Weinergate
June 6, 2011 1:47 PM Subscribe

Last week, a crotch shot of a clothed male erection was posted to the twitter account of Rep. Anthony Weiner (D - N.Y.). Weiner claimed his account was hacked, but wouldn't confirm or deny that he was the person in the pic. Now, with a new shirtless photo surfacing, Wiener has held a press conference admitting to the original pic.

The Daily Show weighs in.

posted by I am the Walrus (474 comments total) 9 users marked this as a favorite

Does what it says on the tin.
posted by seanmpuckett at 1:49 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Et tu, Weiner?
posted by lydhre at 1:51 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

Christ, what a dick.
posted by unsupervised at 1:51 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

"Mr. Congressman, do you see the irony in getting in trouble over your weiner?"
posted by pwally at 1:51 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

.
posted by Joey Bagels at 1:52 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Perhaps the worst part about this is it means people will continue paying attention to things Andrew Breitbart does/says/believes for a while longer yet.
posted by sparkletone at 1:52 PM on June 6, 2011 [79 favorites]

And damnit, I actually really liked that guy.
posted by pwally at 1:52 PM on June 6, 2011 [22 favorites]

Not to excuse Rep. Weiner for his actions, but this is what happens when you taunt the rightwing attack dogs. You get bitten.
posted by crunchland at 1:52 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

For the record: a. who cares? and b. damn, Anthony Weiner works out, and c. way to go, jackass, I had some pretty high hopes for you in terms of your ability to take on the other side and be good and argumentative in a positive way and you do THIS?

aaaaaaaaaagh.
posted by bitter-girl.com at 1:53 PM on June 6, 2011 [31 favorites]

Huh. I always figured he'd be smarter than that. At least smart enough to handle the initial photo rather than suspiciously half-denying it as a "prank" in a way that both inflames interest and clearly marks him as a liar once the truth comes out.

The worst thing about this is that it gives that snake Brietart credibility.
posted by Rhaomi at 1:53 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

"Your move, Dingell."
posted by kmz at 1:53 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

Well one thing's for sure. Andrew Breitbart rules the American world now.
posted by Threeway Handshake at 1:53 PM on June 6, 2011

"WERE YOU FULLY ERECT," a man shouts desperately as Anthony walks away from the mic. "WERE YOU FULLY ERECT!"
posted by cortex at 1:53 PM on June 6, 2011 [50 favorites]

Some crazy person just yelled "were you fully erect?!!!!" as the news conference ended.
posted by cashman at 1:53 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Well that was a surprise.
posted by delmoi at 1:53 PM on June 6, 2011

He said he would not resign, and that his marriage was not ending.

Can he say that with certitude?
posted by mazola at 1:54 PM on June 6, 2011 [13 favorites]

Me too, pwally. I'm more disappointed that he lied about the pictures. That's the most damning part about all of this. If he had confessed or, at the very least, kept his mouth shut, this wouldn't have been an issue. Now it's really blown up.
posted by chara at 1:54 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

Ah damn, gotta be quick with the penis reporting.
posted by cashman at 1:54 PM on June 6, 2011

"WERE YOU FULLY ERECT," a man shouts desperately as Anthony walks away from the mic. "WERE YOU FULLY ERECT!"

That same person shouted something about supporting a lovechild right before that. I'd love to know who it was.
posted by rollbiz at 1:54 PM on June 6, 2011

Wiener has held a press conference admitting to the original pic.

Your slip is showing.
posted by azpenguin at 1:54 PM on June 6, 2011

Poor Huma.
posted by serazin at 1:54 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

Is it a sign of how jaded I am that I look at this "scandal" and think, "Oh for fuck's sake, just get over it already?" Or is it that my priorities really are in the right place?

Because seriously -- the worst he's guilty of is poor taste, creating a political distraction for himself, and ostensibly pissing off his wife. And even the latter isn't really a sure thing; hell, I've dated gals who couldn't have cared less if I did something like this.
posted by scaryblackdeath at 1:54 PM on June 6, 2011 [29 favorites]

Et tu, Weiner?

Exactly. It's so fucking disheartening, and it breaks my New Yorker heart.

I hate to do this, but here goes:

.
posted by flyingsquirrel at 1:54 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

He pulled quite a boner.
posted by Outlawyr at 1:55 PM on June 6, 2011 [15 favorites]

I'm undecided. Is this type of behaviour more common than I would expect, the old trope that everyone has things they wish to remain hidden? Are politicians simply under more scrutiny?

Or is there a link between the desire for political power eand philandering. C'mon politicians this is a cliche at this point. This has been done to death and for sheer WTFery you aren't going to beat The Big Dog and his Heir Apparent Edwards. Let's see some new types of scandals already!
posted by Ad hominem at 1:55 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

I have 2 thoughts on this.

1) I really liked him as a Rep. He was smart, and made good arguments against idiotic policies. I had hoped he would be a good representative for a long time. I am pissed that he let his libido get in the way of progress.

2) Andrew Breitbart was the first one to publish the photos on his site, and this validates that jackass. He will now continue to run amock with his smear campaign against the left. So what he was wrong on Shirley Sherrod, he was right about Weiner. It gives the guy more ammo.
posted by I am the Walrus at 1:55 PM on June 6, 2011 [7 favorites]

These guys slay me. I can understand an irresistible urge to get one's Johnson waxed -- but what's with apparently equivalent urge to do it in the stupidest way possible?
posted by steambadger at 1:55 PM on June 6, 2011 [11 favorites]

Put some soy sauce on that.
posted by Old'n'Busted at 1:55 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

And the most important part:

Anthony Weiner admits tweet, will not resign

Good for him. What he has done is incredibly stupid, but it also shouldn't even be as big of a story as it has been. But as long as people keep resigning, it makes it a big deal, which makes it a big story. Take away the political power of the reveal -- which sadly, for the time being, still means you have to be humiliated -- and maybe continuing to chase crap like this for exposing will also end.

