thoughts on the news of the day: spin

hmmm.....

            My puppy, Roxy, has learned a new trick.  Her fluffy Pomeranian tail has gotten long enough that now she is chasing it.  She whirls around spinning, sometimes reaching the end of it with her mouth.  As she dances and twirls she does a kind of doggie dance.

            Seems like some days as I read the news, those who line the photos and stories are like my little puppy, twirling and spinning, but going nowhere.  Take for example, Anthony Weiner.  He was ridiculed by the public and media and even his own colleagues, but seemed to believe that if he could just get a good spin on the truth, then all the bad publicity about his inappropriate behavior would go away.  It did not, and he finally resigned yesterday. 

            As easy as it is to criticize a public official for their behavior, we do that spinning dance, too, don’t we?  We find ourselves in situations where we can’t seem to get ahead, maybe where we have made a mistake; and instead of simply owning up to the discretion, we try spinning until only dizziness remains.  We go round and round in circles, hoping that we might eventually catch up, but we never do. 

            Still, the spinning dance goes on.  I suspect Roxy will chase her tail most of her life.  She will probably never learn that her tail doesn’t have to be chased, that it is already attached to her.  And on top of that, it will hurt if she actually catches it with her mouth and bites it too hard.

            She will probably never learn.  But maybe Mr. Weiner will ….

            hmmm…..