Should Clients 1-8 and 10-100 (Albany and Washington power elite) resign?

[Leopolds Ghost]

Poll question: Should Clients 1-8 and 10-100 (Albany and Washington power elite) resign?

[BigDaddy44]

1. Resign from what?

How do you know what they do for a living? Could be business owners, rich old geezers, or anything in between. You're assuming they're all public officials.

[Leopolds Ghost]

2. They are politicians and business leaders of major corporations that control the US economy

They are public figures. Your concern for their well-being is noted.

[BigDaddy44]

11. How do you know?

Do you have a list of who they are and where they are from? And to answer your question, if they are public officials, yes, they need to go. If they work for corporations, then that is a decision for the board of directors and the shareholders. If they are business owners.....well its their business. They should be prosecuted, but its hard to resign from your own business.

[Leopolds Ghost]

14. Why should they be prosecuted for sex and not some other crime? You're not a prosecutor.

Johns don't get prosecuted. They get blackmailed. (and not by the prosecutor either).

In fact that's WHY prosecutors don't go after johns, fer fsck's sake --
they don't want to be used as tools in an urban blackmail/extortion racket
to serve the interests of corrupt interests.

You should know this.

[BigDaddy44]

17. I have no idea what crimes they've committed

Other than soliciting a prostitute. Which is, by the way, a crime. If they've committed a crime, then yes, prosecute them.

But this assumption that they are all public officials is laughable. Its the rare public official (i.e. government employee) who can afford this kind of "service".

[Leopolds Ghost]

20. Your doctrine ("Legalism" has no foundation in American jurisprudence thank god

If we followed your prescription we should lock up all politicians and the
heads of all major corporations. But it wouldn't start, or end, with them
-- and that is the problem.

If Spitzer avoided the draft or smoked pot in the sixties, should he resign?

[BigDaddy44]

25. What the hell are you talking about?

So all politicians and heads of major corporations are criminals?

He's an elected official. He committed a Federal felony (transporting a woman over state lines for the purposes of prostitution). I think he should resign. My personal opinion is he should be prosecuted, but if he isn't, losing the governorship seems like a suitable punishment.

[Leopolds Ghost]

30. You seem to think high-class prostitution is rare

And can be eliminated if we fire or jail every john in America.

I am simply asking for their names to be made public, not for
any of them to lose their jobs.

And yet I am getting this strange push-back from certain folks
such as yourself. Demanding that Dems be held to a different
standard than white-collar criminals on Wall St.

Strange.

[BigDaddy44]

32. Not Dems......

Politicians. PUBLIC officials. There's a difference between a public official (operating in the public interest) and someone in the private sector.

[Leopolds Ghost]

35. I see no difference. They are public figures trading on reputation and character

These billionaires are more powerful than a county-level politician

Thanks for your guys' EXTENSIVE concern about making sure Imus and Spitzer
and not Rush or Vitter resign, though. :eyes:

[Mike03]

40. How do you know who they are?

Please provide a link to some evidence that these are public servants.

If you can do that, I will agree with your premise entirely, that they all should be prosecuted and/or resign.

[tekisui]

3. You are implying that there is a different standard.

[Romulox]

6. Of course there is a different standard for public officials.

This should go without saying.

[tekisui]

9. Is there? Or just for Democratic public officials?

[robinlynne]

5. at 4000 an hour. probably politicians....

[BigDaddy44]

8. Politicians don't make that kind of money

A congressman makes $170K. Thats peanuts in the "Emporers Club" world.

[Leopolds Ghost]

12. Excuse me?

What dream world are you living in?

We're talking Manhattan, Washington and Albany here.

The people who directly regulate Wall Street.

Have you ever met a politician?

[BigDaddy44]

13. Yeah, i've met tons of 'em

Maybe, MAYBE they made that much money in business before they entered politics, but its the exception rather than the rule. Do you honestly think the garden variety public figure can afford $4000 an hour for a hooker???? Politicians and public figures get paid peanuts. The only reason Spitzer could drop this kind of change is because he had a rich Daddy.

[Leopolds Ghost]

16. Funny, that's not how it works in Washington or Albany. County politics, sure.

We're talking millionaires club politics here.

[BigDaddy44]

19. Really?

So government officials get some secret salary we aren't aware of? Yes, some have their own money, but the real money men are the lobbyists, industry officials and lawyers.