/pipedream
posted by MCMikeNamara at 1:55 PM on June 6, 2011 [8 favorites]

I'm really torn between being more furious at Weiner, one of the few Democrats willing to stand up and fight back verbally against the right for being so. fucking. stupid.

Or the fact that Breitbart who is going to be in any way vindicated and legitimized by this shit.
posted by quin at 1:55 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

During the news conference Congressman Weiner stated "I was aware of a picture of my erection going around the internet, but I could not confirm nor deny it was mine based on the size. I assure you that the original picture makes my penis appear much smaller than it actually is. I would like to state for the record that I have a large penis and am very proud of it."
posted by Mister Fabulous at 1:55 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

This is just the trailer for the sex tape, and I for one welcome it.
posted by Astro Zombie at 1:56 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

In other news, unemployment is at 9.1%, 1 in 3 have been out of work for over a year, Obama's nominee to the Fed Board, Peter Diamond (an expert on unemployment) was rejected out of hand by one senator in the wake of total neglect by the administration.

To this, DC emits a collective yawn, instead fiddling with Weiner while the country burns. The decline gets more palpable every day.
posted by downing street memo at 1:56 PM on June 6, 2011 [80 favorites]

It was, honestly, a surprisingly frank and apologetic press conference, despite a lot of weird wtf questions from the folks holding the press cards. "Good job apologizing for fucking up in a stupid way" is faint praise, granted.

That same person shouted something about supporting a lovechild right before that. I'd love to know who it was.

Best I can tell, they said "Arnold's lovechild".
posted by cortex at 1:56 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Now, granted, I'm a pretty square dude, but WTF?

Can't quite bend my mind around the idea that there are people who enjoy sending (much less receiving, still much less imagining that a recipient would enjoy receiving) tweets/txts/emails with attached photos of attached members.

It takes all kinds.
posted by notyou at 1:57 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Let that be a lesson to all you politicians: STOP USING TWITTER YOU MORONS
posted by fungible at 1:57 PM on June 6, 2011 [15 favorites]

Is it Weiner or Wiener? The two have very different meanings. Even the OP can't get the story straght.
posted by dunkadunc at 1:58 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

It was insane watching the left wing blogosphere defending him at all costs. I was in wait and see mode because it's Breitbart but it was obvious Weiner was not telling the whole truth. The DailyKos diaries were distilled stupidity. Just because someone is on your team doesn't mean you should ignore reason.

I'm glad he didn't resign. He made human mistakes that have nothing to do with his job performance.
posted by furiousxgeorge at 1:59 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

Weiner, according to his twitter account. The other was a Freudian typo.
posted by I am the Walrus at 1:59 PM on June 6, 2011

Well one thing's for sure. Andrew Breitbart rules the American world now.

Well, the person who found the pic turned to him. Breitbart didn't invent this scandal.

Dude, resign. The democratic party doesn't need to lose your seat just because your ego is too enormous to let them replace you with someone who doesn't sent dirty pictures to random 20-somethings.

We can't have politicians resigning at the drop of the hat. Clearly sending the pics was moronic, but really, who cares? Resigning would send a message that democrats can't weather any political trouble at all. It would be open season. And this is exactly the kind of bullshit that prevents people from wanting to enter politics in the first place.
posted by delmoi at 2:00 PM on June 6, 2011 [9 favorites]

Matt Yglesias' two simple rules for surviving a sex scandal. Seems right.
posted by eugenen at 2:01 PM on June 6, 2011 [7 favorites]

He made human mistakes that have nothing to do with his job performance. --- Unless you count 'credibility.'
posted by crunchland at 2:01 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

The DailyKos diaries were distilled stupidity.

Error-Level Analysis!
posted by delmoi at 2:01 PM on June 6, 2011

I really admire Weiner, I've volunteered in his office, and voted for him in November. I can't understand why he's done any of this, but I can't see him stepping down. The right hates him, but he's got his eye set on being Mayor. I don't think he's leaving DC any time soon, and I don't see myself voting for anyone else in 2012.
posted by catwash at 2:01 PM on June 6, 2011

Honestly? In the younger generation, we're going to have increasing trouble finding people who *don't* secretly have naked or half-naked pictures somewhere on the internet. The only thing that really baffles me here is why he would use Twitter to send this picture to some girl. Savvy enough to hook up with chicks on the internet but not to realize other people can see these things?
posted by gracedissolved at 2:02 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Christ, what a moron. What is it with men in these powerful positions that think they won't get caught doing this stuff.
posted by zardoz at 2:02 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

It's 2011 kids. Whoever the next George Washington is, he is probably a kid now.
And if he's a teen or whatever, he probably has already texted out "dick-tures" like two dozen times by now.
I want politicians to be good public servants, not pretend morality police.
This Weiner thing is a non-issue.
I'd be saying the same thing if he was GOP btw but NOT if he was "Family Values" GOP.
But even then the issue would be pious hypocrisy.

NOTE: he SHOULD feel bad for that "pussy" double entendre tho. That shit was just weak.
posted by Senor Cardgage at 2:02 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

You know who's a fucking bad ass? ~~Spitzer~~... Sorry, I mean ~~Edwards~~... Actually, now it's ~~Weiner~~ ...

GODDAMNIT CAN'T ONE OF THE GOOD ONES KEEP IN IN HIS FUCKING PANTS?
posted by eyeballkid at 2:02 PM on June 6, 2011 [20 favorites]

The only thing he did wrong was lie about it.
posted by dunkadunc at 2:02 PM on June 6, 2011 [17 favorites]

Also: weiner weiner weiner weiner weiner weiner weiner.
posted by eugenen at 2:02 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Clearly sending the pics was moronic, but really, who cares?

