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instead of just looking in a mirror...
Published on February 6, 2007 By Sean Conners aka SConn1 In Current Events
This week, San Francisco mayor, Gavin Newsom admitted to an affair with the wife of a trusted aide and friend. This revalation was disgusting enough. But Newsom decisded to take things to the level that many take them these days.

Gavin, now joins the ranks of Mark Foley, Mel Gibson, Linsay Lohan, Congressman Kennedy, Miss USA, the leader of the evangelicals and a whole host of others who have shamefully shirked any personal responsibility for their actions by blaming the old red herring, alchohol.

Newsom not only said that he would enter rehab for his problem. Did Gavin say he was an alchoholic? no. Did he say he had a bad drinking problem? no. Did he even admit to any "abuse" of alchohol? OF course not.

He merely blamed all his testosterone driven woes on having the occasional cocktail. And even tho he's not an addict or alchoholic, he somehow needs professional help. This is shameful and an insult to everyone with a REAL problem with addiction.

Not only that, the good mayor also stated that he could and would continue to be mayor and run for re-election. Also, no plans have been announced for Gavin to get rid of his wine making operations, the very successful Napa Valley "Plump Jack Winery" which he founded in 2004 along with a wine store and a string of eateries featuring his commodity. I guess getting alcohol "out of his life" as he put it doesn't include getting it out of his growing bank account.

Will he at least be joining a real program? Hardly. He will have a special lil program "made up" just for him by Mimi Silbert, founder and director of Delancy Street. Her organization usually only deals with hardcore addicts, ex cons, prostitutes and the other dregs of the street. Newsom won't have to rub elbows with them, however, as he will have a custom program that will be outpatient. I wonder how big of a "donation" it takes to get them to do that? Whatever it is, i'm sure it won't be disclosed. And the rehab center will cop a "ends justify the means" stance if it does most certainly.

Hopefully the voters will see thru this latest attempt to use alcohol as a scapegoat for bad decisions and bad behavior that hardly seem related. Alcoholism is a terrible disease. Using it for political gain is disgusting in any way, shape or form. I hope they follow the lessons of Illinois when they elected Paul Simon to the Senate instead of returning an amoral molestor who thought he was beyond reproach.

San Francisco may be amongst the most liberal cities in the world, but I hope their defense of liberalism won't allow them to re-elect a scumbag who was nailing a friend's wife while using the friend to get him elected. There are plenty of other liberals who don't screw over their workers and friends that can fill in for him, i'm sure.

Comments
on Feb 06, 2007
one note,,,this article is about using alcohol as a scapegoat as seems to be the political / hollywood trend and gavin's own personal hypocrisy. it is not a liscense to make analogies just to attack our former president. that is a debate that can be held another day, another time if you careto write your own article about it. ,,,any comparisons about bill clinton and his famous blowjob will be deleted. that is a whole nother can o worms that can talked about elsewhere. here it will be treated as clutter.
on Feb 06, 2007
I don't think it really works. It makes the person seem even less repentant, in my opinion, because they don't take personal responsibility for their actions and instead blame something else. I think Newsom, though, has played down the part that booze had in the affair.

I said on my blog about it that there wouldn't have been any hubbub at all if he'd been messing around with a guy. The wife he was estranged from at the time was a Fox News newscaster, so I would imagine there's going to be a lot of punditry about the ins and outs of the situation. I find it difficult to believe in San Francisco's political environment that you'd even need to make a public statement about an affair, much less find an excuse.
on Feb 06, 2007
if gavin has any morals whatsoever, and really is sincere that he wants alcohol out of his life, then he should unload his alcohol fueled enterprise not only to the 1st person who wants it, but for absolutely no profit whatsoever. he should recover what he has invested, period. it is hypocritical of him as a public official to either contradict his "no alcohol in his life" stance or profit from it in any way.

or he could resign from office, become a private citizen, accountable to no one on moral grounds, and feel free to profit like exxon.
on Feb 06, 2007
i have a feeling the admission and alcohol scapegoat were both measures to save his marriage and the fear of losing 1/2 his stuff, including his precious, profit making business.
on Feb 06, 2007
Did Newsom remarry? He was in the process of a divorce when he had the affair. Maybe it was to help the friend in question, because her disclosure of the affair was part of alcohol recovery, too, if I read it right.