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Was Weiner hacked?; WeinerGate
Topic Started: May 29 2011, 01:41 PM (17,316 Views)
Duke parent 2004
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Can any reasonable person doubt that Weiner has wrecked his life, even if no other revelations or photos emerge? And if no more stink wafts our way, can anyone doubt that constituents not already disgusted by him cannot be saved from their own obtuseness and vulgarity?

Charles Krauthammer spoke for me this evening when he called for displays of empathy and common decency in re Weiner, when he noted that the man has gravely injured himself and his family, that the time has come for forbearance if not forgiveness. Krauthammer, who describes himself as an irreligious Jew, often displays a humanity that resembles the best offered us by Christian saints.

Here’s another, but more general, call for mercy that deserves dusting off, especially because it was penned by one of the greatest atheists of the 19th Century:

When judging a human individual, we should always keep to the point of view that the basis of such is something that ought not to be at all, something sinful, perverse, and absurd, that which has been understood as original sin, that on account of which he is doomed to die. This fundamental bad nature is indeed characterized by the fact that no one can bear to be closely scrutinized[emphasis mine]. What can we expect from such a being? If, therefore, we start from this fact, we shall judge him more indulgently; we shall not be surprised when the devils lurking in him bestir themselves and peep out, and we shall be better able to appreciate any good point that has nevertheless been found in him, whether this be a consequence of his intellect or of anything else. In the second place, we should also be mindful of his position and remember that life is essentially a condition of want, distress, and often misery, where everyone has to fight and struggle for his existence and therefore cannot always put on a pleasant face. If, on the contrary, man were that which all optimistic religions and philosophies would like to make him, namely the work or even the incarnation of a God, in fact a being that in every sense ought to be and to be as he is, what a totally different effect would inevitably be produced by the first sight, the closer acquaintance, and the continued intercourse with every human being from that which is now produced!

By all accounts Weiner “deserves” little sympathy, which makes grants of it even more praiseworthy and estimable. As much as I dislke his politics and his manner, I cannot say he has intentionally injured anyone, at least not to the extent he has harmed himself and his family. His abiding weakness is one that lurks in all of us, what Thomas Hobbes called “a perpetual and restless desire of power after power, that ceaseth only in death.” (Hobbes meant here by “power” something wider than political power.)

We can still learn a great deal as well from the Greeks of the classical period, who understood that more would be lost than gained by simulating on stage acts of great violence or depravity. These, they made clear, were better left to the imagination.
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nyesq83
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Hacked or whacked, he should be sacked. Never liked him; he is a jackass egotistical hedonist faker.
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Baldo
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Duke Parent 2004 you speak eloquently as always.

However forgiveness comes after a complete confession, true repentance. and the doing of actual deeds to make up for the damage done. It is a process and it can't be rushed. We are not there yet. These politicians always try to rush this process to get it pass them as soon as possible. I don't seek a pound of flesh, he just needs to face the full Monty so to speak.

I suspect there is more that we don't know.
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Duke parent 2004
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Baldo
Jun 7 2011, 10:14 PM
However forgiveness comes after a complete confession, true repentance. and the doing of actual deeds to make up for the damage done. It is a process and it can't be rushed. We are not there yet. These politicians always try to rush this process to get it pass them as soon as possible. I don't seek a pound of flesh, he just needs to face the full Monty so to speak.

I suspect there is more that we don't know.
I am not calling for forgiveness, which in any event is not mine to give. I am calling for forbearance, for a recognition that insisting on public disclosure of every sexual misdeed or depravity on Weiner’s part may gratuitously damage the polity, our increasingly frail standards of decency, and Weiner’s already suffering family. I made similar comments many moons ago in the thread having to do with Mark Sanford.

