I’m sympathizing with Fred Thompson today, who is evidently having gumshoes snoop around into his past in Nashville. Now I don’t know diddley about Fred’s personal life, other than he’s had three wives (who hasn’t?), but I suspect there’s got to be something nasty there. He’s a human being.
As someone who once upon a time wrote a few private dick novels, I should have some advice for Thompson, but I don’t. We just live in an era of no secrets. The idea of a private life is over. And running for President – or doing anything public for that matter – makes it worse.
But what’s fascinating in all this is that, for all our information, you rarely learn the real truth about anyone. When you finally or accidentally meet someone about whom you’ve been reading this endless stream of rumors, facts and what-not, you end up encountering something totally different. Again: a human being (with all his/her attendant pluses and minuses – many of them surprisingly lovable.)
It’s a strange Google word we live in.
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4 Comments
1. James E. Griffin:When I was a political consultant – which I will be again – the advice to clients was that we could fix damn near anything, as long as I knew about it ahead of time.
In general, as a politician, you say what you mean, and you mean what you say. This has the added bonus of driving your opponents, and the media, stark raving bonkers. Up a wall, across the ceiling, and down another wall upside down! The folks I help get elected rarely deviate from this, and when they do, it’s generally regretted.
In the words of Ronald Reagan, you tell the truth, because then you don’t have to remember which story you told to whom.
In my personal life, I accept my friends for what they are, not for what I’d wish them to be. I do nopt wish to hear someone else tell nasty stories about my friends, and folks in general do not tell stories around me, because it’s known I’ll not tolerate it. I’ll go find the victim and say “So and so said the following about you, do you know why they’d do that?” Then I go to the folks the gossiper was talking to and inform them all of what I’ve found.
Hence, I’m generally the person asked to make peace between conflicting persons. it’s called an honest broker.
It’s how I’ve lasted around national level politics, as an advisor, for about 30 years.
May 1, 2007 - 10:06 am 2. Lem:Thanks for reminding me to vote for him (again) at PJ’s.
I see he is ahead. He would beat Hillary and Obama sitting down.
May 1, 2007 - 12:15 pm 3. David:I suspect they are looking for less than up front land deals. Political spies are human crap.
May 1, 2007 - 1:02 pm 4. srlucado:The truth of the matter is that the truth doesn’t matter.
It’s just too easy to condemn with speculation; “Questions remain about the former Senator’s links to Martian prostitutes”.
And even simple facts aren’t simple.
I have an ex-girlfriend who’s repeatedly threatened to kill me; if I were to run for office, someone could easily dig her up and learn all sorts of terrible things about me. Would the fact that she’s a manic-depressive subject to hallucinations matter? Not once the dirt had been dished.
May 2, 2007 - 7:40 am