The Weiner Thread
 

Okay, first of all, I can't believe there isn't a thread here about U.S. congressional representative Anthony Weiner's Twitter/sexting controversy. Secondly, JTIS, I'm loving every second of it. It's not that I dislike Mr. Weiner at all; in fact, I think he's a great leader and he would have been a shoo-in for eventually becoming mayor of New York City- arguably one of the highest public executive offices in the country. I feel terribly for him because I don't think he did anything wrong in the legal/ethical sense. Yes, what he did was, uh, boneheaded and stupid, but what he does with his, uh, constituents on his own time is his own business and has nothing to do with his ability to lead. Nevertheless, I'm loving all of the jokes, and the fact that his name is "Weiner" is just icing on the cake.

So should he step down from office? Did he cheat on his wife? Is it okay for consensual married adults to sext each other? Would you tolerate your spouse/partner doing this? And most importantly, are you impressed?

What did he do? We don't know about this in the UK - although sexting "scandals" have broken with people here too. Hardly a scandal - it's text messages for God's sake!

I think it's pretty absurd... I mean, there isn't even any nudity in the pic that's surfaced. The pic isn't even good enough to tell if we should pat him on the back, or feel sorry for him. :laugh: Honestly, I'm so sick of sex scandals taking down people. We all have bodies. Underneath all of our clothes we're all naked. Naked is how we came into the world. So what's the big effing deal? If Weiner ran on a strict morality platform, I'd say his hypocrisy would warrant a call for him to step down. But he didn't (to my knowledge). So let's quit trying to tar and feather a guy for being born with human body parts. :cool:

The problem is that he made up that ridiculous story about his twitter account being hacked--even held a press conference to announce this, thus drawing all of our attention to the situation. I didn't even know anything about the sexting until his cover-up press conference. Then he turns around and admits that he actually HAS been sending pictures to several women. How stupid.

I don't care at all what he does in his personal life, but I take issue with him lying about it. I mean, really. He should have just admitted it initially. He still would have been in hot water, but at least wouldn't look like such an idiot.

I think there are nudes out there that have yet to be released. I'll keep my judgement on this man until then. :p

From his interview, he said his wife knew about this since before they were married. If she wants to be his wife under these circumstances, than that's her beef, not anyone elses. People are in "weirder" marriages than this one. Would it have been a bigger deal if he were single?

I'm so tired of people being afraid of sex and nudity. Why is it so taboo? It's a penis for goodness sakes. It's a vagina. We have one or the other. Why is everyone so ashamed of them. Baffles me.

Update: The penis pic has arrived to the internet, as blurry as it is.

I would post a direct link to some pictures, but I don't want to run the risk of posting "obscene" material. In any case, the pictures were first leaked on a conservative political blog, biggovernment.com . You'll find that the site is, uh, bulging with embarassing details.

It just amazes me. As many times as these types of pictures have surfaced how did he possibly think this one wouldn't? Regardless of whether it's his personal life he had to realize the chances he was taking. I could care less about what he does in his personal life. The fact that he had no problem initially lying about it is what bothers me.

I think the whole thing is silly and a waste of time and media coverage.

If the guy campaigned as "the moral authority" or the "family values guy" than I could understand there being some outrage. As it is, I'm tired of politicians being held to some sort of church-leader role-model standard. If you look back through history, our elected leaders are far from role models - many of them led downright scandalous lives. That doesn't make the things they do ok, but it does make the public look like a bunch of stuck up prudes and pervs for hanging on every word as if the fate of the nation depends on who saw or touched so-and-so's body parts. These men and women have private lives too, and should be allowed to live them without media coverage. It's embarrassing to me to see this all over the news when there are FAR MORE IMPORTANT THINGS to talk about.

AGREED!!

Can we please focus on the economy and job creation instead?!

Well, come on...I think our first reaction as humans, is to HOPE that if we make some excuse/lie, that HOPEFULLY it will just blow over. Obviously in this technological age, it's more rare for that to happen now...

I have a weiner, and I'm quite fond of it. Ledgie's have seen pics!:cool:

But why? Wouldn't you lie if you were in the same situation? I think the first instinct that most people have when confronted with something they did that might get them in trouble or cause embarassment is "Nope, that wasn't me." It's human nature to lie. It's the first things kids learn to do well on their own.

So should he step down from office? No.

Did he cheat on his wife? That's up to her, not me.

Is it okay for consensual married adults to sext each other? This needs to be defined within each relationship - there is no broad rule that applies to everyone.

Would you tolerate your spouse/partner doing this? No - but that's our decision.

And most importantly, are you impressed? I didn't see enough to be certain. :woohoo:

Exactly. Every single man loves their weiner and has taken pics of it at some point or another. :laugh: In fact, the Daily Show has just uncovered evidence where Edison invented the light bulb because his weiner was poorly lit 12 hours of the day... :lol: ;)

Like KarmaContestant pointed out, what really peeves me about this whole thing is the fact that there is now a full blown witch hunt for Weiner (teehee). Our elected officials need to be focusing on our flailing economy and stagnant job creation instead. :nod:

What did he do again? Tweet a pic of his penis? I have to admit this story has not captivated my attention.

He tweeted a pic of his bulge. Much ado about nothing.

That's all??? You'd think he was having an affair with a 14-year old from the way people are talking. Geez.

