Just when you think things are really bad, some people prepare themselves for even worse to come, while others are grateful that things didn’t turn out even worse.
Imagine if Mussolini wasn’t able to make the trains run on time.
I like to think in terms of how bad things could have been, but weren’t.
Today was another of those kind of days. Bad things happened, but we’re all still here, unless you recently got a margin call.
I don’t really take great delight in seeing the fall of someone in power.
Let me qualify that, unless they deserved it, or unless they didn’t deserve to be in power in the first place.
There’s a good chance that some of the deposed leaders in the Middle East deserved to go and perhaps an even better chance that the currently embattled leaders of Lybia, Syria and Yemen deserve some hastened fall from grace.
In fact, they probably deserve to be on the express departing from Grace, non-stop to Hell.
With those obvious kind of exceptions out of the way, I should also add that I do take some delight in seeing the downfall of those that were quickest to sling the first stone, only to have their own peccaddilloes turn out to be major character flaws.
Think Newt Gingrich. How about the late Henry Hyde? Jimmy Swaggart anyone? They didn’t believe in virtual genital transmission. They went for the real thing.
I feel a little vomit working its way upward as I begin to type John Edwards’ name.
There’s a long list of hypocrites who so loudly decry the behavior of others only to cower in the reality that is their lives.
When news came out that there were additional photos, including the same kind of shirtless ones that resulted in Chris Lee’s resignation, it prompted me to Tweet the obvious joke, that perhaps Anthony Weiner should go by the name Chester Weiner.
But then the truth surfaced at this afternoon’s press conference.
So today came the admission by Anthony Weiner that not only were the released shirtless and pantless images of him, but that he was the one who sent them.
He lied.
What a shocker. He’s a politician. You almost can’t spell “politician” without “L-I-A-R”.
On a positive note, Weiner is now the most sought after “member” in Congress.
Now if you follow politics, Weiner is a pretty voluble guy. He’s no shrinking violet, unless he’s just come out of the water. Based on his underwear photo and the shadow cast, he’s no shrinking “member” of congress, either.
Now that the truth has come out, I’m certain that Weiner will backtrack on that “Photoshop” line of defense.
But at least he’s not been a hypocrite. He hasn’t lead the drum beats to jump over other members of congress that have auditioned to appear on “Dateline”.
One theory is that Democrat Weiner’s “six pack” wasn’t quite up to Republican Lee’s standard.
Just to be clear, political hypocrites come in all parties and not just related to sexually inappropriate actions.
Take Rick Perry, Governor of Texas, now being mentioned as another Republican candidate for the Presidency. Forget about the fact hat he was pushing Texas seccession. How about the way he decried the TARP, loudly condemning it at every possible venue and then taking credit for jobs created in Texas having used TARP funds.
As I watched yesterday’s evening news, I wonder what’s worse. Lying to save a bit of whatever self-respect you have left and perhaps give yourself some time to work out issues with your family, or trying to re-write history to make you look like less of an idiot than you already are well known to be.
I say that as I sit watching Sarah Palin trying to convince us that Paul Revere rode through the Massachusetts countryside in an effort to warn the British that the Colonists were going to whoop their buttocks.
Even Chris Wallace wasn’t buying it.
Really, what’s worse? Weiner lying, when we all knew he was lying, or Palin, thinking that we’re all idiots and could be snowed by some two century old revisionist history.
You know, I understand historical revisionism. It’s done all the time in order to promote or denigrate a particular agenda.
I can respect that. It’s one of the benefits of having power.
But revisionism for the sake of convincing people that you have a double digit IQ is a new low.
Oh, and let’s not forget the evils of the cover-up. True, Weiner lied in an effort to cover-up his love of all things social media.
On the other hand, Palin’s supporters have been caught trying to re-write the Wikipedia pages regarding Paul Revere’s ride to better reflect Palin’s developmentally disabled view of history.
I’ll give Palin benefit of the doubt on this one. She probably didn’t tell her supporters to put Wikipedia in their “crosshairs”, but how could you not. You just know what Moma Bear would do.
Alright, but where’s the parallel to stocks and investments?
Are you serious? They’re unending. The lies, the distortions, the doublespeak all seek to send you down a path not travelled enough.
Just look at Steve Jobs today, introducing a new Apple operating system and its version of cloud management, the iCloud.
What else would you have called it? I mean, after deciding on iPad, there was no turning back.
Anyway, it was just a few short years ago that questions of Jobs’ health were dismissed, deflected and decried.
I’m still surprised that a class actions uit didn’t arise out of that period when Apple’s stock plunged to about $70 when the truth finally came out.
Clearly, Jobs is an unmatched icon. In my eyes, he will be long remembered after Bill Gates is forgotten. Innovator versus stagnator, even though I’m a PC.
But still, great man, great visionary and he enriched the lives of untold millions, figuratively and literally, but he lied.
How about anyone in the financial sector? I know that’s painting with a broad brush, but look at the statements and actions of Dick Fuld, Jimmy Cayne and even Lloyd Blankfein of my not quite late, but moribund beloved Goldman Sachs.
In the case of the financial meltdown, it to could have been worse, but probably not by much.
John Chambers, anyone?
That list is endless as well.
What I do know is that like all breaking economic news, regardless of how the market may be whipsawed at the moments surrounding data release, before you know it, all is forgotten.
Weiner will still be a weiner, new scandals will sway our attention and we’ll all choose to believe in the way in which we have been programmed.
I’ll continue to believe that things could have been worse. Goldman Sachs could return to 2008 levels, RIMM could sell itself to Nokia and Weiner could go on to open a string of Goldman’s Gyms and replace Ron Jeremy as the everyday man’s pornography hero.
Thank God for optimism.
Where’s my train?