Riiiight.
posted by cashman at 2:02 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

In the future all smartphone crotch shots will automatically be posted to the cloud and Twitter notifications sent out.
posted by Artw at 2:02 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

One of the advantages of living in a country like Canada is that the press gets kicked out of the power structure if it reports on these kinds of scandals.
posted by KokuRyu at 2:03 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

He accepts "full responsibility". He just won't accept any adverse consequences.

A lying unprincipled scumbag just like all the rest.
posted by Trurl at 2:03 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

I'm glad he didn't resign.

Agreed. What he did was unbelievably stupid, but if the Republican right has shown us anything, it's that you don't have to quit after a sex scandal, hell, do it enough and you'll be considered a real possibility as a presidential candidate.
posted by quin at 2:03 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Way to go, Weiner. Now Breitbart got one right. Considering the media went front page top of the hour with his out-and-out bullshit, I can't imagine what they'll do now.
posted by Legomancer at 2:04 PM on June 6, 2011

And damnit, I actually really liked that guy.

You ever notice how this kind of stuff seems to happen to Democrats from NY state who taunt the Ring Wing? Like a lot?
posted by The Whelk at 2:04 PM on June 6, 2011 [7 favorites]

Now, granted, I'm a pretty square dude, but WTF?

Agreed. I dont't plan to run for political office, but I wont even post a picture of my face online. Maybe I am doing it wrong.

Certainly don't resign. I'm still mad at Spitzer.

And if he's a teen or whatever, he probably has already texted out "dick-tures" like two dozen times by now.

Maybe a new requirement for office? Over 35 and at least one GoneWild shot ?
posted by Ad hominem at 2:04 PM on June 6, 2011

the worst he's guilty of is poor taste

Do we know the pictures he sent were welcome? Sending unsolicited sexual pictures is pretty much textbook sexual harassment.
posted by kmz at 2:05 PM on June 6, 2011 [7 favorites]

God gave man a penis and a brain unfortunately he only gave him enough blood to run one at one time
posted by robbyrobs at 2:05 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

Oy, what a friggin maroon. Glad he isn't resigning though.
posted by CitrusFreak12 at 2:05 PM on June 6, 2011

Even the good guys are fucking idiots, anymore.
posted by Benny Andajetz at 2:05 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

It's not all that big.

Wide-angle lens, folks.
posted by Sys Rq at 2:05 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

It was insane watching the left wing blogosphere defending him at all costs. ... DailyKos diaries were distilled stupidity.

A mea culpa, of sorts:

We believed what we wished to believe. Truth became the handmaiden of ideology. We, the "Reality-based community", turned out to be as susceptible to self-deception as the most deluded right-wing fundie fanatics.
posted by Trurl at 2:06 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Let that be a lesson to all you politicians: STOP USING TWITTER YOU MORONS

I liked that Weiner's response to a question along those lines ("Do you think this proves officials should stop using twitter" or suchlike) was to say, basically, no, people don't need to avoid twitter. They just need to avoid doing stupid shit with it of the sort I did.
posted by cortex at 2:07 PM on June 6, 2011 [5 favorites]

It's 2011 kids. Whoever the next George Washington is, he is probably a kid now.

What? I didn't know we were expecting another George Washington...
posted by sweetkid at 2:07 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Do we know the pictures he sent were welcome?

He said it was all consensual, and that he thought they were friends, and that he had relationships with them (in the "i know you" sense of the word relationships).
posted by cashman at 2:07 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

the young rope-rider : "Dude, resign. The democratic party doesn't need to lose your seat just because your ego is too enormous to let them replace you with someone who doesn't sent dirty pictures to random 20-somethings. "

I live right near his district. His office has pretty selflessly assisted two close friends of mine navigate federal red tape on a couple of different issues.

The people who do live in his district probably won't care about this scandal, and he'll most likely be able to weather it and stay in office. He's been good to the people he represents, and fantastic at community support and outreach. He has also proven he has the guts to speak truth to power.

The question is whether this will sink his future political career.
posted by zarq at 2:07 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

He said it was all consensual, and that he thought they were friends, and that he had relationships with them (in the "i know you" sense of the word relationships).

Biblically?
posted by Sys Rq at 2:08 PM on June 6, 2011

The only thing he did wrong was lie about it.

Well, yeah. If you don't take into consideration that he is married and sending pics of junk to other women. Or that he's a serving congressman in America in 2011 where something like this will get you strung up by said junk in the press.

Sure. Lying was the only wrong thing about this.
posted by eyeballkid at 2:09 PM on June 6, 2011 [7 favorites]

Are politicians simply under more scrutiny?... Or is there a link between the desire for political power and philandering?

Two really good questions, Ad hominem. I think the answer is "yes" to both, sadly. At least it sure seems that way based on empirical evidence. It just seems like common sense to me that someone who has assumed the responsibility of public service would not put their careers (and families, etc.) at risk by being so OBVIOUSLY stupid. I mean, these are not dumb people (for the most part). Maybe they think the risk is worth the rush of being secretive and illicit? I don't know, but whatever it is, it's pitiful, and it depresses the hell out of me.

I don't agree with those saying this is a non-issue. It's all over the press, we're all talking about it -- so it's an issue. Had he not lied about it, though, it wouldn't be as big of a deal. That sucks more than anything else.

I too hope he doesn't resign. I hope even more that he can survive this. Not so sure.

Sigh.
posted by flyingsquirrel at 2:09 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

You know who's a fucking bad ass? Spitzer... Sorry, I mean Edwards... Actually, now it's Weiner ...

Needs a Gary Hart mention.
posted by drezdn at 2:09 PM on June 6, 2011

He said it was all consensual...

So did William Kennedy Smith.

And Representative Weiner has already demonstrated himself a liar.
posted by Trurl at 2:10 PM on June 6, 2011

Kinda-previously. What is with the New York congresscritters and their need for topless self-photos?
posted by shakespeherian at 2:10 PM on June 6, 2011

For the record, if I "know" you on Twitter, I do not want to see your wang.
posted by desjardins at 2:10 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Trurl: And Representative Weiner has already demonstrated himself a liar."

