anyone remember david and bathsheeba? david's indiscretions with bathsheeba effectively neutralized his ability to lead. his mistakes were carried into the next generation and eventually brought his reign to an end.

if you look at the story for its merits, whether you believe in a literal interpretation of the bible or not, even if you don't believe in the bible at all, there is a lesson there about the basics of leadership.

to effectively lead people and keep your credibility intact, you need to keep your own house tidy.

look at the people in your own life whose leadership and integrity you respect. are those people respected by their own families or are they deceitful with the most precious people in their lives?

i, for one, lose a lot of respect for a person who steps out on their spouse no matter how nice a person or what kind of position of leadership they may be in. it isn't simply a moral issue of whose bed they prefer. having an affair involves a multitude of sins - lying, cheating, making excuses, and cowardice to name a few.

i am not saying i expect superhuman perfection in people in leadership positions. i just find it difficult to believe and respect someone who is willing to betray the one person on earth that they have taken a specific vow to nurture and respect. if their loyalty does not extend to those closet to them, on what basis do i trust them not to deceive me, too?

as for hilary, i agree with starting over in the previous post - one more of the consequenses of bill's deceit.