Okay. Ed Driscoll noted something today - a webpost about the Mayor of San Francisco being caught with . . . bottled water. Full story here. This sums up with exquisite precision the people we elect to guide our institutions:
Fix on something small and symbolic, and demonize it;
Propose a response that does little to address the fundamental problem;
Forbid the thing to others;
Reserve its use for yourself;
Adopt a penitent tone when caught which underscores the hypocrisy and makes you look like a dweeb for apologizing for something which, while petty, you have infused with moral failings.
IÂ’m not big on shouting HYPOCRITE, for the most part, because failing to do a thing you endorse does not mean the thing youÂ’re endorsing isnÂ’t a good idea. But that equation changes when itÂ’s something they want to take away from you, but reserve for themselves. In any case, itÂ’s just laughable to see a weightless fool who, for the sake of public image and sending the right messages, has to apologize for having the wrong kind of water container - and has an aide describe it as an indulgence.
Sir. Six oysters for breakfast with a rasher of bacon is an indulgence. Three showgirls in your lap is an indulgence. Racing a car at high speed on weekends is an indulgence. Having a moral tuning fork that twinges when someone drinks water from a plastic bottle is an affectation. |