Albeit the most unconvincing one on the planet.
posted by schmod at 2:11 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

This whole mess just makes me glad that Obama, despite his flaws, is by all accounts a decent and honorable family man. Clinton, Edwards, Spitzer, Weiner... sleazy allies aren't fun at all.
posted by Rhaomi at 2:11 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

the worst he's guilty of is poor taste

That might well be true if the issue here were just the pics. That would depend, as others have said above, on exactly who he was sending the pictures too and whether his conduct approached the level of harassment, but that's a different issue. The problem, as it usually is in such situations, lies in the coverup. He repeatedly went out to the media and insisted he was hacked, was the victim of some kind of prank, and that he had brought in a security company to analyze his operations. He then made a buffoon of himself by insisting that he didn't send the pic, but he couldn't be sure whether or not the picture was his. Now, of course, he admits he made up the hacking thing all along. That gives him zero credibility in my book.

I'd have a whole lot more sympathy if this were just about his marital indiscretions, but running around for days insisting that he was hacked is what pushes this way way over the line for me. Shut up and go home, Congressman.
posted by zachlipton at 2:11 PM on June 6, 2011 [9 favorites]

Needs a Gary Hart mention.

Yeah. I skipped over Clinton and Kennedy and a bunch of others. Trying to keep it in this century ;).
posted by eyeballkid at 2:11 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

I know a lot of people who would be appalled and harassed if I sent them a photo of my penis.

I figure pretty much anybody would be delighted to get a picture of my penis.

But if they ain't paying, I ain't posting.
posted by steambadger at 2:11 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

"I am deeply sorry for the pain this has caused my wife, Huma," Weiner said

Always good to name-check the person you just humiliated in the national media.
posted by StickyCarpet at 2:12 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

He said it was all consensual...

So did William Kennedy Smith.

wut.
posted by joe lisboa at 2:13 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Obama, despite his flaws, is by all accounts a decent and honorable family man

Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease don't jinx it!
posted by flyingsquirrel at 2:13 PM on June 6, 2011 [9 favorites]

Maybe they think the risk is worth the rush of being secretive and illicit ... Maybe they think the risk is worth the rush of being secretive and illicit

I think the fact that they are smart and capable is part of the problem. I think Spritzer thought he could outsmart the world, nobody would catch him through him maze of dummy corporations and wire transfers. These are people who succeed, and get whatever they want for so long they may have forgotten what it feels like to fuck up.
posted by Ad hominem at 2:14 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Always good to name-check the person you just humiliated in the national media.

She works for the State Department (aide to HRC I think?) and is (apparently) relatively well-known in said circles. She is not some anonymous spouse of a civil servant.
posted by joe lisboa at 2:14 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

Voters seem to move past infidelity and Twitter.based stupidity. But lying. Not as much. Makes me sad because he was pretty great on some important issues.
posted by anya32 at 2:14 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

If David Vitter didn't resign, no way should Weiner have to.
posted by mattbucher at 2:14 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

Matt Yglesias' two simple rules for surviving a sex scandal. Seems right.

Yeah I was thinking of that. Rule one of sex scandals: Don't resign.

And honestly is this really even a 'sex scandal'? It's more of a 'flirt scandal'

He accepts "full responsibility". He just won't accept any adverse consequences.

A lying unprincipled scumbag just like all the rest.

What principle? Also, when he went on MSNBC he didn't say it wasn't him, but rather that he wasn't sure. And honestly is it really that big of a deal if people lie about their sex lives? At least Clinton was under oath when he lied. If some reporter came up to you and started asking about personal details of your life, would bare all right away?

But like... I've been using twitter for a couple years, and I've never uploaded a dick pic. As best as I can tell, none of my friends have, either. It's just... like, I don't want to sound condescending here, but... it's REALLY REALLY EASY to not upload dick pics to the internet.

Yeah, well anyone who's famous is going to have a lot of women flirting with them a lot

[He said it was all consensual...] So did William Kennedy Smith.

And Representative Weiner has already demonstrated himself a liar.

WHAT!? Are you saying Weiner raped these girls over twitter!? FFS. Stop blowing this shit out of proportion.
posted by delmoi at 2:15 PM on June 6, 2011 [8 favorites]

Weiner shouldn't have to resign for this, and even if he does, his district is as safe as safe gets for the Dems, and the governor of NY is a dem.
posted by JPD at 2:16 PM on June 6, 2011

So disappointed ... :( .
I had hopes that he was really one of the good guys but in the end it was all about power, sex and other banalities. I would really love to see an investigation somehow into what resources were employed to trap him like this. I suspect that Breitbart alone does not have the wherewithall to do it himself. Who helped (aside from Weiner that is).

So disappointing. What next? Bernie Sanders turns out to be a weekend Dominatrix?

_{I need to get out of this idiot country}
posted by Poet_Lariat at 2:16 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

If some reporter came up to you and started asking about personal details of your life, would bare all right away?

This is why the phrase "No comment" was invented.
posted by Trurl at 2:17 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Poet_Lariat: " So disappointing. What next? Bernie Sanders turns out to be a weekend Dominatrix?"

Thanks for that mental image. :P
posted by zarq at 2:17 PM on June 6, 2011 [5 favorites]

Best defense would have been, "Oh, man, that's embarrassing. I was trying to send that to my wife. Guess I'll only let the intern use the twitter from here on out."

Then his wife could have had the private Come To Jesus talk with him and boom, no scandal.

Aww shucksing shit makes it vanish faster than dropping some load about getting haxored.
posted by klangklangston at 2:17 PM on June 6, 2011 [17 favorites]

American media is weird. From politicians they'll accept out-and-out thievery with barely a mention, but as soon as sex is involved (even something as innocuous and fun as what Weiner did), it requires a few weeks of serious media analysis.
posted by TypographicalError at 2:17 PM on June 6, 2011 [31 favorites]

Are you saying Weiner raped these girls over twitter!?