How old is this guy? It sounds like something a junior high school boy would do, and it certainly makes me question his maturity, but it's hardly a federal case.

Well, you have to remember that to those people, a man's semi-nude body is a thing of great horror and fear - definitely something to be kept hidden and never talked about or revealed unless conception is in the works, and then of course only under total darkness so no one can remember any details about what they saw. :rolleyes:

The problem is it has become a distraction. It was a distraction with Craig, Foley, Vitter, Ensign, Studds, etc. You would hope that with the problems facing this country that those in power would learn from their colleagues mistakes. This isn't something that happened years ago, it was very recent. I may be naive but not everyone takes pictures of their junk and sends it out in to cyberspace. My guess is that he will be forced out, not because he did something wrong, but because it's all about the upcoming elections and not wanting any distractions.

Well, it's not just the bulge pic. The emerging details are painting Weiner as some kind of creepy misogynistic, soulless chronic exhibitionist with a sexting addiction. An isolated bulge pic is one thing, but the other details are far more damning, IMHO.

Yes, politicians are supposed to focus on jobs and the economy. But when was the last time that happened when it wasn't an election year? And the sad truth of the matter is that jobs and the economy are the opposite of sexy. The Weiner story is great for the media: the TV ratings are way up and the newspaper headlines are hysterical.

It is more than just underwear photos. It's the whole thing. The funny thing is how he bragged about how great his junk is...but the reality is laughable. Let me put it this way, his nose is bigger.

The sad and pathetic truth to this is this man is too old to be doing this.

I guess I just don't understand people expecting politicians to act as morale authorities. That's not what their job is. If people want a morale leader, go to church. If people feel Weiner tweeting pics of his weiner isn't in their state's best interests, don't elect him next time around. But trying to tar and feather a man for doing something that's absolutely not illegal is just so dumb to me. It'd be different if he ran on a morality platform. Then I'd say "off with his head!" But alas, he didn't.

Politicians are not moral authorities. But they are appointed to be leaders, which requires a certain strength of character, or at least the appearance of it. Politics is not a meritocracy based on ones ability and credentials. Politics is, well... political. Either people like you or they don't. It is a popularity contest. It is more about saying the right things and being able to deliver the message effectively than about actually having an original or constructive thought. I too think the sexting was no big deal, but you do have to question the fortitude of someone who has the inability to simply own and take responsibility for an apparent impropriety. To me, lying is the worst thing a public figure can do.

:laugh: Not everyone, but millions do it all the time! No one cares because they aren't actors/singers/sports stars/politicians.

Bingo.

What other details?

Hey Ed and Curtis, is he your rep?

I do *sort of* see your point with this, but disagree to an extent. We do expect politicians to be honest about, well, politics - but that's as far as it should go in my opinion. Weiner's weiner has nothing to do with his job, and it certainly has nothing to do with the political arena.

I work in Finance & government contracting. Everything I do with numbers at work is monitored carefully. Complete transparency at work is an absolute must. What I do on my personal time has nothing to do with my job. As an American, I expect the laws of this nation to defend that principle. I believe this whole Weinergate thing needs to just go away. The obsession some people have with it represents the true moral degredation of our country.

Nah- his district is the heavily blue collar "white" outer parts of Brooklyn and Queens.

I hate to break it to you, but morality clauses are a way of life for many people in public life. Celebrities, athletes, politicians must follow a certain code of conduct, regardless of whether or not it is spelled out or is legally binding. The right to privacy for public figures is not always assured.

Agreed. Weiner is a liar and would have continued to lie if there wasn't more and more evidence of what he did. I really could not care what he does in his personal life, but when he was caught, he lied about it, then retracted it later on. Great leadership/policies/political motivations, etc, he's still just another narcissistic lying politican and deserves whatever negative attention he gets at this point.

as always, you're adorable. :xoxo:

In reading the transcripts, IMO weiner is totally guilty of being immature and desperately horny. Knowing the inflamed reaction that would ensue should he be caught, one would think he would have used that last remaining brain cell to create a pseudo screenname. :shrug:

And...people thinking this is ok is part of the problem. This is also why stars like Madonna and Gaga do so well - they don't care one iota about what "the public" think or say about them and what they do. People admire that quality. "And I'm not sorry - it's human nature" Perhaps it would have been best for Mr. Weiner if he had just said "Yeah, that's my junk. You like it? If not, mind your own business." Too little, too late I guess.

You can't deny that whoever the person, or whatever the situation, this country has a sick obsession with what everyone else is doing behind closed doors. It's not right, but maybe it's just human nature as well.

Why the HELL would he use Twitter for this? That's PUBLIC. And loaded photos on YFrog are directly linked with your account so it's not like he could get out of it....

I'm just amazed that he was stupid enough to use Twitter for this.

^ I don't think he meant to use twitter, but if so then he is hella retarded.

My only problem with the whole thing is that he was asked "How did you know these women weren't underage?" His response: "I didn't."

What women?

The women he was sending the pics to.

I thought he just put it on Twitter. :confused:

Twitter confuses the hell out of me, but how can you tweet something to just one person. I thought whatever you posted, anyone who had access to your feed could see.

Other than that, it looks like he was just swapping dirty pictures with a woman he met on FB. Sketchy, but not really any of my business.

I think he was texting these women pictures, but somehow, one ended up on his twitter that everyone could see, and in turn, he said his Twitter was hacked.