I concur in your suspicion that “there is more that we don't know.” Perhaps I’m far less eager, though, than I once was to see it all, as I’ve come to think that the mania of the modern age for “full disclosure” often seduces us into thinking that “seeking the truth” can never be a camouflage for escaping boredom, stooping to titillation, or indulging in schadenfreude. Lest you think my concerns fanciful or needlessly alarmist, I invite you to consult Roger Shattuck’s masterful book, Forbidden Knowledge: From Prometheus to Pornography. Next to Shattuck I am ham-fisted in my elaborations!
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Concerned
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The problem I have with Weiner is that I cannot for the life of me understand why an educated man - a man whose decisions affects the lives of American citizens - would feel compelled to send suggestive photos of himself to women that he has never met. I really don't care what else he's done because he's already proven to me that he makes bad judgments, he's obviously an exhibitionist, and he's not to be trusted.




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wingedwheel
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Not Pictured Above
Quote:
 
Mr. Schumer issued his own statement late Monday saying he was “deeply pained and saddened” by the day’s news.


He must really be disappointed then because I hear Tom Daschle was only deeply saddened...
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Baldo
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Duke parent 2004
Jun 7 2011, 11:18 PM
Baldo
Jun 7 2011, 10:14 PM
However forgiveness comes after a complete confession, true repentance. and the doing of actual deeds to make up for the damage done. It is a process and it can't be rushed. We are not there yet. These politicians always try to rush this process to get it pass them as soon as possible. I don't seek a pound of flesh, he just needs to face the full Monty so to speak.

I suspect there is more that we don't know.
I am not calling for forgiveness, which in any event is not mine to give. I am calling for forbearance, for a recognition that insisting on public disclosure of every sexual misdeed or depravity on Weiner’s part may gratuitously damage the polity, our increasingly frail standards of decency, and Weiner’s already suffering family. I made similar comments many moons ago in the thread having to do with Mark Sanford.

I concur in your suspicion that “there is more that we don't know.” Perhaps I’m far less eager, though, than I once was to see it all, as I’ve come to think that the mania of the modern age for “full disclosure” often seduces us into thinking that “seeking the truth” can never be a camouflage for escaping boredom, stooping to titillation, or indulging in schadenfreude. Lest you think my concerns fanciful or needlessly alarmist, I invite you to consult Roger Shattuck’s masterful book, Forbidden Knowledge: From Prometheus to Pornography. Next to Shattuck I am ham-fisted in my elaborations!
I would say many in the MSM have been too tolerance and restraint in the face of his repeated lying. He has already mis-used the forbearance of many of his supporters. He passed that landmark long ago.

I don't need to know the details, but this incident is not a private matter anymore. It is not just between his wife & himself. He has violated the trust of too many as a Representative in Congress.

I find myself in agreement with MSNBC's Ed Schultz. He needs to resign and work on himself. Then he can run again for Congress in 2012 and seek the forgiveness of his constituents.

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kbp

If he'd resign, I'd quit reading the stories of WHY he did. Until then, I hope we see more and more on it.
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agatha

Actions have consequences. Unfortunately, there are no consequences for Weiner and many other public officials. A few boo-hoo's mixed with "I accept full responsibility" are not consequences.

If lawmakers were held to the same rules as the rest of us, the fear of the consequences would have an effect on behavior. We have reached a point in which public ridicule is the only way some in power are held to account for their actions.

If Weiner is done, if he is made to resign it is only because of public ridicule. If Nancy Pelosi presses for his resignaton (as opposed to an ethics investigation), it isn't because she is holding him to account. It is because of the public ridicule and the effect it has on the party.

His family suffers because of his actions, not my words. He is prolonging the suffering by hanging in there with lies and more lies.
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Deleted User
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So it seems that Krauthammer is now going wobbly on Weiner. Yes, I know the "higher self" argument is always what we strive for and while he hurt none of us, didn't he hurt our national image and bring disgrace on the House of the People? Whatever pound of flesh his wife extracts is fine with me, but I would like to see a bit of personal integrity brought back into our public life. As arrogant as Weiner is, if given a pass this will not be his last rodeo.
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LTC8K6
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Assistant to The Devil Himself
If you're thinking of letting up on him...

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2011/06/029183.php
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darby

Duke parent 2004
Jun 7 2011, 09:44 PM
[snip..]

In the second place, we should also be mindful of his position and remember that life is essentially a condition of want, distress, and often misery, where everyone has to fight and struggle for his existence and therefore cannot always put on a pleasant face.
Essentially.....

