Jim, you inspire me...
What if I were to posit that
this entire investigation to find
just where to place the blame, pass the judgement and
inflict the
penalty were a waste of the country's time/money/energy
because they're looking in *completely* the wrong place--
since, in my opinion, it's really my fault, and probably
yours too,
Jim....
Gotcher attention? Ok.
Now this is going to probably sound
really radical to you, but go with it for a minute.
You might not
agree with my views, but at the very least you're going
to have
to give me some points for original thinking....
:-)
Theory 1: Let's say that everyone, Clinton and me
and you
included, has so-called "perverted" sexual fantasies
(along with
many other "bad" or "unaccepted" parts of ourselves)...which
we
probably hide from just about everyone, hate ourselves
for, and
for which we may or may not find a healthy outlet for.
(To put some weight behind this
theory, I'd invite you to check
out the amount and traffic of the alt.sex.* newgroups,
and the
fact that the majority of the traffic on the internet
is to sex sites.
Name your pleasure, however bizarre and "perverted" you
can
imagine it, and there's a hundred web sites with pictures
and
videos and thousands of people visiting them--*anonymously*--
each day. Now, either there's a couple hundred
really messed
up people with a lot of time on their hands, or we should
redefine
just what "perverted"/"normal" human behavior is.
See also,
http://www.techweek.com/articles/8-24-98/erotica.html
But, I digress. :-)
Next, imagine for a minute that
you're not only president
of the US and held to the strictest of what our society
considers
"right" and "wrong," but you are also married to Hillary...who
is
perhaps not just sexually ultra-conservative (just my
guess),
but also a lawyer...ie, a person who's dedicated a good
portion
of her life and has taken an oath to uphold all that
some few
Americans have decided is "right" and "good". Maybe
these
guesses of mine aren't even fair, but for whatever reason,
little Billy's not getting what he *really* wants at
home.
Second theory of mine: Mother
Nature will always win in
the end...ie, Who We Really Are will prevail (and, I
don't think
you'd argue that one of the strongest forces deep inside
each
of us is sexual). Further, that our true selves
will prevail will be
true even as much as we try to force ourselves to conform
to
what we or the people and society around us think to
be "right"
and "good." (Insert countless other high-profile
religious,
political, corporate, etc. figures who have proven this
time
and time again...and, my and your own, less publicized
personal failures in what we tried to make ourselves
believe
we were, what we hoped and wanted to be [mostly for fear
of
not being liked/accepted], but just weren't. Oh,
the pain and
tragedy of realizing that we're "only" human after all...and
that
there's a dark, shadow side to every one of us, including
me
and you--even while we all sit back on our self-righteous
arm-chair pedestals and point the finger at "bad" Bill
and
"naughty" Monica.)
So, given the above, where did
Clinton have to go? He has
this "wrong" and "perverted" sexual fantasy that has
neither a
place in our society, nor, for whatever reason,
in his marriage.
Sooner or later, Mother Nature had to win out and his
true
person had to emerge. Thus, this affair had to
happen...and,
not surprisingly, in the most private and least-likely
to be
exposed place (who-da thought this "lowly" intern would
have
the balls...er, gumption...to come out and rock the entire
nation
with this?)
Now, again, you're Clinton...which
means that you're human;
so, again, you might even imagine yourself in this "position,"
yet with a *much* bigger reputation to protect...in fact,
probably
the world's biggest...and people are getting close to
discovering
your most private, hidden, and, in your opinion, your
most ugly,
despicable, perverted, and hated part of yourself.
(Imagine that
part of YOURself now. Now, imagine the entire world
seeing
and hearing all about it--in excruciating detail!)
Seems to me that the most severe
consequence at this point
is not what happens to your job or your life, or, maybe
even your
marriage, but, again, every human's greatest personal
fear: the
fear of being rejected, judged "bad," "perverted," unfaithful,
and,
ultimately, completely devalued, ridiculed, and hated
for that
deepest part of yourself which you yourself hate, have
been told
your whole life by your society is "wrong," but which
you have
been powerless your entire life to change. It's
like your worst
fear coming true: "If people only knew what I am
really like
inside, they'd hate, abandon, or even banish and punish
me."
(And, parenthetically, what a major impostor complex
it would
be if you were president of the US of A, supposedly the
world's
most powerful human, but were still unable to conquer
your
silly, little, "perverted" sexual urges.)
So, what would you do?