I am saying that when powerful men accused of sexual misconduct claim their actions were consensual, sometimes they lie.
posted by Trurl at 2:18 PM on June 6, 2011

Trurl: " This is why the phrase "No comment" was invented."

That won't work.
posted by zarq at 2:18 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

She works for the State Department (aide to HRC I think?) and is (apparently) relatively well-known in said circles. She is not some anonymous spouse of a civil servant.

And during the 2008 primary, their were rumors she wa shaving an affair with HRC.
posted by orthogonality at 2:19 PM on June 6, 2011

Yeah, well anyone who's famous is going to have a lot of women flirting with them a lot.

I've flirted with a lot of women, occassionally on the internet. Some of them have even flirted back. This has never once, however, instilled in me an irresistible urge to tweet any of them pictures of my junk.
posted by steambadger at 2:19 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

I am saying that when powerful men accused of sexual misconduct claim their actions were consensual, sometimes they lie.

That's trivially true, but in the absence of anyone claiming that this conduct was not consensual, why do you assume it to be the default case?
posted by enn at 2:19 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

I wonder how quickly the story would have died if he'd just shut up about it for two seconds. Dude practically hosted a week-long press junket.

Also, is it just me, or does dude look exactly like a really skinny Jon Stewart? On The Daily Show the other night, they had his face up on the left, while Jon was doing his bit on the right, and, like, they could be identical twins. The only discernible difference to my eye was BMI.

This, plus Stewart's repeated admissions that they know each other and are "friends" leads me to wonder if the two might be related.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.
posted by Sys Rq at 2:20 PM on June 6, 2011

boys will be boys
posted by Postroad at 2:20 PM on June 6, 2011

Serious question - how the fuck do politicians think they seriously won't get caught with this shit?
posted by windbox at 2:20 PM on June 6, 2011 [5 favorites]

Just because a guy is sometimes a moronic slave to his libido doesn't mean that he also has his convictions about governance in the right place. We contain fractured multitudes, as it were.

While this is true, it makes little difference in American politics.
posted by eyeballkid at 2:21 PM on June 6, 2011

orthogonality: " And during the 2008 primary, their were rumors she wa shaving an affair with HRC."

That's true. I had forgotten about that.
posted by zarq at 2:21 PM on June 6, 2011

Shaving her what???
posted by Sys Rq at 2:22 PM on June 6, 2011 [10 favorites]

He made human mistakes that have nothing to do with his job performance.

Ok fine. Let's ignore his sexual transgressions for a moment and focus only on the aftermath of this scandal. He and/or his communications staff completely mismanaged virtually every part of this incident. Weiner's press conference last week was disastrous, and his MSNBC interview, with super softball questions from a friendly interviewer, wasn't exactly confidence inspiring. Every time he opened his mouth, he raised more questions and looked increasingly ridiculous.

If their goal was to quietly sweep this under the rug with a lie, they failed miserably. If their goal was to quickly move past this with the truth and an apology, they failed even more miserably. In terms of job performance, I'd say this entire episode has been pretty much a textbook depiction of how not to run a crisis management effort. He should resign on that basis alone.
posted by zachlipton at 2:22 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

in the absence of anyone claiming that this conduct was not consensual, why do you assume it to be the default case?

In the absence of anyone claiming that this conduct was consensual, why do you assume that someone who lied to your face about this 24 hours ago has suddenly developed a passion for truth-telling?
posted by Trurl at 2:22 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

He deserves a medal for not resigning. Our country is crumbling just a bit more every day, and this ridiculousness is what people get obsessed over.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 2:22 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

The democratic party doesn't need to lose your seat just because

Dude, a serial killer could get elected in his district running as a Democrat. The Dems aren't going to lose the seat.

Might want to wipe it down first though.
posted by fourcheesemac at 2:23 PM on June 6, 2011 [9 favorites]

To this, DC emits a collective yawn, instead fiddling with Weiner while the country burns. The decline gets more palpable every day.

VIVA CALIGULA! VIVA CALIGULA! VIVA CALIGULA!

#Caligula2012
posted by Slackermagee at 2:23 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

From @JonWalkerDC on Twitter: "If you think "maybe the media won't find out it really is my penis" you are vastly underestimating media penis research budgets."
posted by drezdn at 2:24 PM on June 6, 2011 [16 favorites]

Serious question - how the fuck do politicians think they seriously won't get caught with this shit?

When you reach a point in your career that everything just takes off and it appears you can do no wrong and everyone tell you how great you are then you can easily come to a place where you believe all that . You believe that you are invincible. The rules do not apply to you because you are better. And you are, of course, wrong. The Greeks coined a word for it.
posted by Poet_Lariat at 2:24 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

He pulled quite a boner

He pulled quite a Boehner.

there, fixed that for you.

(Also I'm heartbroken at the lack of SERVER LOG savvy.)
posted by djrock3k at 2:24 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

In the absence of anyone claiming that this conduct was consensual, why do you assume that someone who lied to your face about this 24 hours ago has suddenly developed a passion for truth-telling?

What are you talking about? He claimed it was consensual. I believe him because there is no one saying otherwise. If someone comes forward maybe I will change my mind. And he didn't lie "to my face"—what a ridiculous characterization. He lied to a newspaper reporter and I read about it.
posted by enn at 2:25 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

What a silly bastard. Random crotchbombing belongs on Craigslist's personals section, not Twitter.
posted by benzenedream at 2:26 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Voters seem to move past infidelity and Twitter.based stupidity. But lying. Not as much. Makes me sad because he was pretty great on some important issues.

Are you kidding me? Voters won't vote for a politician who doesn't lie to them. Name one politician who hasn't blatantly and obviously lied about something.

Also, when did people becomes such puritans. Weiner, as far as I know never campaigned on the promise not to 'sext' with women on the internet. Does this shit have anything to do with liberal polices?

