...taking responsibility for one's actions has become rare these days

http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/benamon/070201

No responsibility, no accountability for one's actions. That's the society we now live in, as people engage in careless behavior.

The new mantra now is to look the other way, to "forgive and forget," no matter how ridiculous and outrageous the behavior.

Two news stories have come to light that embody such carelessness. In politics, Joe Biden (D-DE) is under fire for comments he made towards Barak Obama (D-IL). "I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy. I mean, that's a storybook, man", he quipped.

Source: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=2838420&page=1

What got my attention was the "clean" comment. Why did Biden need to go there? CLEAN?! As if there is somehow a lack of black people in the public eye who are "clean"! I cannot find the reasoning behind his statements.

There's not much for Biden to do other than apologize. Since he is running for President, I would assume that others will think twice about giving him a nod. But indeed, Joe Biden displayed very careless and crass behavior; much thought was not put into what was said. Shouldn't accountability for what is said by a politician be of extreme importance in his/her career? The American people take the words of politicians serious, but many politicians don't take what they say serious enough. And we are all supposed to forget about it in the long run? Imagine if a Republican had said that. They would be gone or currently enduring so much flack from the media and black leaders, who would urge him to step down as Senator.

Another rather embarrassing incident comes courtesy of Tara Conner, Miss USA 2006. Conner earned huge media attention when it was learned that she had a way for partying, drinking as a minor, and now it is learned she did drugs (cocaine) prior to and during her reign as Miss USA. How embarrassing and shocking
( http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16921678/ )! And for that reason, she should have had the dignity to step down. She is representing the US in a position where she looked upon as a role model and is expected to be effective in tackling issues of importance. Donald Trump, the pageant's owner, saw it important that Conner keep her crown so that she can be a spokesperson for drug and alcohol abuse. She could have done that by abstaining from such behaviors. Actions speak louder than words, you know.

Gone are the innocent days I guess.

I remember when Miss USA (and all pageant girls) was representative of graceful and talented women. And I remember when something worthy of dismissal was revealed of a pageant winner, they had to give up their crown. Remember Vanessa Williams?

And just recently, Miss Nevada Katie Rees was made to turn in her crown just because of questionable photos she posed in that appeared on the internet. Why make one woman give up her crown and the other woman can keep hers? Surely there are others, the runners-up who would be VERY happy to fill in the role of disgraced pageant winners.

I am left thinking...when Tara Conner was going through rehab, she could have used that time to fulfill other duties as Miss USA. I guess there is no punishment for drug use as a pageant winner these days, so disappointing.

What about responsibility and self-control? What happened to our values and respect for our fellow man? Those ought to be qualities we expect from our leaders, right? So a disgraced person in the spotlight should admit his/her wrongdoing and sincerely apologize, or step down, if the action indeed requires it.

We now live in a nation where we make excuses for our actions instead of facing the consequences. How is one to change his/her behavior if consequences are not given for each negative action?

As a nation, we need to take a step back and figure out where we lost our courtesy and value system. It is surely an ugly stain on America when our leaders cannot control themselves, as they are a reflection of us all, and a reflection of the direction of our nation.

Our direction painfully needs readjusting.

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