This is the way?I see it and you can?cite me for idiocy if i’m wrong . . . it happens more than?I would like to admit . . . but? I don’t think this is one of those cases.?

Starts like this.? Where do people that do wrong to society go?? Behind bars.? Where do people that are liars, cheaters, and thiefs go?? Behind bars.? Well, mostly anyway.? First I guess someone has to catch them and they have to be found guilty and sentenced.??? Those kind of bars.

Few people actually confess and end up behind bars.? They all fight it hard first.? But our leaders (political, economic and even religious)?? They can confess and apologize and get off “Scott free’ (and by the way?I hate that overused and inaccurate term . . . ‘cuz the only thing this Scott every got for free was the freakin’ FLU!)

What about our elected and appointed officials?? They fess up and keep on truckin’.? Oh, mommy, please make the pain go away.? And that ticks me off royally.?

?Integrity–we are short on that in our leaders just like we are short on bars for them (the Leninist theory — proved by Stalin by the way — that the rich and powerful are never punished).????I saw something on?TV that really got me thinking about this–the Barris (now sadly Senator) scandal hitting all the channels now.?? How in the &%#$ do we keep electing people and allowing?them to ’serve’ us? in such blatantly immoral ways ?? Boy do our leaders give a whole?new meaning to ’serve’ –? dang it but we do?keep electing the knuckleheads?!?

We need leaders and beauracrats with integrity first and foremost.? Without it you shouldn’t even be allowed to run, let alone serve.? And of course NEVER get appointed (ouch to you Secretary Geithner)

this Barris thing in Illinois is sickening to me.? Did he really lie to get the Senate to seat him?? Sounds like it.? That makes him right in the same corner of the dark painted room as his apparently good friend Blogojevichinhiemer.? I hate it.?Don’t you?

If we don’t start putting some of these social ‘evildoers’ in prison for a good long time –?well, then the pain just ain’t gonna go away and?I guess we will deserve it!? But, we really do deserve better and there are about 270 million folk out there that could do a better job (the implication is that only about 10% of us are bad — how do they all get elected, appointed or moved into ceo jobs?????).?

Why do we let them get away with dishonesty of any kind? This isn’t baseball we can’t, shouldn’t and hopefullywon’t give them any more than one strike.

Think back on the last couple of years — all the politicians, bishops, CEOs and other leaders who let us down.?

It is basic stuff really and pretty simple to grasp.? We have a pretty good indicator anyway.? Immorality and dishonesty pop up every day.?

Take the basic building block of our Christian-Judeo morality.? Marriage.

It is the most basic sign of honesty and integrity in our society.?

The marriage contract.? The marriage oath.?

It is a religious, social and personal contract of the highest order and deserves to be our highest?measure of a man or woman’s basic integrity.?

How many politicians have confessed to affairs, indiscretions, and infidelities?that?are completely contrary to the marriage contract they entered into?? The ‘oath’ the took with their ‘mate’?

Bunches of them.? Just listen?to the news almost any day of the week.?

Jeez, louise these guys are all over!!? We got your Presidents, your Senators, your Congressmen, your officials, your Governors, your Mayors . . .? and they all act like it is just a simple little mistake that should be forgiven.? They want two or even three strikes.? Don’t give it to them anymore.? They want us to be soooo understanding of their faults and dishonesty and pledge new fidelity and honor.??We buy that crap for crying out loud!? When was the last time you were dishonest and got caught and didn’t pay a steep price or any price at all?

Should they (the rich, famous, powerful) escape the consequences of their immoral actions?

Well, not just no but HECK NO!!?

Okay, forgiven maybe, but forgotten??? No way hosay.

If you can’t live up to the marriage contract and be honest in the most important relationship in your life then how can anyone expect you to live up to simple contracts like your oath of office?? Your obligation to those who elected you?? Your obligation to your shareholders??? You getting this yet.? If someone can’t be honest with their legally married partner how can they be honest with the middleclass voter in Tenumchaw, Iowa.? How can a cheating?CEO be expected to be honest with his shareholders, the SEC, the FDIC, the IRS????

We just don’t?like lying, cheating, fraud, embezzlement, assault, battery, murder and all those immoral and socially wrong acts.? But violating the marriage oath?? It is AT LEAST as bad and yet somehow it gets?thrown down to the bottom of the pile (at least for our leaders) with speeding or driving while on the cell phone.? Its gotta be worse than driving while drinking (one of my son’s once told me I shouldn’t?drive while drinking dr. pepper — but that was wrong on so many levels since you should be allowed to drink dr. pepper and eat a whopper at any time and place).

It just ain’t right for our leaders . . . elected or any other kind to be dishonest.?

We need some basic levels of trust, ethics, and integrity.? Where does it start?? Where do we draw the line?

Divorce — that ought to raise some serious questions but not terminal ones.? A few speeding tickets?? Hummm???? But, infidelity?? Shucks, that has got to disqualify anyone at anytime from being a leader for a good long time.?

