The Panderers
To pander is:
1. To act as a go-between or liaison in sexual intrigues; function as a procurer.
2. To cater to the lower tastes and desires of others or exploit their weaknesses.
I look around and what do I see? Panderers– in the second definition sense – masquerading as leaders, movers and shakers, role models. I ask, why is this so? Regrettably, answering my question opens the portals of the Realm of Cynicism.
Not a day goes by without evidence of public pandering. I’d like to think that people are smart enough to see through the charade, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Recent examples:
Pat Robertson supports Rudy Giuliani for President. (Hard to tell who is the panderer and who the panderee).
Sarkozy of France sucks up to America.
Mitt Romney disavows his previous positions to appeal to those who won’t like him anyway.
The Democrats in Congress emulate Romney and run away from issues that would put them at odds with those who don’t like them anyway – and compromise their integrity in the process.
Hillary Clinton does her daily waffle on _____ (you choose the issue.)
The other Dems stumble all over themselves trying to stop Hillary’s momentum.
Yahoo betrays its principles trying to please China.
The Pope plays patty cake with the Saudis.
Jon Stewart makes nice with Lynn Cheney and others of her ilk. That’s not being polite, it’s pandering.
Then there are those who act tough, championing some cause (or themselves), but who are really panderers – like Lou Dobbs, Bill O’Reilly, George Bush, Barry Bonds, Clarence Thomas, Dianne Feinstein, Kurt Schilling, Alan Dershowitz, Vladimir Putin, Pervez Musharraf, Kobe Bryant, etc. etc. ad nauseum.
I know there are stand-up people in this world, but they don’t get much attention. So here’s the game I’m creating for myself. I’m going to focus on noticing authentic heroes rather than panderers. That will be a challenge. It’s easier to see what’s wrong and criticize. It’s easier to be cynical. There’s only one problem. It may be easier, but it doesn’t help.
To be continued . . .
1. To act as a go-between or liaison in sexual intrigues; function as a procurer.
2. To cater to the lower tastes and desires of others or exploit their weaknesses.
I look around and what do I see? Panderers– in the second definition sense – masquerading as leaders, movers and shakers, role models. I ask, why is this so? Regrettably, answering my question opens the portals of the Realm of Cynicism.
Not a day goes by without evidence of public pandering. I’d like to think that people are smart enough to see through the charade, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Recent examples:
Pat Robertson supports Rudy Giuliani for President. (Hard to tell who is the panderer and who the panderee).
Sarkozy of France sucks up to America.
Mitt Romney disavows his previous positions to appeal to those who won’t like him anyway.
The Democrats in Congress emulate Romney and run away from issues that would put them at odds with those who don’t like them anyway – and compromise their integrity in the process.
Hillary Clinton does her daily waffle on _____ (you choose the issue.)
The other Dems stumble all over themselves trying to stop Hillary’s momentum.
Yahoo betrays its principles trying to please China.
The Pope plays patty cake with the Saudis.
Jon Stewart makes nice with Lynn Cheney and others of her ilk. That’s not being polite, it’s pandering.
Then there are those who act tough, championing some cause (or themselves), but who are really panderers – like Lou Dobbs, Bill O’Reilly, George Bush, Barry Bonds, Clarence Thomas, Dianne Feinstein, Kurt Schilling, Alan Dershowitz, Vladimir Putin, Pervez Musharraf, Kobe Bryant, etc. etc. ad nauseum.
I know there are stand-up people in this world, but they don’t get much attention. So here’s the game I’m creating for myself. I’m going to focus on noticing authentic heroes rather than panderers. That will be a challenge. It’s easier to see what’s wrong and criticize. It’s easier to be cynical. There’s only one problem. It may be easier, but it doesn’t help.
To be continued . . .
posted by Dan at 2:37 PM
1 Comments:
I can't wait to see who you notice...and to read your thoughts.
I am a firm believer that cynicism is its own form of pandering -- to the knee jerk assumption that things just won't change, to the belief that people are predictable and uniformly self-serving, and to the decision that life is generally underwhelming in most ways.
So, I believe that looking for alternatives will create those alternatives in your field of vision.
Post a Comment
<< Home