My daddy did it!

A few years ago, I kept my grandson for a week. We had bought marshmellows to roast when we went to spend the fourth of July at the River. When I woke up on the fourth, the bag of marshmellows had already been opened and some had been eaten. Knowing the answer before I asked the question, I asked, “Who opened the marshmellows we were going to take to the river?”

Logan didn’t even look up from the television when he told me that his daddy had eaten them. His daddy was almost eight hours away in Alabama. I thought it was funny that my cute little baby was so quick to come up with an answer. I wanted to share it with his daddy.

I walked over to the phone to dial my son's phone number. Talking to myself loud enough for Logan to hear, I said I was going to talk to his daddy about taking our marshmellows. Just as I finished dialing the number, my grandson had moved close to me and pulled on my shirt. “Nana, Nana. Daddy didn’t take the marshmellows, I did.”

On the verge of being caught in a lie, my grandson confessed because he thought he would get in trouble. Isn’t this frequently the case with our elected officials? They lie because they think it is acceptable and that no one will find out the truth. Initially they deny the charges, then they blame other people, and finally they apologize for their bad behavior to a public who doesn’t believe the apology is sincere. We understand that they are apologizing for getting caught not for committing the act.

Research with small children has proven that they are not able to understand that lying is wrong. Unlike children, adults do understand and they lie with deliberate and purposeful reasoning. They know their actions will have consequences. The simple truth is that many politicians do not respect their office and they do not respect the public they represent.

There is an old joke that you know a politician is lying because he is talking. When did it become acceptable for a person to lie. Candidates have had to drop out of political races or resign from office because they were caught doing something they shouldn’t do and then they lied about it. They have been caught in affairs and they lied. They have been caught with their hands in the state or federal cookie jar and they lied. They promised to represent us in office and they lied.

If they are caught doing something they shouldn’t be doing, they hire a spin doctor who twists the events. This is simply another way of lying.

I watched the old movie Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. It makes me long to have someone in office who is honest, even if they are a little idealistic.