NYT Foley editorial: With sweeping power, power becomes the entire point

[DeepModem Mom]

Editorial
The Foley Matter
Published: October 3, 2006

History suggests that once a political party achieves sweeping power, it will only be a matter of time before the power becomes the entire point. Policy, ideology, ethics all gradually fall away, replaced by a political machine that exists to win elections and dispense the goodies that come as a result. The only surprise in Washington now is that the Congressional Republicans managed to reach that point of decayed purpose so thoroughly, so fast....

***

The news about Mr. Foley should have set off alarm bells instantly, even if the messages the leaders saw were of the “inappropriate” variety rather than the flat-out salacious versions that surfaced last week. But there was certainly no sense of urgency in their response, which seemed directed at sweeping the matter under the rug rather than finding out precisely what was going on.

The obvious first step — notifying the bipartisan committee that oversees the page program — was never taken, presumably because that would have meant bringing a Democrat into the discussions. After Mr. Foley assured everyone that he was simply engaged in mentoring, whatever leadership inquiry there was ended with telling him to stop e-mailing the youth who got the inappropriate letter.

It’s astonishing behavior for a party that sold itself as the champion of conservative social values. But then so was the fact that a party that prides itself on fiscal conservatism managed to roll up record-breaking deficits, featuring large amounts of wasteful pork earmarked to the districts of powerful legislators or the profit sheets of generous campaign contributors. So was the speed with which the party that billed itself as the voice of grass-roots exurban and suburban America turned itself into the partner of every special-interest lobbyist with a checkbook.

The good news is that American democracy, so flawed in many ways, is often fairly efficient at punishing parties that become addicted to self-perpetuation....

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/03/opinion/03tue1.html?hp

[chill_wind]

1. Power corrrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

It didn't happen fast. They've been at it since Nixon. LITERALLY- many of the same the bastards that were around then. The Bush Administration is crawling with them, just as they were crawling Bush senior's and Ray-gun's.
They never go to jail. They just get medals or pardoned and re-appointed from one Republican regime to the next.

[tblue]

2. Just like the Catholic church and pedophile priests!

There must be a special place in hell reserved for sanctimonious hypocrites.

[Pachamama]

3. I thought today about the parallels - A group of men in power around boys

and then the enabling structure that allows and covers up the abuse....

It is so grotesque to think that power can corrupt so absolutely, that people will turn their heads to something so immorral as pedophilia...

:puke:

[tblue]

4. How about this for a bumper sticker: STOP REPUBLICAN PEDOPHILIA! ???

I didn't think of it. Look here: http://www.armchairsubversive.com/ .

As a parent, I have ZERO tolerance for people who hurt children or those who cover up crimes against children, I don't care WHO they claim to pray to or how 'Christian' they claim to be. That is the only crime I can think of that could make me support the death penalty.

[chill_wind]

5. I was speaking in general terms. They've been abusers of power, period.

Corrupt to the core for decades.