So Billy, do you like Gladiator Movies?

I wanted to avoid talking too much about the current Mark Foley (R-Eally Creepy) scandal, but it's like watching an accident on the highway, and you just have to rubberneck and gawk. Or, alternatively, it's drawing me like a moth to a flame... or a Freeper/Moonbat to a flamewar, take your pick of metaphor.

But, before I rip into the meaty goodness* that is this scandal, I thought I'd take the opportunity to lay out my personal biases:

First, and this is evident to anyone who reads this blog thing on a regular basis, I have a (shall we say) "left of center" bias. I hope this does not come as a shock to anyone who believes the internet to be full of non-partisan bliss and rainbow farting unicorns. Or anyone from Wampum.

Second, I work for The Government and Grover Norquist and his ilk want to drown me in a bathtub. Needless to say, I am not a Republican.

Third, my family is a product of the Democratic machine in the City of Pittsburgh. My great-grandmother would rise out of her grave and strangle me should I go "the other way."

OK, that's full disclosure. Let's move on.

NOW, I can't say that the Foley debacle doesn't fill me with some giddy pleasure. I'm not proud of this, I just enjoy seeing hypocrisy exposed.

Second, OK, for starters pedophilia is bad. Really bad. Really, really, really, bad. Go over to 2 Political Junkies, if you haven't already, and look at this clip. Now, while I appreciate the verbal smackdown by the Democratic operative, it would not be the tact I would have chosen. If I was on the hot seat, my only response would have been "At least the Democrats you've listed aren't pedophiles. Or have covered up for pedophiles. Are you suggesting, ma'am, that somehow the corruption of minors with the intent of committing devious acts is somehow equal to, say, regular corruption? And, if so, are you suggesting that pedophilia isn't so bad, by comparison? Ma'am, are you on the payroll of NAMBLA?"

Of course, his response was good too, and I'm not at all disappointed.

Third, I'd like to repeat the Nixonian maxim: "It's not the crime that gets you; it's the coverup."

Fourth, at this point, the Democratic strategy is clear: the leadership of the Republican party in the House of Representatives knowingly supported and enabled a pedophile through their actions and inactions. If you are thinking of voting Republican, do you think that you can, in good conscience, vote for a Republican knowing that the current, corrupt leadership will remain in power?

Fifth, the Democrats don't even have to convince Republicans to vote for them; they just have to convince Republicans that they should stay home on November 7th. Marginal goals.

But, of course, this is all from a Bureaucrat, not a Politician. Alas, I'm incorruptible.**

*Which is, I'm sure, what Rep. Foley called the Senate pages.
**At least until a better offer comes around.

Tag(s): Mark Foley