Half the Battle: Religion of politics

By: Joe Cunningham

Posted: 2/3/10

I've been debating for a while now whether or not to buy "The Politician," the book based on the hilarious shenanigans of John Edwards.

Andrew Young, former aide to Edwards, wrote this wonderful piece of literature detailing the Edward's scandalous affair with Rielle Hunter (including the child Edwards fathered during the affair).

Young was an incredibly loyal aide.

He apparently didn't even blink when Edwards asked him to claim fatherhood over his illegitimate child. And his wife was cool with it, too!

I can't imagine sitting in the drive-thru line at Popeye's with my fiancée and saying, "Oh, by the way, honey, I'm going to be telling America I had a child with my boss' mistress," and her being OK with that. In fact, I'll probably lose my life right then and there. Where is the line between loyalty and morality?

At what point do you say, "Look… Mr. Edwards… you're a cool guy and all, and I'm glad to have you as my boss, but... I mean, claim your child? Seriously? This is my two weeks' notice."

At what point does your common sense tell you that things have gone too far?

The absolute best part of this is that people make these kind of scandals out to be a political or belief issue.

It's the Right or the Left that only do this. And that's just wrong. Both sides are up to their necks in their sins.

Edwards, of the Democratic party, is just as guilty as South Carolina governor Mark Sanford, a Republican.

Sanford's wife also has a book coming out, detailing her feelings when she found out about the affair Sanford and his Argentinean mistress were having.

Hell hath no fury, am I right?

What is it about power that takes people who seem to have decent character and twist them into the pigs we see chanting their religion of politics every day? It's mind-boggling, to say the least.

I suppose I'm entirely too exposed to the happenings in Washington, but that (and attention deficit disorder) are the price we pay for 24-hour news services.

It's a constant barrage of information I think we, as a people, were a lot better off without.

Oh, and if there is one person who should write a book, it's Mark Foley. I bet that would be a real page-turner.