I've flirted with a lot of women, occassionally on the internet. Some of them have even flirted back. This has never once, however, instilled in me an irresistible urge to tweet any of them pictures of my junk.

So what happens when they straight up ask you to see it? Do you people really believe that women never want to see penises? If so I feel kind of bad for you.

This is why the phrase "No comment" was invented.

Which he used all the time, but the scandal didn't actually go away. He initially lied and said he was hacked, and for all we know he might have really thought he was.

He deserves a medal for not resigning. Our country is crumbling just a bit more every day, and this ridiculousness is what people get obsessed over.

No shit. This whole thing is absurd. What the hell is wrong with you people that you actually give a crap about this?

---

(Although, that said, sending a full on naked picture of yourself would have been pretty stupid as a politician, but oh well)
posted by delmoi at 2:26 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

At least he didn't act on anything like whatshisface Sanford who flew to another country to get his rocks off.
posted by PenDevil at 2:26 PM on June 6, 2011

[I say we let him go]
posted by hellbient at 2:26 PM on June 6, 2011

He deserves a medal for not resigning.

Let's not get carried away. His fine judgement and smooth handling of the situation may deserve some kind of parade in Times Square, but a medal might be a stretch. hamburger
posted by eyeballkid at 2:27 PM on June 6, 2011

I can't wrap my head around what he must have been thinking when he decided to do this. Does he not know what twitter is?
posted by codacorolla at 2:27 PM on June 6, 2011

In the absence of anyone claiming that this conduct was consensual, why do you assume that someone who lied to your face about this 24 hours ago has suddenly developed a passion for truth-telling?

We also have an absence of anybody denying that Weiner sent these pictures to women as a prelude to stalking and brutally murdering them. Should that also be our default assumption?

I assume any politician is capable of lying at any time, for any reason or no reason at all. But, dude -- you can't just start shrieking "Liar! Liar!" when your congressman tells you he had Cheerios for breakfast. You have to wait until there's actually some reason to think he didn't have Cheerios.
posted by steambadger at 2:27 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

Let's pull a Santorum on the dude and use Weiner to mean some gross sex thing from now on.
posted by rdc at 2:27 PM on June 6, 2011 [5 favorites]

He deserves a medal for not resigning.

A medal for repeatedly lying to the American people and not resigning? What would this medal be made out of exactly? Raw sewage? What other glorious American pursuits deserve medals nowadays?
posted by zachlipton at 2:27 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

"This whole mess just makes me glad that ~~Obama~~ Bush/Regan/Nixon, despite his flaws, is by all accounts a decent and honorable family man. "

Lies come in all shapes and sizes.
posted by lemuring at 2:27 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

*sigh* I have such (non-twitter picture related) love for that man, I hope this doesn't affect his career.
posted by nile_red at 2:27 PM on June 6, 2011

These are people who succeed, and get whatever they want for so long they may have forgotten what it feels like to fuck up.

I know. What kills me is that there are scores of cautionary tales out there, many of which have already been mentioned in this thread, showing what happens if you think (and act) with your dick. And they do it anyway. They quaff the power, get drunk off their asses, and throw it all away, over and over and over again.

On a side note, have any women in recent memory been caught acting stupidly like this, leading to a similar level of public humiliation? (That's not a nyah-nyah gambit just because I am a woman. I'm actually really curious, sort of in a scientific but-I'm-too-lazy-to-do-the-science kind of way.)
posted by flyingsquirrel at 2:28 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

"Can't anyone here play this game?" -Casey Stengel
posted by vibrotronica at 2:28 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

There's 0 chance he's going to resign over this, and he's not going to lose re-election. Nobody in his district is going to care by the time next november rolls around.
posted by empath at 2:29 PM on June 6, 2011

The only thing that really baffles me here is why he would use Twitter to send this picture to some girl. Savvy enough to hook up with chicks on the internet but not to realize other people can see these things?

The most plausible theory I've heard is that he might have intended to send it as a "direct message," meaning only she would see it, but he accidentally just tweeted it publicly with @[herusername], so it would be brought to her attention but anyone else could see it too. Not that a DM would have been a slick move either — no one, especially a politician, can count on their DMs staying private — but it wouldn't have been quite so spectacularly dumb.
posted by John Cohen at 2:29 PM on June 6, 2011

His fine judgement and smooth handling of the situation may deserve some kind of parade in Times Square

If anything, a parade in Times Square would point out how hypocritically Victorian the average American's sexual mores are these days. Not hamburgering.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 2:29 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

(also, to the above discussion about sending dick pics to people you know online....it happens to me A LOT and it is most of the time entirely unsolicited....now I don't talk to strangers as much actually)
posted by nile_red at 2:29 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Ah did not have tweets with that woman, Ms. Lewinsky.
posted by orthogonality at 2:29 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

In the future all smartphone crotch shots will automatically be posted to the cloud and Twitter notifications sent out.

With iClould, it automatically syncs to all your devices.
posted by Mcable at 2:29 PM on June 6, 2011

You have to wait until there's actually some reason to think he didn't have Cheerios.

My reason for thinking he didn't have Cheerios is because he just held a press conference to announce that he's been lying about what he had for breakfast.
posted by Trurl at 2:29 PM on June 6, 2011

He initially lied and said he was hacked, and for all we know he might have really thought he was.

Uh... He took a picture of his crotch and sent it on Twitter. He was very clear in his statement today that he deliberately lied about being hacked: "Once I realized I had posted it on Twitter I panicked, I took it down and said I'd been hacked." Why are you so keen on defending this exactly?
posted by zachlipton at 2:30 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

And if he's a teen or whatever, he probably has already texted out "dick-tures" like two dozen times by now.

I would guarantee that the majority of teen boys have never sent a dick-ture on their phone.

