I Me Mine

[captainsblog]

To revise, ever so slightly, some lyrics from Hall and Oates:

He's Gone Oh I, Oh I'd
Better learn how to face it
He's Gone Oh I, Oh I'd
Pay the devil to replace him
He's Gone - what went wrong?

Many things went wrong, I'm sure. The absolute corruption produced by absolute power. Probably enough psychological complexes to resettle the entire population of Co-op City. In its own way, though, the aftereffects of Eliot Mess will be just as unpleasant.

Here's the headline from this morning's paper in Rochester, printed when the resignation was a done deal except for the date and time (which have since passed):



A tragedy unfolds. Public trust, and possibly public funds, were misused for the tawdriest of reasons. And all people care about is, What's in it for me?

Is our [insert pet project here] still going to be funded?

Will we still get our rebate checks?

Then there's the coincidental nexus of time and numbers that this whole scandal has (sorry) swallowed. As of just a week ago, Albany Democrats were drooling over the prospect of gaining control of the State Senate for the first time in my lifetime. The GOP lead in that chamber was down to just two seats after a Dem beat out a silver-spoon Syracuse Republican for a North Country seat vacated by a retirement. Now, it's the Republicans doing the drooling; there won't be a tiebreaking Lieutenant Governor for almost three more years, and some are theorizing that the GOP leader of the Senate will now get two votes on any matter that deadlocks 31-31.

I'm sure war rooms are full of political apparatchiks dishing out all the new spoils, which have a stench remarkably similar to that of the old spoils.

In the end, the only difference between Monday's shocking news and any other day of the week in Albany? This is probably the only time an Albany politician paid to fuck with people.

Comments

[baseballchica03.livejournal.com]

This is probably the only time an Albany politician paid to fuck with people.

Haha, have you seen the glut of Cafepress shirts that came out in the past day? My favorite is the one that says something like "Spitzer for President 2008: A candidate who screws prostitutes, not the American public."

[baseballchica03.livejournal.com]

PS - Finally, something metaquoteable. Can I quote the last line?

[captainsblog.livejournal.com]

Sure.

I had a dental cleaning today, and the obvious punch line is "rinse and Spitzer," but the joke itself is eluding me.

[luckycee.livejournal.com]

I'm so disappointed in him. I must be getting more naive in my old age.