In a world with little or no personal accountability, it should come as no surprise to see Florida Congressman Mark Foley blame his sending sexually explicit e-mails to underage pages on the effects of alcohol. And, following in the politically-correct footsteps of such other recent bad boys as Mel Gibson and Rep. Patrick Kennedy, Foley immediately checked himself into a rehabilitation clinic for "treatment of alcoholism and related behavioral problems."
As we now know, Foley was one of the most active advocates in the battle against Internet predators who use the web to meet and engage in sexual activities with underage kids. So, while Foley talked the talk in public, he most assuredly did not walk the walk in his personal life.
But, hey, it wasn’t his fault. Just like it doesn’t seem to be anyone’s fault for anything anymore. Foley, like every other "victim," blames someone or something else for his actions. In Foley’s case, it was the demon rum that made him send those provocative e-mails to pages. And, now he’s being "responsible" by seeking professional help. Yeah, right.
Gimme a break. Clinics have become the new surrogate for personal responsibility and accountability. If anything, Foley should stand up, admit the mistake and offer to go on a speaking tour to high schools and colleges nationwide, warning our kids about the dangers of e-mail. Any and all money he’d make on the tour would be donated to some clearinghouse for counseling underage victims of this horrific crime.
Instead, Foley will disappear inside the walls of some high-class clinic, wait for the heat to die down and then re-emerge to pursue some sort of lucrative business career. He’ll probably also pen his personal memoirs for a cool "mill" or two.
It’s time our leaders and role models stop blaming artificial substances for their actions and, instead, step up to the plate and beginning admitting fault. If memory serves correctly, admitting fault is the first step towards recovery.
Tip of RepMan’s hat to Gene Colter for his thoughts.
Now Foley says he was molested as a child – yeah, right… just as every homeless person claims to have HIV and no family. So he has two shields: the demon drink and those pesky priests.
I say Foley gets chopped to bits and fed to dogs.
Valid point, Ludicris. But, a “reformed” criminal can carry tremendous weight and impact with target audiences. So, I agree with your initial point. Let’s lock Foley away, have him serve his time and learn his lesson. Then, hopefully reformed and perhaps re-born, former Rep. Foley could embark on his speaking tour. Make sense?
While I agree with the basic premise of your blog about Foley, I don’t think this guy should be doing a school tour to lecture students about the dangers of Internet predators. If anything, he should be kept as far away as possible from underage children until he can get the help he needs.
Like anyone else trying to solicit sex from a minor over the Internet, he should be prosecuted and sent to prison if he’s found guilty. Once he serves his time, then he can consider going on the road to warn teens about the dangers of online predators.
Until then, I say we keep him far away from more potential victims.