So this is my question. When men reach powerful positions, does all of their intelligence head south leaving nothing for the brain? Does oxygen follow their intelligence south? Is there simply no air left in their brains that allows for rational thought? Or is it their ego that is slurping up all that oxygen leaving none for simple logic? You’ve got to admit that current events would certainly support that concept. Why else would any powerful man think he could keep a sexual picadillo private? Do all powerful men think that they are the exception in the Me Too era?
It’s not as though Ethan Berkowitz didn’t have any examples to learn from. Powerful men have been toppled throughout history because of inappropriate relationships with everything from men to women to… well, best left to the imagination. Think of Antony brought down by his fixation on Cleopatra. That didn’t end well. Think of Paris and his obsession with Helen of Troy. That led to a war.
While I am sure that there are many powerful men who escaped detection, does that mean that the current crop of powerful men think they will be one of the lucky ones? Especially in the era of Harvey Weinstein, Anthony Weiner and Kevin Spacey, to say nothing of Gary Hart almost 30 years ago, this is probably not the time to think that. Powerful men have been brought to their knees by their wandering nether regions since history was first recorded.
If you ever want to see a double standard in place, I give you Anthony Weiner who actually tried to run for office again after the first dick pics appeared. He would have succeeded too if he hadn’t sent out even more. He is the epitome of male hubris. If a woman ever sent out a picture of her vagina, she would be labeled a slut and never welcomed in polite society again – though there is every chance that the porn industry would have offered her work. But when a man sends out pictures of his penis – well, men will be men. We all shrug, someone loses their job and then we go back to our daily lives.
Someone really needs to ask the question as to why powerful men keep doing this to themselves. And why is an affair or “sexual messaging” something they find fun? I can think of only one female politician, California Representative Katie Hill, who has ever had a problem like this and been forced from office because of it. But men – dear lord. They just keep on putting themselves and their cameras in places they don’t belong.
Finally, let’s not forget the hypocrisy of a country led by a president who has the morals of a rat – and my apologies to rats everywhere for the comparison. Donald Trump has had affairs, paid off mistresses, showed up in the dressing room of teenage beauty queens while they dressed, referred to the vagina as a pussy and openly lusted after his daughter. Yet he is in a credible fight for a second term. I can’t wait for the first woman to try that. Let’s see how fast she is called any number of ugly names as the moralists chase her from office with pitchforks and torches.
America’s morality is all over the place. For some it is stricter than for others. As best I can tell, if you are a favorite of extreme Christians, you are forgiven for being a flawed person. But if you are – gasp, horror – a liberal, you are evil personified and must be tossed on the nearest trash heap because of your transgressions – think Al Franken.
I honestly hoped that Berkowitz would be one of the good guys. One of the exceptions to the rule that powerful men are, ultimately, not the brightest people on earth when it comes to who should or shouldn’t be welcomed into their private places. Hint – if she’s not your wife, if he’s not your husband, if you are paying them, then you are being exceptionally stupid for someone who managed to acquire any power in life. And you should expect to implode at some totally inconvenient point in your career.
Welcome to the Me Too era. Good luck, guys.