In the wake of the pop psychology gabfest spawned by the ever-evolving sex scandals of the New York governor’s office, and with every other conversation having something to do with hookers or managing to incorporate cheesy innuendo about “Client 9,” Los Angeles Times columnist Meghan Daum writes that she’s “still not entirely clear as to what we’re supposed to take away from this.” She concludes in her well written March 22 article, “No wonder we keep searching for meaning in a story whose real meaning is something we don’t exactly want to know.”
I disagree. I think we not only want to know, we want to clean up the mess and elect a better, more morally grounded class of officials. Trouble is, we feel helpless to stem the polluted tide of politicians from which we are allowed to choose. In our frustration, we sooth our disappointment with humor. We lick our wounds and try to laugh about the elephant in the room we feel powerless to get to leave.