[Leopolds Ghost]

21. You must be new or somethin' , so I'll break it to you gently -- yes.

[BigDaddy44]

27. Oh, I feel so silly

Here I was thinking I was having a discussion with someone rational. Now here's your meds.....back to the rubber room with ya ;)

[Leopolds Ghost]

31. Sorry, I had a bout of insanity. I realize now that politicians have no other sources of income

Thanks for helping me see the light. :eyes:

[BigDaddy44]

34. Few have a source of income that allows for $80K+ worth of similar recreation.

[Leopolds Ghost]

36. IOW, only wealthy power elite use these services.

So, all 100 or so of these prominent folks should come clean (as Spitzer did) and then resign. They have destroyed their good name.

[BigDaddy44]

37. Oh really....

Do professional athletes constitute the "wealthy power elite"? Music moguls? Entertainers? I had no idea Charlie Sheen was part of the power elite.

[NightWatcher]

4. if they built their "Mr. Clean" image by prosecuting against the same things they do, then yes

[Leopolds Ghost]

10. What if they publically denounced prostitution and passed laws strengthening the hand of cops?

Or campaigned on a platform of ending immorality in New Orleans by demolishing public housing there?

Or ran a business on Wall Street dedicated to White Collar Crime?

I guess that's not as hypocritical.

[selador]

7. it depends

the career vs. the crime

for example i know several cops who have been caught DUI and 2 who had smoked pot off duty.

none were fired.

otoh, crimes like theft, domestic violence assault etc. are automatic firing offenses.

the question is - is the crime of soliciting (apparently NUMEROUS TIMES) a prostitute WHILE serving as Governor heinous enough such that the governor should resign?

frankly, my off the cuff opinion is - probably.

i really don't have a strong opinion of it.

but there is a huge difference between a CEO, or whatever, and the governor of NY in regards to the PUBLIC TRUST factor.

trying to draw an equivalence isn't useful imo

for example, let's say i'm a kick-ass futures trader for a commodities firm. should i resign because i got caught soliciting a prostitute. ime, most firms would say "who cares"?

spitzer's 'firm" so to speak, is the citizens of NY state.

if it's anybody's decision, it's THEIRS.

i don't know if NY has a recall provision (see: california) but that would be an option for them. a public referendum. or spitzer could resign. certainly reasonable

[Leopolds Ghost]

24. You're saying there's a double standard -- white collar crime is OK, Dem politicians and poor not OK

That's why they targeted Spitzer and failed to release the other
100 politicians' names in recent "escort service" sting operations
(and Wall St flacks failed to call for Vitter's resignation)

[selador]

39. in a sense

i am saying the standard for a person who holds the public trust (governor, etc.) is higher than for some guy who works in the private sector.

as for releasing spitzer's name vs. other escort sting services, my understanding (not complete at this time) is that spitzer was being investigated for felonies (as stupid as they are) to wit, structuring and mann act violations, which might have justified the release.

i haven;t sufficiently researched the disclosure aspects of this case to have formed an opinion

i prefer to research first, then form opinion. there are several people on this board i wish had a similar policy :)

[Sandy2k]

15. Resign from what

What should they resign from?

If private citizens do we become nanny starters?

[Leopolds Ghost]

18. From their job, duh. We already are nanny staters -- asking Spitzer to resign.

Most of these people are influential and wealthy clients. They are men who claim to be of high moral standing and influence over the US economy -- every last one of them.

[Occam Bandage]

22. Since when is demanding our politicians live up to their demands of others "nanny statism?"

[Leopolds Ghost]

26. Then you should offer yourself up for prosecution too.

With such high demands, you either apply those principles fairly
(and demand the other 100 names be made public) or you, yourself,
have no business in public politics.

[Occam Bandage]

28. Next time I find myself committing felonies, sure.

[Leopolds Ghost]

33. Like the Mann Act? ("A Bill to Prevent White Slavery")

Assaulting a police officer (swinging your head against their fist) is a felony during anti-war demonstrations, too.

[Occam Bandage]

38. Sure. If I ever find myself committing a felony, I'll turn myself in for you.

[sendero]

23. Everyone....

.... caught doing the same things Spitzer was doing should have the same legal consequence. That's basic.

[Leopolds Ghost]

29. And what do you think that legal consequence is, or has been for the other names on the list?

Or in general --

when johns, many of them famous or influential,
many of them average DUer types, are arrested?

It sounds like some DUers need to get off their high horse and realize
what this is about (and no, what they did to Craig is no different.)

Did Spitzer use the threat of family values to demand that public housing
be torn down, as Vitter is doing every day he remains in office?

Or is he merely hypocritical on prosecuting a crime that most Americans don't give a shit about anyway?

(witness ads for high-class escort services in New Yorker
and the Washington Post, many of whom collect information
on their high-profile clients and sell it, just like spammers)