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| A Lesson in the Life of |
you will do anything not to lose your grip. You might break every
ethical rule that you promised to keep. You might even become
a person that old friends cease to recognize. So is the story of
ex-speaker Jim Black. An optometrist by profession, yet he was
blind to his own weaknesses which began with greed.
Political falls from grace seems to be happening more and
more frequently.
Politicians need millions of dollars to run for office, and
hundreds of millions if you want to live in the White House for
four years.
Not everyone who aspires to fill an office has the wealth of Bill
Gates so where does all that money come from? Far too often
it comes from people who want something from the
government and are willing to pay a lot of money to get it.
That means more and more of a demand to raise money and
then more money. With this comes the temptation to do
something wrong. Before you know it, a man may sell his soul
to the people who supply him with their cash. Cash can pay for
votes of a legislative floor and it can get businessmen the
contracts they desire.
On Wednesday former representative Michael Decker told SBI
agents he received $46,000 in checks and 12,000 in cash from
Black and a job for his son in order to get him to switch parties
and keep Black in power. This a guy that was so desperate to
hold on to his place in the world that he made dirty deals in front
of dirty toilets. He was so headstrong for power that he
continued to seek a fifth term as his world was slowly
crumbling around him.
A lot of Americans would rather notbelieve that such an immoral
system could operate in the company of such well educated
and upright men, these men of high integrity that they send to
office election after election.
It is, in fact, the longevity and seniority of the most immoral
politicians that enable them to thwart the sincere efforts of the
other really good intentioned candidates.
Jim Black was a democrat so this will allow republicans the
opportunity to gloat. They, however, have nothing to stand
righteous about. Delay and Abramoff are testimony to this fact.
The truth of the matter is, when these guys passed around the
money, they were not democrats or republicans- they were just
crooks!
Not only democrats in North Carolina need to deal with political
pollution, all North Carolinians do and so does all of America! A
problem can’t be solved if you don’t admit there is one.
ethical rule that you promised to keep. You might even become
a person that old friends cease to recognize. So is the story of
ex-speaker Jim Black. An optometrist by profession, yet he was
blind to his own weaknesses which began with greed.
Political falls from grace seems to be happening more and
more frequently.
Politicians need millions of dollars to run for office, and
hundreds of millions if you want to live in the White House for
four years.
Not everyone who aspires to fill an office has the wealth of Bill
Gates so where does all that money come from? Far too often
it comes from people who want something from the
government and are willing to pay a lot of money to get it.
That means more and more of a demand to raise money and
then more money. With this comes the temptation to do
something wrong. Before you know it, a man may sell his soul
to the people who supply him with their cash. Cash can pay for
votes of a legislative floor and it can get businessmen the
contracts they desire.
On Wednesday former representative Michael Decker told SBI
agents he received $46,000 in checks and 12,000 in cash from
Black and a job for his son in order to get him to switch parties
and keep Black in power. This a guy that was so desperate to
hold on to his place in the world that he made dirty deals in front
of dirty toilets. He was so headstrong for power that he
continued to seek a fifth term as his world was slowly
crumbling around him.
A lot of Americans would rather notbelieve that such an immoral
system could operate in the company of such well educated
and upright men, these men of high integrity that they send to
office election after election.
It is, in fact, the longevity and seniority of the most immoral
politicians that enable them to thwart the sincere efforts of the
other really good intentioned candidates.
Jim Black was a democrat so this will allow republicans the
opportunity to gloat. They, however, have nothing to stand
righteous about. Delay and Abramoff are testimony to this fact.
The truth of the matter is, when these guys passed around the
money, they were not democrats or republicans- they were just
crooks!
Not only democrats in North Carolina need to deal with political
pollution, all North Carolinians do and so does all of America! A
problem can’t be solved if you don’t admit there is one.
Jim Black
