Posted:Thu Mar 13, 2008 2:00 AM CST
Great Men Are Seldom Good Men
The first time I heard that quote, I remember having to pause a few moments before I could really digest it's meaning. I thought back on what history considered to be truly great men and I would certainly have to agree that, due to some of the decisions they made, they were hardly going to be remembered as good men. The resignation of Gov. Elliot Spitzer yesterday reminded me of that very thing. While he was detested by most corporate types, he all too frequently was reveared by the common man because of his willingness to take on the giants of industry and hold them accountable for a great many misdeeds. He certainly wasen't right all of the time, but finding somebody that was so bold and so willing to put himself on the line time after time is indeed rare, particularly in this dollar ruled society that we have built.
I look at the mans deeds and compare them to his sins and I wonder if the punishment truly suits the crime. His guilt isn't much further than a former head of state we all knew and watched drag the nation through many painful months, but with Elliot that was something different, something more. Perhaps it was the fact that he didn't try to lie or try to put the blame on somebody, ANYBODY else but himself. Or maybe it was the fact that he simply stood up and admited what he did, then shocked us by again doing the right thing and resigning. You may not approve of his actions but it's hard to argue with the man's sense of integrity and fair play. He screwed up, got caught, admitted it, and in the end he did the right thing. I find it hard not to like a man that shows such courage, particularly when he has spent the better part of his career fighting against that very thing that lead to his demise.
He says he will never again serve in a public position, but for that I offer my protest. We need more honest politicians and while Elliot's behavior wasen't exactly stellar, he certainly didn't sell out his country or steal from the poor to line his own pockets. He secumed to that all too common sin that a hell of a lot of us fall victum to. I'm not defending his actions, I'm just saying that in a world where we, the citizens of this country, are getting sold out by damn near every political figure, every lawyer, every judge, every person that can stick their hand into our proverbial pocket, here's a guy that, when the chips were down, made the right decision for everybody involved. And when he could have just said goodbye and done a quick exit, stage right .... he put the needs and request of his replacement again, ahead of himself and agreed to stay on through the weekend in order to insure an orderly transfer of power.
He reminds me a bit of the life of Gary Francis Powers. Do you remember him? The U-2 pilot that was shot down over Russia back in the early days of the cold war. He was ridiculed because he broke under torture and told the limited information he had, to his captors. They knew it already but were able to make great political "hay" at our expense. When Powers was returned in a spy swap he disappeared off the radar screen, forever shamed because of that incident. He managed to squeek out a living flying a news/weather helicopter out in California and one day, when the bird went into a catostrophic failure, he could have autorotated into a school yard of kids and saved his own skin; but in those last moments he choose to seal his fate by rolling it over into an empty building. Like Elliot, at the crutial moment when it would have been easier to save his own skin, he sacraficed himself for the greater good. This kind of personal redemption is certainly rare and even more so when it's put on public display.
I can only hope that if I ever find myself in as terrible a situation as what we have witnessed, I'll have the strength and integrity to do that right thing too. That's the kind of personal courage and integrity I wouldn't mind being remembered for ....