Posted by
Tom G. on Wednesday, March 12, 2008 10:51:31 AM
As evidenced again this week with the Democratic Governor of New York, being the wife of a public figure can be very dangerous and quit embarrassing. There really should be a Warning offered to all wives of men of influence. It seems when the MEN get in trouble, often embarrassing trouble, it is their wives who have to bear the brunt of the embarrassment. I say, what happened to opening car doors, allowing to women to enter a home, office or building first, or pulling out the chair for the women, or helping the lady into her coat? Have we replaced Chivalry with throwing the lady under the buss, so to speak? Why is it necessary for Mrs. Spitzer or Mrs. Vitter, or Mrs. McGreevy to have to stare down the camera, on stage, when they have been humiliated by their Husband?
Why do these men put their wives in such difficult positions? Why do men believe it is appropriate to ask their wives to hold court or stand by his side when they have fallen so far. In the case of a Politician who has strayed or a public official, it has become common operating procedure to add insult to injury and parade the wife as the ONLY harmed person and IF she is willing to stand by the MAN than WE should as constituents too.
So let us explore this a bit further, it is not the embarrassment caused the PUBLIC that matters, rather the willingness of the wife to be thrown to the wolves that should be considered. We can all be sure that no one would be willing to trade places with the harmed wife. None of us would want to suffer as she has and is during these all too frequent situations. So as a counter measure, the Official asks his wife to stand by him as he apologizes in public to the people, his official responsibility, his wife and his family.
Why has it become OK for married Politicians to expose the frailties of their marriage in public? It only brings down and causes pain for all of us...and brings on willing copy-cats. Now on prime time TV is a show that asks couples to come on and submit willingly to a lie detector test. They willingly allow themselves to be tested then asked about the results via probing questions to determine there integrity and veracity. Our Politics of lust has now crossed into Reality TV at 8pm. We used to reserve the Reality TV of marital issues for the EVENING NEWS.
I hope we can start a movement. We need to seek a signed pledge from politicians. They need to agree to NOT ask or allow their wives and spouses to appear on stage during a Mea Culpa on infidelity. Her is a pledge I recommend.
"I _________ do solomnly swear, not allow or ask my spouce to allow him/her self to be humiliated any further by actions I have committed. If I should Sully our Marriage it should not be my spouces role to have to stand in front of the bank of cameras for the world to see. I sincerely pledge my oath, for whatever it may be worth now, to work to improve my judgement and to protect my family from my actions. As a leader in my home, I pledge to not drag my family into the ugly world of the News Cycle. Signed__________ Date____
It is my sincere hope that Politicians recall the days when we did not drag our families into the abyss we have dug ourselves. Man will continue to fall and fail in memorial, but Men should be taught that at some point in time, Chivalry should forbid the effort of preservation of self and replace it instead with the willingness to protect, defend and support the interests of the family.