Can't quite bend my mind around the idea that there are people who enjoy sending (much less receiving, still much less imagining that a recipient would enjoy receiving) tweets/txts/emails with attached photos of attached members.

Huh. I thought Brett Favre made it mainstream behavior.

multiple emotional affairs

Emotional affairs happen all the time. As long as there is no sex, there is no problem. Emotional affair + sex is worse than just sex, yes, but emotional affairs only, with no sex = no problem. See: Karen Hughes.

So disappointing. What next? Bernie Sanders turns out to be a weekend Dominatrix?

Um, that would not be disappointing. That would be AWESOME. (Why can't a "weekend dominatrix" be one of the "good guys"?)
posted by mrgrimm at 2:30 PM on June 6, 2011 [5 favorites]

He made human mistakes that have nothing to do with his job performance.

In my eyes if a politico will sell out his life-partner for something "better", he'll do the same with his voters (see: Clinton and NAFTA). Also, in my eyes, if he doesn't have enough respect for the office that he was elected to not engage that sort of thing while he is in office then he is the wrong man for the position. I don't find his sending sexy pictures offensive at all, I find it offensive that he did it while married and in office.

_{I really liked that guy .... but then again I really liked Obama}
posted by Poet_Lariat at 2:30 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

I can't wrap my head around what he must have been thinking when he decided to do this. Does he not know what twitter is?

He said today that he accidentally publicly tweeted when he had meant to send a direct message. I get the impression he knows what twitter is better than most of his colleagues.
posted by cortex at 2:30 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

In my eyes if a politico will sell out his life-partner for something "better", he'll do the same with his voters (see: Clinton and NAFTA).

Obama promised to renegotiate NAFTA if elected and that is obviously never, ever, going to happen, Obama's apparent faithfulness to his wife notwithstanding, so I don't really see the relevance.
posted by enn at 2:32 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

What's an "emotional affair"? Is that like Jimmy Carter saying he had committed adultery because he had lusted after other women in his heart?
posted by vibrotronica at 2:32 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

The Weiner winked his winkie and now finds his balls in a vice. Ouch.
posted by cool breeze at 2:33 PM on June 6, 2011

Greg Nog: "I don't want to sound condescending here, but... it's REALLY REALLY EASY to not upload dick pics to the internet."

Lemme tell you Mr. Nog, it's easy to be on a high horse about this. I know, you think you can twitter at parties or with some friends but you never do it alone and you can stop any time you want. But every twatter eventually hits bottom. Keep going and just watch it happen. You'll be sending 10, 20 unsolicited pictures of your raging boner a day. Everyone thinks they're special when they start, everyone thinks they can handle it.
posted by idiopath at 2:33 PM on June 6, 2011 [13 favorites]

If David Vitter didn't resign, no way should Weiner have to.

Vitter's a Republican. The rules are different for them (in other words, Democrats have standards).

Hey, did you know Clarence Thomas accepted $100,000 from Citizen's United and didn't disclose it? How many stories about that have shown up in the "liberal" MSM?
posted by dirigibleman at 2:33 PM on June 6, 2011 [13 favorites]

[I say we let him go]

I didn't even need to see the link or watch the video and I was already laughing. One of my all-time faves. Now I have an uncontrollable urge to see the sequel (Big-Top Peewee) again. Thanks. I guess ...
posted by mrgrimm at 2:34 PM on June 6, 2011

A medal for repeatedly lying to the American people and not resigning? What would this medal be made out of exactly? Raw sewage? What other glorious American pursuits deserve medals nowadays?

Name one politician who hasn't lied to the American people. Oh this was about his personal life instead of actual policies that affect people's lives? Huge difference.
posted by delmoi at 2:34 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

Was Weiner's wife watching with wonder or whimsy?
posted by Renoroc at 2:34 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Name one politician who hasn't lied to the American people.

So you're saying that politicians should be rewarded for lying to the people?
posted by eyeballkid at 2:35 PM on June 6, 2011

What are you talking about? He claimed it was consensual. I believe him because there is no one saying otherwise.

It's been, like, 3 minutes. I imagine that all 6 women will now be exposed to some of the worst that exploitation "journalism" has to offer. Even if it was entirely consensual, I feel incredibly sorry for these women.

On one had I think it's sort of silly to resign over something like this (sans the clumsy PR and lying). On the other hand, where there's smoke there's fire, and if he doesn't resign now this might get a lot worse.
posted by muddgirl at 2:36 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

From now on, accidentally tweeting an lewd photo you meant to DM shall be known as a "Tweiner."
posted by fourcheesemac at 2:37 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

He said it was all consensual...

So did William Kennedy Smith.

Obviously there are people who claim they had consensual sex but are then convicted of rape or sexual assault. We don't need the Smith example to know that. But William Kennedy Smith isn't the greatest example either. I don't know what he actually did or didn't do, and there have clearly been several very serious allegations against him, but let's at least get the legal facts straight: he was acquitted of all charges.
posted by John Cohen at 2:37 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

There's 0 chance he's going to resign over this, and he's not going to lose re-election. Nobody in his district is going to care by the time next november rolls around.

It might hurt his mayoral plans. Supposedly he was going to run against Bloomberg.
posted by delmoi at 2:38 PM on June 6, 2011

Name one politician who hasn't lied to the American people.

So you're saying that politicians should be rewarded for lying to the people?

Why would you think that's what he meant?
posted by John Cohen at 2:38 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

So you're saying that politicians should be rewarded for lying to the people?

So you're saying all lies are equally damaging to the people?
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 2:38 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

It's just a huge disappointment that so many people with power (athletes and politicians) fail to be positive role models for kids who look up to them. For sure, I'm assuming more kids look up to/idolize athletes, but politicians play a prominant role in terms of media, etc. When you run for office or choose to make a gazillion dollars playing sports, perhaps being a role model isn't an express part of your contract, but for sure, it's part of the deal.
posted by anya32 at 2:39 PM on June 6, 2011

Well, I think this means we all need to start following Rep. Weiner on twitter, if only for the free twink porn.
posted by crunchland at 2:41 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

So you're saying that politicians should be rewarded for lying to the people?

