Surprised? Not Me!

It’s been quite a week in the headlines. One hardly knows where to start. The Greek Government is about to collapse. The markets reaction is down then up then down and up again. One can hardly keep track. Justin Bieber might be a father. Kim Kardashian breaks a new world record for most lavish wedding and quickest divorce. My new iPhone’s battery has a below par battery life. And then there is my personal favorite, Herman Cain’s supposed issues with sexual harassment in the 90’s. It’s times like this that I am so glad I don’t work for a news channel anymore and have to live with the fact I made money off this stuff.

Now I don’t often smear (ooh! did I use the word smear?) this blog with discussions about our political leaders or would be leaders but sometimes I just can’t help myself. And this is one of those times.

You know what I’m getting to. Herman Cain and the alleged sexual harassment claims.

What surprises me most about this whole thing is that anyone is surprised. This story line is worn.  Politicians of all party persuasion, propping themselves up on camera as holier than thou, church going, family men, claiming to be better than us, when in truth they are as flawed as everyone else. Correction. More flawed. You have to be to live in the delusion that your past is not going to meet your present. Haven’t they heard about the Internet and 24/7 cable news?

Now, these are still “allegations.” But if I were a betting woman I would say there was truth behind it.

Reason #1.  Any woman who has had an extended stay in the corporate world will tell you that sexual harassment and discrimination still existed in the 90’s as much as it did in the “Mad Men” era. The truth is     as much as we don’t want to believe it and as  many will try to convince you otherwise, it still does. The biggest difference from what went on years ago and today is that then it was overt and today it is covert.

Reason #2.  Take a look at what Herman Cain stands for. If it’s anything, this is not a man who respects women’s rights. He doesn’t believe in affirmative action, insisting we are beyond that. He doesn’t think a woman has a right to make decisions involving her body, even if it was life or death. Unless of course, it is his daughter or granddaughter. In that case they can break the new laws he wants to invoke. But only if they have the money to fund it. And if they don’t it’s no one’s fault but their own.

Reason #3. No story happens out of nowhere. We still don’t know all the details, but even if it is only a shred, there is some truth to this.

Reason #4. I’m a big believer it is not always the action itself that is damning, it is how you react. And Herman Cain is reacting as if he has something to hide. His recollection changes from sound bite to sound bite as he points fingers one minute at the “liberal mainstream media”, the next at his buddy, Rick Perry.

The big question is not who leaked the story, it’s what is the story?  And like my novel, the mystery is why is everyone so reluctant to tell it? 


Hint: We are only reluctant when we don’t want the real truth known.

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