Unless you were an *incredibly*
evolved and courageous soul, you'd do anything and
everything in your power to cover it up, so that you
didn't
receive the ultimate horrific judgement: a "bad person."
So, yeah, I could maybe fault Clinton for not being
"an
*incredibly* evolved and courageous soul," but if I did,
I'd
have to fault about 99% of the planet. So, who
am I left to
blame?
Well, who created and continues
to support this society
of more strict and pervasive rules and laws and morals
than
any other in the world?...this society which puts forth
and
rewards the model of judging, conforming to, following,
and
*enforcing* our society's rules and so-called "norms"--the
model to which Hillary Clinton and perhaps so many other
well-meaning and kind-hearted, but "bought in" and misled
souls so aptly aspire?...this society with its harsh
need to
judge and change us right down to dictating what is
acceptable behavior between two consenting adults, or
even the personal decisions we make in our own lives
or
with our own bodies? I do, you do, we all do.
Thus, *WE* are to blame for
this entire Clinton affair...
and, WE will continue to be to blame for many more like
it
in every corner (exposed and public or not) of our society
until we stop judging each other for every thought, word,
opinion, belief and deed ("Land of the Free?" What
bullshit!), and stop strangling ourselves with these
rules
and laws which don't allow anyone to be and accept Who
We Really Are: human _individuals_ with *diverse*
*and*differing* thoughts, beliefs, preferences, desires,
pleasures, behaviors, etc.
So, what can we do?
1) Speak out against this ever increasingly strict set
of
rules, laws, morals, judgements which pervade our
society, forcing us all into the same box of "right"
and
"good"...this box having been created not from each of
our hearts, but from the fears in the minds of a few
powerful, but unevolved souls who think that their idea
of "right" and "good" must prevail in the land, since
they
are so threatened by other ways of thinking and being
which they don't understand. We can strive to find
the
strength and courage to stand against such moral
tyranny (usually at some personal risk) and to object
publically whenever we encounter such constrictions &
regulations of Who We Are and/or Who We Should Be.
2) Stop judging others. Period.
3) Have the balls to go out and live Who We Really
Are in a compassionate and responsible way...
especially the dark and "unacceptable" parts of
ourselves...for, that courageous act of living the parts
of ourselves of which we are most embarrassed (yet
which really don't harm anyone else), but just aren't
"acceptable" (or even legal) in our society, stretches
the fabric of acceptability for everyone else, allowing
them a bit more freedom to be Who They Really Are
as well.
So, I'll admit that I'm not
quite living the 1/2/3 100%
in my life, and, until I am, I am partially to blame
for our
current situation: a society in which this whole Clinton
affair was, in my opinion, inevitable. I believe
that only
you can truly judge yourself...so, only you can say if
part of the responsibility also lies with you.
All I can
say is that I'm sorry for and saddened by this whole
thing...but, that I'm doing my personal best to get to
a
place where I can live the above 1/2/3 100%, and that
I've pledged to dedicate a portion of my life toward
transforming our society into a place where there is
less judgement and more humanity...and into a place
where it is really ok for any- and every- one to be and
live Who They *Really* Are.
I'm still not sure how exactly
I'm going to
accomplish this, or how many courageous souls like
yourself it will take standing with me to make such a
shift, but I am working on it...so, currently, that is
the
best excuse I have for my guilt in this at this time.
So, everyone can stop bitching
at Clinton and
spending millions of dollars looking for the "crime,"
for it lies with me.
Thank you, Jim, for caring enough to express your
views in an email which inspired me to examine
mine...and for going along on this little journey into
my reality with me. :-) Anyway, now maybe
you
understand why I signed the petition (just now).
warm regards,
Rich Raffals
Message text written by INTERNET:Jim_Hamre:
Three points:
(1) The investigation has landed an Arkansas govenor
(Tucker) and the
#2man at the Justice Department in jail (Hubbell). So
was it a "waste" of
money?
(2) Monica was on the federal payroll while servicing
our great leader.
I personally don't like having my tax dollars go for
what amounts to
prostitutes. Get this toad out of office! Hey, Al Capone
went to jail
for income tax evasion. Was that a good thing? Sometimes
you gotta settle
for "lesser charges." Or should we have stopped investigating
him because it
was costing too much?
(3) What's all this crap about an impeachment being too
"painful" for
the country? Its part of the process of democracy, written
into our
Constitution. Finding a parking space and standing in
line to vote is
painful. Should we just not bother? Besides, listening
to two more years
of Leno and Letterman jokes about the president's penis
will be painful...
-Jim