ProActivist.com

Bill Clinton is a low-down dirty dog. No questions, end of debate.

Besides his extra-curricular activities, he is an utter disappointment for progressives. He has been a spineless invertebrate with more resemblance to a banana slug than the man who rescued us from twelve years of Republican hate and greed. We still don’t have universal healthcare. We still have discrimination against gays and lesbians. We still send missiles flying into Third World countries in order to show the world who’s the biggest bully on the block. For all appearances, we might as well have Bob Dole in office. At least we would have an opponent who would mobilize the citizens into action instead of everyone sitting on their duff waiting for Billy to save us.

Of course, I am ignoring what many perceive as the ultimate in Clinton’s misbehavior: his sex life. The man must have an addiction. Or maybe he’s just the stereotypical male who just can’t think with his big head. However, for all the cries for Bill’s impeachment, for all the comments about his immorality, I cannot agree with those who claim that our country is going down the tubes into hell because of the President’s actions.

As I write this it has been a week since the Starr Report was released to the public. We have had complete access to details and imagery of a man’s infidelity. Frankly, I didn’t need to know all this information. How ironic that the same Congress-people arguing for censorship on the internet, against the “immoral” marriage of gays and lesbians, and for the cutting of funds to the poor and the arts, actually advocated the publicizing of these sordid events. Why, any teenager can now find out the intimate details of how a couple can whack off together without actually having sexual intercourse. (On second thought, as former Surgeon General Elders argued, maybe that is a good idea.)

While Clinton’s actions are certainly disrespectful to his wife, the American people, and even the very office he holds, what he did just doesn’t rank that high on the scale of immorality.

Every time I hear some so-called religious “moral” leader proclaim on TV that what Clinton has done is an abomination I am forced to hold back my rage. I find myself floating backwards into time as I remember my days at a private Christian academy. Using a swear word at this school or defying a teacher’s authority could result in a call to your parents or, even worse if you were a male, having your body slammed into a locker by a man we unaffectionately referred to as “Barracuva.” Ah yes, you must be asking, “What does this have to with Clinton and Lewinsky?” Hold on a sec and I’ll explain. This school had a rigid social and economic class division: The doctor’s and business owner’s kids vs. the poor kids, the effeminate males, the overweight girls, or whatever “abnormal” segment of society you happened to represent. While swearing or challenging authority could land you in deep doo-doo, a richer student beating the crap out of a poorer one usually resulted in, at worst, a verbal reprimand. More typically, there was no punishment at all. In fact, there was an inverse reaction: The greater the disparity in social status between victim and perpetrator, the more likely the school wouldn’t respond to the crime. American society hasn’t changed.

While Presidents Ronald Reagan and George Bush committed every illegal and immoral act imaginable, usually against Third World countries, the American public was mostly silent. We didn’t see it, it wasn’t usually done against Americans (at least not against straight white males), so nothing mattered. Nobody cared about the South American death squads armed by our own government. No one cared about an entire Reagan/Carter election being manipulated so that the Iranian held hostages would be released after the votes were cast. Indeed, we even called Reagan the “great communicator.” He is still beloved to this day and is depicted in nauseating frequency as the ideal president. As for Bush, he led us into a war that was orchestrated by a public relations firm and lied to the public every step of the way. He took the deaths of Iraqi civilians and made it into a propaganda tool for American pride. Tie the yellow ribbon, raise the flag, salute, and thank God you’re a citizen of the most “moral” nation on earth.

Unfortunately, the world will have to witness even more of this morality circus ride. Well, I want to get off this damn ferris wheel, thank you very much. I’m tired of hearing about this great immorality of Clinton’s. The people spouting this garbage have lost all sense of true ethics. These are the same people who call dead peasants in other nations “collateral damage.” Since when are American business interests more important than the lives of innocent civilians? How ironic that at this very moment Phillip Berrigan, the former Catholic priest and famous Anti-Vietnam War activist, currently sits in jail for protesting these crimes against humanity.

Clinton is no hero, not even to most liberals. And he’s never claimed to be. But let’s get this straight right now, no exceptions. Physically harming other human beings is a far greater crime than messin’ around with someone other than your wife and then lyin’ about it. Whether it’s some rich brat at a private school beating the crap out of a welfare kid or a President arming death squads in South America, it’s the same deal. The most immoral act you can commit is to physically hurt or kill another human being. If only the self righteous, shouting and praying citizens of America who claim to be moral leaders could figure that out.

America will become a moral society when Clinton is instead confronted for the bombing of Sudan and for his support of the genocidal sanctions against Iraqi civilians. Only when someone like Phillip Berrigan isn’t imprisoned for being a true moral leader and people like Reagan and Bush are the ones in jail will I no longer live in a country full of hypocrites.

So this is a news flash for those individuals with upside down moral judgements: Sorry Mr. Gingrich, sorry right wing wacko Christian Coalition, the actions by Reagan and Bush were ten times more immoral than Billy Boy’s inability to keep the fireman in the station house. Reagan and Bush deserve to be in jail for life for the murder of innocent civilians all over the world. The blood of thousands is on their hands.        

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