overease

So, it's pleasing to see the Republican leadership in trouble, but I have to say KB is right about the extent to which this is stoking homophobia. I really, really, really wish people on "our" side would refrain from calling Foley a pervert or pedophile. It's not perverted or pedophilic for an adult to be attracted to sixteen-year-olds, though there are certainly questions to be raised about how to deal with such attraction. Were it not for the homophobia of his party and much of their constituency -- and of society in general -- Mark Foley would have been free to meet as many young-looking 18-year-olds who are not his employees as he wanted. Sixteen is the age of consent in DC and many other places -- ironically it's only eighteen in cyberspace because of the bill Foley himself helped write. The real problem here is abuse of power, compounded by the somewhat creepy way in which he sort of impersonated a teenager in his own messaging.

More importantly, though, I want to mention that I haven't blogged about the way in which the U.S. Constitution was just trashed by Congress, even though it's a much bigger issue. Because I am just speechless with rage and sadness. I guess I keep hoping the Foley incident will pay them back for that, but it's cold comfort that sex is the only thing that seems capable of bringing these bastards down.