And it is you and?I that are letting these kind of acts slip on by.? Why?? Because many of us slip up as well?? Fine.? But we have to start over if we do–you know, prove oursleves all over.?

At least we should?force our leaders to do the same thing.? Don’t let ‘em get entrenched regardless of?what they do or how good they think they are — except for that one little mistake (its not little stupid–its like robbing a bank (only worse to those involved).

So, this is the way it is or should be.?

Term limits.? I have said plenty on that.?

Integrity.? Still haven’t said enough.?

Just?don’t vote for anyone that has admitted to breaking ANY kind of contract (especially one before God and man)? and don’t let anyone like that be in any leadership position.?

Not today, not tomorrow and not next year.?

Five years afterward a ’slip’ ?if they are?new shining examples then maybe we can think about it . . . but not a day sooner.

Integrity.? The # 1 thing for a leader to have.?

Blogojevich? Burris? Edwards? Clinton? (whoops we got the 5 year rule going there and?I actually think he is doing?pretty good right now?so scratch Clinton).?

Dishonest leaders?? Throw them out of office and behind bars.? Breaking a any contract is immoral and antisocial.? expect something bad to happen if you break a contract.?

Next time you hear a leader admit to infidelity tell them they are gone.? If they break a tax law? They are gone?? Hire illegal aliens?? Gone.? Pass in a no passing zone??Yepp.

Integrity vs. bars??

Give them the choice.? We can do it americans.? Lets get together and make this happen.

I can only hope.

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thanks to flickr’s jan1020?for the photo

Corporations, and by extension their executives and ceo’s, just got carried away (Even they mostly admit that).? They saw too many opportunities for lining their own pockets instead of paying attention to what they were really being paid to do–i.e. increase value for their shareholders and maintain jobs for their employees.? They cared more about their own future than that of those they should have been reporting to.?

Now you can say that the treasury dept., and the FDIC, and the?S.E.C. and any number of other government agencies dropped the ball, but the fact is that no amount of economicregulation is going to stop creative and greedy people from doing what they do.? Albeit, an honest and dedicated government couldn’t hurt it is really up to those that make decisions.

Obama got it right when he said?that? the $18 billion bonuses paid to financial executives in 2007 was shameful.? But it was a whole lot more too, it was at least immoral and it might have been illegal (don’t they have an absolute fiduciary duty to shareholders?).?

Who is going to watch the chickens if all the farmer’s dogs are playing with the wolves?

We are really in one heck of a mess in this country today.? Every week brings further information about obscene losses?from banks and financial institutions and revelations about more greed from executives.?

Where does it end?? Can we bail out these ‘evil-doers’ every time another bucket load of losses?is thrown at us?? Don’t think so.?

Some (and probably a bunch) of the corporations run by ‘evil-doers’ are just going to have to fail.? Some shareholders (who have their own culpability, especially since the lion’s share of them … don’t you like the metaphor?…are mutual funds and institutional investors who managed ‘our’ money and should have been paying more attention) are just going to have to pay the ultimate price.?

Let ‘em lose everything.?? Seems that here again, Adam Smith was right.? Let the market adjust as needed (sorry John Meynard Keynes).?

So what happens???A few big banks fail (the government picks our/your losses up to $500,000) and all the real estate that would hit the market at heavily discounted prices would sure help home sales for first time buyers!

It’s the leaders that caused this.? The ceo’s have to accept the blame . . . along with their top tier of executives.

What does it take to get good leaders?? Education? Sure.? Experience? Probably.? Selfish drive?? Heck no!!?? It takes integrity–moral strength.

We need men and women of integrity and courage in every executive office of every corporation in the land.? Washington D.C.?too.? Sounds biblical, but it would work,?I promise you.?

Lincoln had it right.? In his 1st inaugural address he said ” intelligence, patriotism, Christianity, and a firm reliance on Him, who had never yet forsaken this favored land, are still competent to adjust, in the best way, all our present difficulty.”?

That goes even more today than it did in 1861.

Let’s focus on the Christianity part of Lincoln’s address.? But it could just as easily be Judaism or Islam since?the Tanakh and the Q’uran also teach the same lesson ( its just that I’m more familiar with Christianity, though I’ve studied the others too).? The lesson there is that charity (the Greek word in the original?New?Testament was ‘agape’ which is really cool and??means powerful love for others) is paramount.? We all, particularly our leaders, have to think of others? first.?? Stop being selfish (that goes for you and?me too)?everything else will come along with that.?

Charity breeds self-respect and success, as well as intelligence, patriotism and a firm reliance on ‘Him who has never forsaken this favored land.’? Man, that lincoln was a cool guy, they even named some logs for him? (and I used to make some great cabins with them as a kid).

Kick out any leader who lacks charity.? Kick out any leader who is greedy.? Do it with our votes.? For politicians or for ceo’s.? none of them can be where they are with out a clear vote from the electorate or the shareholders.

Take control!

Charity vs greed.? The choice is easy.

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thanks to??maha-online? for the flickr photo.