Help for What?

Rep. Anthony Weiner is apparently seeking a leave of absence from Congress to receive treatment for his...what exactly?

He's not leaving because he's sick. He's leaving because he is an embarrassment to the Democrats at a time when the campaign for the White House is heating up. End of story.

The hypocrisy in this culture is outrageous!

On the one hand we deplore a-societal behaviors. Gambling, prostitution, drug use, philandering, lying, cheating and stealing.

But on the other hand we glamorize it. People flock to the casinos. Pornography is a multi-billion dollar growth industry. Drugs and, especially alcohol, are as much a part of the national culture as the flag and apple pie.

Wall Street and much of the corporate sector is built on lying, cheating and stealing. Have you filled up your gas tank recently? Is your house worth half of what you paid for it? How many Mulligans did you take last round?

Eliot Spitzer became famous, and New York's Governor, based, in part, by his prosecutions of vice-related crimes. He was caught in a brothel, drummed out of office and then...Presto! He's a popular TV host and pundit.

Martha Stewart was convicted of insider trading, did time and then...Presto! She's got her multi-million dollar business back.

Latrell Sprewell nearly choked the life out of his coach, was "reprimanded" and...Presto! He was rewarded with a continuing lucrative pro career and the accolades of fans.

And on and on.

Anthony Weiner used social networking to be...ah...social. He sent provocative pictures to women other than his wife. Bad boy!

Kim Kardashian and countless other nearly naked women have made careers out of displaying their abundance on the public stage. From Rosalind Russell to Marilyn Monroe to Raquel Welch to Pamela Anderson to Anna Nicole Smith to Paris Hilton we have been treated to the cleavage and legs and sexual fantasy that these women and so many others provided.

Their bodies were, and are, worth a fortune to the people who profit from relationships with these "celebrities", let alone the women themselves.

And we have "The World Series of Poker"

And Jello-Shots.

We decrie the base nature of these behaviors yet, at the same time, we glorify them.

We are full of crap as a society.

We are incapable of telling the truth, either to ourselves or to others.

Politicians stock-in-trade is their polished ability to lie to everyone in order to get and stay elected. And we call them heroes? They are the worst of the worst.

So another person got nabbed with his pants down. And Weiner will probably resign over this mess. But so what? The Democrats will recover. But they will always have Clinton, The Kennedys and Rangel.

But the Republicans should be careful about yelling too loudly about him. They own Schwarzenegger, Ensign, and Foley don't forget. And the mother of all scandals, Watergate...and the Iran-Contra Affair...and Alberto Gonzales...and Iraq and WMD...and the financial crisis of '07.

The Hypocritic Oath:

"I will do what I please and lie if caught and then be contrite, after the fact. I will do no harm...to myself...only to others and I will negotiate a sweet deal for endorsements and reality shows only after my prison sentence is over."