By S. Edwards
This country can’t get enough of a good sex scandal when it involves high level politicians and who can blame us really they make for great stories. The latest man to have been caught in the delicious media web being spun around his personal life is Gen. David Petraeus former director of the CIA. Last week the story broke about his affair with biographer Paula Broadwell and the rest was history. The FBI, suspecting a possible security breach, investigated the affair after a woman complained of receiving harassing emails from Broadwell and shortly after the story broke Gen. Petraeus resigned from his position as CIA director.
A man lauded for his dedication and patriotism stepped down after over 37 years of public service after admitting to having an extramarital affair. The story never just ends there. It goes on with countless articles written about Broadwell, her background, betrayal and the details of the time they spent together because we all must know the exact moment the affair began. The story has consistently dominated top headlines spots on news sites at the same time tensions seem to be coming to a head in Gaza.
Stories like these seem to catch on quickly and stay on our radars for a while. Why? Because everyone wants to know every detail of how these great men seemingly risked their careers and lives for the thrill or passion of an affair. I think it is human nature to believe that each of us will be the exception and not the rule. It is likely that at the start of the affair a though of what one could lose enters the mind and leaves quickly. People want to feel in control especially when they aren’t doing something they probably should be doing.
Stories about people in high places trusted by many to know when to do the right thing caught in this sexual scandals seems so perplexing on its face because these are people who are paid to make judgment calls on a regular basis. Someone with such a mind must surely be aware of all they have to lose. However, we all know that most of us compartmentalize very well and certain rules only apply to specific areas of our lives. I also believe these stories are so fascinating because they make us confront some of our own behaviors and beliefs. We want to know the moment when things shifted from flirtation to something more because it matters. It is important maybe in part because people want to know what that moment looks for someone else in hopes that they might be able to identify it in their own lives and avoid it. If the people we believe in the most exhibit behavior that is questionable then what does it say about the way we mere mortals might act. The thought probably scares a lot of us because no matter who you are there is always something to lose.
Great post. I find it troubling, however, that globalization and technology have evolved in such a way that allow for such intrusion into the personal lives of people. Here, the case of Petraeus is certainly interesting and provides for great office gossip and chatter. Yet, it is a bit disturbing to think that these could be us. There is an inherent lack of ethics and morality in having an affair but indiscretions are part of being human. These people are in positions of power yet they do not cease to be human. It is difficult for me to see why these types of indiscretions should reflect negatively on the professional credentials and reputations of those who commit them.
Your post made me think. I really liked it.
It is so real that no matter who you are when something goes wrong. No one is spared, no one is invincible and unwavering . Sometimes it’s good to stop grieving in human imperfection, not to believe that we are or we can more than others. I’m of the thinking that hardly anyone is able to give moral lessons. Nobody has the right to cast the first stone on another, because in each of us there is a dark corner and that should make us think and not judge so much. It should make us take look at ourselves.
Regarding JM comment, I completely agree about the level of intrusion in our day to day lives through social media and other sources of technology. At the rate that we are advancing, I wonder if we will ever truly have privacy, and will we ever have the privilege of being off the grid.
I always attributed this fascination and downright punishment of men in authority in particular, who have such indiscretions within their personal lives to our excitement when people we deem more powerful than ourselves mess up and lower themselves to more “human” levels. It’s sad that politicians and others in positions of authority are often judged by superhuman standards and it says a lot about how sadistic we have become as a people.