Time: Wed Oct 01 05:51:43 1997
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Date: Wed, 01 Oct 1997 05:21:55 -0700
To: (Recipient list suppressed)
From: Paul Andrew Mitchell [address in tool bar]
Subject: SLS: Politicians want trust they haven't earned (fwd)
<snip>
>
>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
>JON E. DOUGHERTY
>USA FEATURES MEDIA CO.
>
>
>POLITICIANS WANT TRUST THEY HAVEN'T EARNED
>
>
> SEPTEMBER 24--I think it is inherent within the American psyche
>to want to trust people. Despite the bad rap we get on the international
>scene describing us as being a racist, mean-spirited and violent bunch of
>rogues, the vast majority of Americans are hard-working, honest, decent
>people who seek to live and play by the rules, raise a respectable family
>and lead a responsible life. Morally speaking, most believe in the 'do
>unto others' rule of society, hence, our desire to naturally trust
>others. And since most of us fit into the above catagories, we naturally
>assume that everyone else does too.
>
> We believe in that concept, up until the day when we cannot
>assume it any longer about certain people because of an action -- or a
>series of actions -- that they have engaged in which destroys their
>credibility.
>
> All of us can remember a time when our faith in someone else was
>shattered, for one reason or another. I'm not talking about
>disillusionment in the sense of 'hero worship'; I'm talking about those
>situations when you thought you knew someone and believed them to be
>honorable, only to find out later that they weren't. Once you put your
>trust in someone -- something that is given in good faith -- it's
>devestating to find that trust misplaced by the thoughtlessness and
>arrogance of the other person. And if your faith is broken often enough,
>you begin to develop a protective layer around your emotions -- call that
>cynicism.
>
> We can not only be wronged by individuals, but we can be made
>fools of by specific groups as well. Lawyers, for example, complain that
>they -- as a group -- are nothing but greedy, predatory ambulance
>chasers. There's no question that many of them are, and to label all of
>them as being guilty by association is wrong. But face it, much of why
>these professionals are looked upon with disdain is because of an image
>they themselves helped create.
>
> The same stigma of contempt is held for today's politicians.
>There's no question that many lawmakers perform their duties admirably,
>honorably and with their constituencies' best interests at heart. But
>after seeing so many politicians get caught in lies, scandals, and other
>forms of immoral behavior -- and then make excuses for it -- people have
>copped an attitude of chronic cynicism to match the politicians' chronic
>misbehavior. As the standard punchline suggests: "How can you tell a
>politician is lying? Easy; his lips are moving."
>
> There has been no better administration in recent history which
>solidifies the stereotypical attitude towards politicians than the
>Clinton administration -- nay, Mr. Clinton himself. Despite liberal
>rhetoric, the public's mistrust of him has nothing to do with 'being
>hateful' or simply 'wanting to get him'. Rather it is contempt bred from
>scores of misrepresentations, distortions and outright lies Mr. Clinton
>has repeatedly foisted upon the people as "truths," when the people see
>the obvious discrepancies in his statements. In 1992, Mr. Clinton can
>thank his uncanny ability to obfuscate and work a crowd for his election;
> in 1996, he can thank a low voter turnout, which was the direct result
>of millions of people too distrustful of their own system to even
>participate.
>
> But for the peoples' initial trust of him, look how he has repaid
>that trust.
>
> Almost immediately after he took office, Whitewater began as an
>issue, followed closely -- and in rapid succession -- by Travelgate,
>Hillary's cattle futures, Vince Foster's death, filegate, Somalia and now
>the campaign finance scandals which probably involve Chinese espionage.
>Public evidence exists that seems to prove inconclusively that Mr.
>Clinton, VP Al Gore, Mrs. Clinton and a host of others have done all of
>this -- and many things -- wrong. From doctoring and shredding supoenaed
>documents to selling trade and security secrets to potentially dangerous
>regimes, Mr. Clinton and Co. have found it harder and harder to cover-up
>all of the filth, even though Attorney General Janet Reno incredibly sees
>"no evidence" of wrongdoing. But the people do, and they ain't 'buying
>it' anymore.
>
> The American people know Mr. Clinton -- much better than he
>thinks we do -- and they also know the truth about this man and his
>friends. Despite the phoney tears-on-cue for the late Ron Brown or his
>attempts to get us to "feel his pain," people are not stupid and many
>have completely lost faith not only in the president, but also in the
>legal system which is supposed to have "controlling legal authority" to
>prosecute illegality.
>
> Mr. Clinton is not alone in this. Scores of politicians have
>been badly abusing the public's trust, and it is evidenced by declining
>voter participation. While Americans may be trusting and docile most of
>the time, even we can reach our limit when individuals or groups of
>people collectively deny us valid reasons to keep the faith.
>
> Politicians and the bureaucracies they have created are groups
>that people love to hate because of their actions, not ours. For
>Americans to become so cynical, distrustful and contemptuous of
>government was not a widespread sentiment created overnight. Summarily,
>winning back our trust will be equally daunting, though doable -- it all
>depends on how badly politicians want it. ***
>
>Jon Dougherty is the associate producer of The Derry Brownfield Show, a
>nationally syndicated talk radio program, and editor of the Internet
>newspaper USA Journal Online. http://www.usajournal.com
>-------
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>
>
>
========================================================================
Paul Andrew Mitchell, Sui Juris : Counselor at Law, federal witness
B.A., Political Science, UCLA; M.S., Public Administration, U.C. Irvine
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