1. Life is hard...
2. I just want to be happy...
3. I never meant to hurt anyone...

Notwithstanding his actions during the cover-up or his indiscretions. How many of us have used similar excuses to ourselves to justify bad behaviour?

Thanks DP. Your posts are always so eloquently relevent.
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kbp

LTC8K6
Jun 8 2011, 08:05 AM
If you're thinking of letting up on him...

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2011/06/029183.php
The POS sounds like a child molester wannabe trying to justify what he did in social networks by making the questions asked appear to be loaded with presumptions that are not fair to even ask him about.


Quote:
 
Report: Twitter group warned girls about Weiner

By Alex Sundby.

A band of self-described conservatives on Twitter reportedly kept a close watch on which users New York Democratic Rep. Anthony Weiner followed on the microblogging service and even discouraged some "schoolgirls" from forming a relationship with the congressman in the weeks before his admission of engaging in lewd online relationships with six women.
The New York Times published in its print editions Wednesday an article on the group that operated under the label #bornfreecrew.

The group's leader was the same user who discovered the lewd photo that Weiner mistakenly sent publicly to 21-year-old Seattle college student Gennette Cordova, the Times reports. The user was known as Dan Wolfe, which the Times reports is a false name linked with the now-defunct handle @PatriotUSA76.

Wolfe opened the PatriotUSA76 account Jan. 6 and published messages about Weiner and wife Huma Abedin, a longtime aide to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the Times reported. Soon Wolfe focused on which Twitter feeds Weiner followed.

"Weiner's new follow is a high school girl. LMAO! Freak!" read one post Wolfe published, according to the Times.

The Times talked with a bornfreecrew member who wasn't as discreet about his identity, Michael Stack, a 39-year-old New Jerseyan who uses the Twitter handle @goatsred. Stack said Wolfe once told him in a private message that Weiner followed the updates from adult film actress Ginger Lee.

"He tweeted about it and then the porn star was gone," Stack told the Times before referring to Weiner. "He was paying attention."

Last month, Stack sent a 16-year-old California girl who wanted Weiner to escort her to her prom a message discouraging her from contact with the congressman.

"If you're a minor and he's following you, well, seems a little creepy if not in ny," the message read, according to the Times.

Stack copied Weiner on the message. The girl posted the next day that Weiner unsubscribed from receiving her updates.


If this is accurate, as I suspect it is, the SOB is more like a fulltime keyboarder than politician. I can't say he was boinking any underage girls, but it sure looks like he was headed that direction ...developing out-of-town contacts ripe to meet up with on his various trips.

Unless this is just some freak situation in which his wife approves of because it keeps him excited to play out when they're behind closed doors, his secret fantasy life they've agreed upon, she should either dump him or demand he gets some help.

Whatever it is, it should not be what we have representing citizens in Congress ...if he even finds time to do that job in his online activities, which look like they'd keep him very busy.
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kbp

LTC8K6
Jun 8 2011, 08:05 AM
If you're thinking of letting up on him...

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2011/06/029183.php
That is still stuck in my mind, the perfect example of WHY all ahould be pizzed off at the Weiner.

It's like the reporter asks how Weiner can explain A, B & C, to which Weiner tries to pass off A, then B and skips C, while complaining that it's not fair to consider all at the same time ...as if it can only be a hyothetical to judge his actions as ever coming from a mindset that had motives we'd expect if A, B & C were going on all at the same time.
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darby
Jun 8 2011, 08:46 AM
Duke parent 2004
Jun 7 2011, 09:44 PM
[snip..]

In the second place, we should also be mindful of his position and remember that life is essentially a condition of want, distress, and often misery, where everyone has to fight and struggle for his existence and therefore cannot always put on a pleasant face.
Essentially.....

1. Life is hard...
2. I just want to be happy...
3. I never meant to hurt anyone...

Notwithstanding his actions during the cover-up or his indiscretions. How many of us have used similar excuses to ourselves to justify bad behaviour?

Thanks DP. Your posts are always so eloquently relevent.
You left out two items of importance that Weiner emphasized in his presser.

I love my wife (really?)

My wife loves me (maybe not today)
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