This is Gov. Spitzer's press conference yesterday:
He sure does sound sorry, doesn't he?
What is the weird obsession we have in America today with public apologies? I am a member of the public, though not a resident of New York, but any apology aimed at the general public includes me. The Governor doesn't need to apologize to me. He didn't do anything to me. He needs to apologize to his wife and his kids -- oddly his wife (I think it was his wife, could've been a hired girl) was standing behind him at the press conference where he issued said apology. Aren't pretty much all Americans sophisticated enough about photo ops at this point to realize that she is only there as a symbol? That she is literally standing by her man? She looked completely pissed off, too, which was pretty cool. There is no need for him to apologize to the public. A simple resignation says it all. As I write this, however, the governor hasn't even had the good taste to resign.
When I was a high school teacher it used to really annoy me how flippant kids were with apologies. The last year I taught I had a particularly obnoxious kid in a class. I would get on him for doing something irritating or stupid and he response was automatic: "Sorry!" He wasn't sorry. He would come into class the next day and do the same thing. I think kids today see these empty apologies and are just following the example
None of this even addressed the stupidity involved his making arrangements with a hooker himself. I am not an expert in these areas, but I would think it's not uncommon in the political world for a staffer to handle this sort of thing so the political leader in question might not get caught in a wiretap sting?
The dictionary on my Mac defines apology as "regretful acknowledgment of an offense or failure." The key word in that definition is "regret." If the Governor really regretted his actions he would have issued the apology before getting caught. There is something inherently disingenuous when people say they are really sorry only when they can no longer be deceptive. Bill Clinton lied to the American people until he no longer could lie about his relationship with Monica Lewinsky. His apology was totally phony. If he really regretted his behavior he would have owned up to it before the DNA test made it impossible for him to lie any further.
The dictionary on my Mac defines apology as "regretful acknowledgment of an offense or failure." The key word in that definition is "regret." If the Governor really regretted his actions he would have issued the apology before getting caught. There is something inherently disingenuous when people say they are really sorry only when they can no longer be deceptive. Bill Clinton lied to the American people until he no longer could lie about his relationship with Monica Lewinsky. His apology was totally phony. If he really regretted his behavior he would have owned up to it before the DNA test made it impossible for him to lie any further.
In our legal system today defendants are given greater leniency if they show some form of remorse. If a murderer apologizes for killing 13 people it might save him from the needle. A killer who shows no remorse gets the death penalty. If the killer were really sorry, wouldn't he or she have turned themselves in? Or plead guilty and avoided the waste of tax dollars on a trial? Or maybe not have even killed in the first place? What possible difference could it make if Hannibal Lecter says "I am so sorry"?
Sally Kern, a state representative in Oklahoma, was recently "outed" for giving an anti-gay speech to a small group of her constituents. She was not aware that her words were being recorded. In her speech, Kern states that gays are more dangerous than Jihadists. Apparently Kern fears our communications systems being destroyed by too many gays calling in to vote for American Idol. Gay rights groups are outraged and they insist that she issue a public apology. What possible difference could it make if she issues an empty apology? The only way an apology is meaningful is if she denounces her own words, which ain't gonna happen. Any apology she might make would be totally hollow.
Sally Kern, a state representative in Oklahoma, was recently "outed" for giving an anti-gay speech to a small group of her constituents. She was not aware that her words were being recorded. In her speech, Kern states that gays are more dangerous than Jihadists. Apparently Kern fears our communications systems being destroyed by too many gays calling in to vote for American Idol. Gay rights groups are outraged and they insist that she issue a public apology. What possible difference could it make if she issues an empty apology? The only way an apology is meaningful is if she denounces her own words, which ain't gonna happen. Any apology she might make would be totally hollow.
When I was a high school teacher it used to really annoy me how flippant kids were with apologies. The last year I taught I had a particularly obnoxious kid in a class. I would get on him for doing something irritating or stupid and he response was automatic: "Sorry!" He wasn't sorry. He would come into class the next day and do the same thing. I think kids today see these empty apologies and are just following the example
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