The Naming of Shysters

I suspect you'll agree with me when I say the scandal that has blown up on all sides of Rod Blaogjevich is bizarre and amazing and depressing almost beyond rational comprehension. Once you've made the mental leap to understand that he was seriously trying to sell a senate seat, it's an easy next step to realize that this guy must have put a price on everything. And when I read about his sad, pathetically delusional conversations about how he hoped to run for president-- it's hard even to know if this guy was living in the same dimension as the rest of us.

As Adlai Stevenson, another Illinois governor who surely had close personal experience with Blagojevich types, once soberly observed (and I'm sure to misquote here, because I'm only remembering what my grandfather told me, and can't find this quote on any of the internets):

The grabby pols wax fat in the land.

They do, indeed, Mr. Governor, they do indeed.

I'd also like to add that I'm sorry to see Jesse Jackson, Jr. has been nailed as Candidate #5. I was very impressed with him when I saw him at the Convention, and I thought him savvy enough, smart enough, and honest enough to avoid this. It's of course too early to indict him, and I hope he comes out of all this looking better than he does now, but it sure doesn't look good.

Last, and perhaps most importantly, I'd like to make the case for renaming Blagojevich in the popular media. Understandably, everyone has quickly taken to calling him Blago, which has a nice onomatopoaeic quality to it, considering his moral standing. I, however, am pushing for a more descriptive and, I would argue, more literary moniker: "Crooked Rod." And that's all I have to say about that.