The Perils of Power

The recent exploits of Anthony Weiner are only the latest in a string of seemingly irrational acts committed by folks seen as powerful in their respective arena. John Edwards and his love child, Arnold Schwarzenegger and his, Dominique Strauss-Kahn and the chambermaid, Chris Lee and his shirtless pose for Craigslist: just some of the more recent. One could say that such behavior dates back at least to Richard Nixon and his Watergate albatross, but all have one thing in common: powerful people doing stupid things.

The first phase of this stupidity path is audacity. Many, if not most of us have fantasized about committing some sort of illegal or immoral act. The little voice that keeps us from acting on that impulse is our conscience telling us that we’re screwed when (not if) we get caught. The powerful, though, have come to ignore that voice as they are led further and further into the land of make-believe where anything they do can be made to disappear.

The audacity leads one to act on impulse and, when caught, to the lying that inevitably follows. (Chris Lee the notable exception since he resigned from Congress immediately upon being discovered.) Once again, audacity reigns supreme in creating the belief that the bad news will simply go away simply because of the individual involved.

Sooner or later, the truth comes out in one way or another. The facts pile up as water behind a levee and cracks are soon exposed which allow even more details to come rushing onto the public scene. The powerful have learned that the rest of us demand they take responsibility for their actions. As such, many now claim that they take full responsibility for their actions. Only after their lies have failed, of course, and they seem to believe the claim alone will bring the unpleasantry to an end.

 Responsibility is hollow absent consequence, though, and this is where power starts to trip upon itself. You see, the powerful see consequence as having no place at the head of their table and refuse to entertain its certainty. Nixon’s resignation, Clinton’s impeachment, Arnold’s divorce and DSK’s incarceration are all fine examples of the consequences stemming from the doing and the lying.

Anthony Weiner now refuses to resign from Congress. The point seems moot to me since he will be shunned within those halls and subsequently spurned by the voters. While his acts may not be illegal and many may deem them something short of immoral, his lying as an attempt to avoid responsibility and consequence should be unpardonable. I would hope that honesty and integrity be sacrosanct for any member of Congress.

So long as there are pedestrians within the halls of power, be they political or corporate or social, the perils of audacity, avoidance, responsibility, and consequence will exist. True, over time we become disillusioned with those considered role models and subsequently cynical of those that follow. Perhaps, if we all accept the fact that power doesn’t dispel human failings, we can better accept the bad side when it appears.

As for Weiner? Well, should he decide to resign, I’ve an idea for his future enterprise: the marketplace is apparently in need of professionally photographed poses of penises.  Who wouldn’t want their manhood to be depicted in its best light before sharing it with the cyber-world? He’s got the name and the experience. He could call it DixPix!