Standards and the Lack Thereof
I make neither secret nor distinction in public or private about my wish for Governor Mark Sanford to resign his office without further delay. Aside from trashing his marriage, harming his children and burning his reputation to the ground, he has let down the people of the great state of South Carolina, who deserve better than a grown man who has wrapped himself in the cloak of adolescent behavior. He has breached the trust of all involved and reduced himself to a parody by his ongoing process of self-flagellation in the media. We should all hope the ongoing spectacle of this lovesick puppy ends sooner rather than later.
I continue to pray for the strength of his wife Jenny and their children. I applaud First Lady Sanford for refusing to play the role of loyal sidekick and instead allowing her disgraced husband to suffer the slings and arrows he deserves, as he deserves to receive them. Alone. But I applaud her for keeping her heart open to reconciliation should the governor repent and take steps down the path of fidelity and honor, the path to which he pledged himself with Jenny, before G-d, their family and their friends. Dissolving a marriage should never be taken lightly, especially when young children are involved. I pray that the governor takes the path his wife has blazed for them both. What a remarkable woman, this Jenny Sanford.
Predictably, the pointy knives of partisanship were unsheathed at the very moment Governor Sanford began his rambling press conference to announce to South Carolina and the entire nation his marital infidelity. We heard words like "values" and "morals" and "standards" and "religious right" and "hypocrisy." The Democrat partisans said "See! Those right-wingers and their religious values nonsense. How dare they lecture us about morals and values?!?! How dare they presume to define marriage when they continue their hypocritical infidelity? Who are they to sneer at us from the lectern of social conservatism when they can't keep their own houses in order? Hypocrites they are!!!"
It's ironic, then, that the party with no standards of conduct should attempt to lecture and brand as hypocrites the party that has standards but, as human beings do, oftentimes fail to live up to them. The party that sanctions the murder of unborn children out of convenience lectures us about notions of "right" or "wrong." The party that preaches tolerance of others will stop at nothing to shout down those whose viewpoints differ from theirs. The party that once promised to bear any burden and pay any price for freedom now stands shoulder to shoulder with dictators and terrorists instead of side by side with freedom fighters and allies. The party who claims to stand for "the little guy" pushes schemes of taxation that cripple everyone. The party who claims to be open, honest and transparent rams bills through in the dead of night, before they're even written and before anyone can read them. The party that preaches about ethics and cleanliness in government supports representatives who are found with wads of bribery cash stuffed in their freezers. And, in the vain of Governor Sanford, the party that mocks the marital infidelity of conservative Republicans and demands their resignations once stood by a president who repeatedly defiled the Oval Office with a young intern, and perhaps others.
It isn't the presence of standards and the failure to live up to them that concerns me. That is humanity, the essence of what we call human frailty, or weakness. No, I'm comforted and buoyed by the standards we hold dear as conservatives. They give us bearings. They give us boundaries. They give us something to strive for, something with meaning and conviction to live up to, given to us by the Creator in whose image we were all created. What bothers me is the lack of standards and the hypocritical finger pointing that comes from those who shouldn't even consider throwing stones. Governor Sanford should resign for a myriad of reasons. But the Democrats who seek to gain from Sanford's shame and the embarrassment felt by his family should be reminded of their pleas for tolerance of others. And then for once do us all a favor and shut their mouths.
I continue to pray for the strength of his wife Jenny and their children. I applaud First Lady Sanford for refusing to play the role of loyal sidekick and instead allowing her disgraced husband to suffer the slings and arrows he deserves, as he deserves to receive them. Alone. But I applaud her for keeping her heart open to reconciliation should the governor repent and take steps down the path of fidelity and honor, the path to which he pledged himself with Jenny, before G-d, their family and their friends. Dissolving a marriage should never be taken lightly, especially when young children are involved. I pray that the governor takes the path his wife has blazed for them both. What a remarkable woman, this Jenny Sanford.
Predictably, the pointy knives of partisanship were unsheathed at the very moment Governor Sanford began his rambling press conference to announce to South Carolina and the entire nation his marital infidelity. We heard words like "values" and "morals" and "standards" and "religious right" and "hypocrisy." The Democrat partisans said "See! Those right-wingers and their religious values nonsense. How dare they lecture us about morals and values?!?! How dare they presume to define marriage when they continue their hypocritical infidelity? Who are they to sneer at us from the lectern of social conservatism when they can't keep their own houses in order? Hypocrites they are!!!"
It's ironic, then, that the party with no standards of conduct should attempt to lecture and brand as hypocrites the party that has standards but, as human beings do, oftentimes fail to live up to them. The party that sanctions the murder of unborn children out of convenience lectures us about notions of "right" or "wrong." The party that preaches tolerance of others will stop at nothing to shout down those whose viewpoints differ from theirs. The party that once promised to bear any burden and pay any price for freedom now stands shoulder to shoulder with dictators and terrorists instead of side by side with freedom fighters and allies. The party who claims to stand for "the little guy" pushes schemes of taxation that cripple everyone. The party who claims to be open, honest and transparent rams bills through in the dead of night, before they're even written and before anyone can read them. The party that preaches about ethics and cleanliness in government supports representatives who are found with wads of bribery cash stuffed in their freezers. And, in the vain of Governor Sanford, the party that mocks the marital infidelity of conservative Republicans and demands their resignations once stood by a president who repeatedly defiled the Oval Office with a young intern, and perhaps others.
It isn't the presence of standards and the failure to live up to them that concerns me. That is humanity, the essence of what we call human frailty, or weakness. No, I'm comforted and buoyed by the standards we hold dear as conservatives. They give us bearings. They give us boundaries. They give us something to strive for, something with meaning and conviction to live up to, given to us by the Creator in whose image we were all created. What bothers me is the lack of standards and the hypocritical finger pointing that comes from those who shouldn't even consider throwing stones. Governor Sanford should resign for a myriad of reasons. But the Democrats who seek to gain from Sanford's shame and the embarrassment felt by his family should be reminded of their pleas for tolerance of others. And then for once do us all a favor and shut their mouths.
posted by The Rock | 3:33 PM
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