Todd Akin

Politicians across the world must be psychically connected by a force-field that compels them to speak or act in unison without thinking, a sort of ethernet of stupidity. It doesn’t matter what country you’re in, whatever your political bent, when a peer puts his foot in it, the comradeship of your profession will compel you to behave likewise. Perhaps you’re hoping to lift the pressure off a colleague, or maybe your narcissism has inflamed your jealousy in that same colleague’s grabbing of the spotlight.But sometimes it’s just a gift from above for bloggers suffering a little writer’s block.

Within 72 hours of each other a politician in the US and a peer (should that really be “peer?” – how esteemed are these people in what they do?) in the UK, both spewed forth their self-important opinions on of all things, rape. Why on earth male politicians would decide to share their “informed” opinions on an issue that is ultimately beyond their comprehension seems beyond common sense but hubris is as hubris does.

Todd Akin, a congressman from Missouri was busy staking out his position on abortion when he slid uncontrollably down a moral cul-de-sac with the phrase “legitimate rape.” The Voice is still not sure exactly what he meant, but the instant media uproar immediately drowned out what would have been the painful but in a perverse way entertaining, attempt to explain himself. The car crash moment of a politician verbally making a fool of himself is surpassed only by the ludicrous attempts to explain himself, accompanied by the insincerity of his apology and more often than not, his long-suffering wife and family.

Remember Idaho Senator Larry Craig? Who after being arrested by airport police for “lewd conduct” came out with that whopper “I have a wide stance” as means of explanation for allegedly soliciting sex from an undercover police officer in a public toilet. He also made very clear that he “is not gay, and was not gay” as if that alone were a strain of the bubonic plague. His wife had the good sense to wear sunglasses at the press conference.

Akin’s Republican Party leadership have very quickly put as much distance between themselves and the Congressman, publically asking him to quit his re-election race. They know a lead balloon without having to drop it on their foot – Akin, who is pledging to ride out the firestorm, apparently does not have that sensibility, seemingly confusing said balloon for the first snowflake of winter.

Meanwhile across the Atlantic, Member of Parliament George Galloway was proving that the separation between mouth and brain afflicts all ends of the political spectrum. Galloway has some name-recognition for being Tony Blair’s most vocal critic during the Iraq War and now represents the Respect Party. The party espouses a variety of socialist tenets in its manifesto and their name itself is an acronym for, among other things, respect and equality.

Unfortunately Galloway seems to have forgotten the values his party espouses. He’s waded into the Julian Assange extradition affair by claiming that the Wikileaks founder shouldn’t be accused of rape, merely poor sexual etiquette.

When the eye-rolling by the more blase amongst us has stopped, what’s left is a frightening commentary on apparent middle-age male thinking, and a disturbing reflection on the intelligence and attitudes of those who are supposed to be responsible for governing nations.

Politics stopped being about making sense a long time ago; instead the requirement seems only the ability to make noise. Those in power who see fit to bare to the world their own prejudices and stupidity end up diminishing themselves (we don’t care), and damaging what’s left of the process that they were elected to work in (we should care). If a film star (Mel Gibson) is deemed by a segment of the public to espouse racist views, his career hits the skids. Yet politicians seem to escape such invalidation when their remarks are no less abhorrent.

The upcoming election-season in one of the world’s remaining superpowers promises to be both noxious and vapid at a time when the country, if not the world, really needs more.

It’s off to a flying start.