadenfreude. I think we can be glad because exposing the truth about human desires liberates people from the emotional and sexual oppression that exacts tolls upon our society. For example, the prolonged lambasting of Clinton for being susceptible to sex deprived important social programs of attention. Also, the refusal to see that some women seek abortions to avoid becoming subject to domination by sexually-driven males hurts women, trapping them in situations of lifelong abuse. Furthermore, discouraging people from being sexually active by considering such activity to be a sign of mental disorder subjects people to brain damage via psychiatric drugs and lifelong psychological abuse. Our society's desire to hide sex causes people to resist extolling the comprehensive health benefits of sexual activity. This weakens the health of our nation, makes health care more expensive, and prevents doctors from offering valuable advice. I think the more we accept human nature, the more effective social policies we devise for everyone's benefit. The first step to accepting the truth about ourselves is exposing it.

Sent by Irene | 2:56 AM ET | 05-08-2007

I vaguely recall that a person has the right to request and receive the results of a background check that is conducted by a current or prospective employer. It's a waste of time and energy to suspect that a prospective employer bypassed a person because of some past event when the outcome of the background check is perhaps verifiable.

Sent by Ray | 2:36 PM ET | 05-10-2007

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