I'm saying that lying is something that all politicians do, so it makes not sense to criticism them for lying about sex, cyber- or otherwise. Unless the real criticism is about the sex itself (at least with Clinton it was under oath)

And to be honest, I don't really feel that politicians should be obligated to answer questions about their personal lives to begin with. Why is this even anyone's business, other then pure gossip?

If this were some celeb, it might get a post on TMZ, but he probably wouldn't get asked about it, and no one would expect him to answer questions about it. But because he's a politician it's somehow everyone's business? Why?
posted by delmoi at 2:42 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

So you're saying all lies are equally damaging to the people?

Wha? I'm saying that nothing that Weiner has done since this episode started is deserving of any type of reward. I understand, he's a Democrat. You need to say whatever you can to defend whatever he did. Fine. But rewarding him for shitty judgement and lying to his family seems a bit of a stretch.
posted by eyeballkid at 2:42 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

This whole thing was intentionally timed to shut Weiner up about Clarence Thomas's revelation that his wife earned $100k from a Tea Party lobbying shop.

So, who's talking about that?
posted by T.D. Strange at 2:42 PM on June 6, 2011 [13 favorites]

cortex: "He said today that he accidentally publicly tweeted when he had meant to send a direct message."

Yeah, that's what I figured. I've done that before, although the tweets were, thank goodness, wangless.

What I find shocking is that Breitbart is still functioning at this point. Being correct about something must be a shock to his system.
posted by brundlefly at 2:43 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Dan Savage went ahead and quickly blogged his thoughts on the press conference. My favorite quote is

A reporter asks if Weiner was drinking or using drugs—if he has a problem—because only a man who has a drinking problem or a drug problem could get caught up in something like this. Do reporters know what men are like? (And lots of women too?) This desire to pathologize behavior that isn't sick—that is, indeed, very common and human and completely and instantly understandable—is itself pathological. Weiner does not have a problem. He has a computer. The whole world has Weiner's problem: same old horniness, brand new box.
posted by TypographicalError at 2:44 PM on June 6, 2011 [23 favorites]

When Sen. Larry Craig decided that a bathroom was a good place to find a sex partner, I thought for a minute and realized "That's okay by me." [If someone in the bathroom asks you if you want to have sex, you can always say "No".]

So this is okay with me too.
posted by benito.strauss at 2:44 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Of all his transgressions, the one I will have the most trouble getting beyond is the legitimacy he had endowed Breitbart with. That is a gagger.
posted by madamjujujive at 2:44 PM on June 6, 2011 [8 favorites]

It might hurt his mayoral plans. Supposedly he was going to run against Bloomberg.

I'm not sure it will hurt him. The city as a whole is more democrat than the 9th, that is just my take.
posted by Ad hominem at 2:45 PM on June 6, 2011

"A medal for repeatedly lying to the American people and not resigning? What would this medal be made out of exactly? Raw sewage? What other glorious American pursuits deserve medals nowadays?"

posted by eyeballkid at 2:46 PM on June 6, 2011

It's just a huge disappointment that so many people with power (athletes and politicians) fail to be positive role models for kids who look up to them.

Human beings gonna be human.

Prone to making all the foibles, ideosyncracies and mistakes that humans are going to make.

Rather than some abstract need to improve the world, all too often it's the urge to attract a wide range of sexual partners that causes men to go into high status fields like politics, professional sports and rock and roll in the first place.

Given that, it's hardly surprising that when they succeed, they're gonna take advantage of it.

And all that stuff about making the world a better place? Yeah, I'm sure they believe that stuff. Just like they really believe themselves when they tell their partners that they aren't gonna come in their mouths...

So when it happens, yeah, that's an accident as well.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 2:46 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

If this were some celeb, it might get a post on TMZ, but he probably wouldn't get asked about it, and no one would expect him to answer questions about it.

What about Brett Favre and Kanye West?
posted by shakespeherian at 2:46 PM on June 6, 2011

Name one politician who hasn't lied to the American people. Oh this was about his personal life instead of actual policies that affect people's lives? Huge difference.

So let's say you have an employee, maybe a housekeeper, and one day when you're not home, he accidentally breaks a lamp. Not a huge deal, mistakes happen, and you wouldn't have cared a whole lot if he came to you, told you what happened, and apologized. Instead of that, however, your employee tosses the broken lamp and insists for days that he had nothing to do with the lamp and it must have been burgled. He even says he's going to hire a PI to try to get to the bottom of what really happened. Later, he says he can't confirm that he had ever seen the lamp in question, that it didn't look familiar, but even if he had seen it, he definitely didn't knock it off the table. You spend a good deal of time trying to figure out what the heck is going on here. In the meantime, someone digs up photos of him breaking other things in your house, a fact which he has also hidden. A few days after that, he finally admits that he broke the lamp, lied about the burglary and everything else, and says he's sorry.

Aren't you pretty pissed about all the lies? The whole "there's been a robbery" thing? Wouldn't you be seriously re-evaluating this employee's position? I would think so.

Personally, his marital indiscretions aren't that big of a deal to me at all, as long as he wasn't harassing anyone or anything of that sort. But you have to really question the judgement of someone who chooses to lie so strongly and for so long in this situation, especially when it was obvious to all of us that he wasn't fooling anybody. That behavior isn't about his personal life; it's how he choose to conduct himself in the public eye, and that is a big difference.
posted by zachlipton at 2:47 PM on June 6, 2011 [5 favorites]

This must be welcome news to Clarence Thomas, since Weiner was pushing him to recuse himself over conflicts of interest on health care reform.
posted by homunculus at 2:48 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

Powerful men and their penises! Tonight at 11!

Stupid. So stupid.
posted by cavalier at 2:48 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

You need to say whatever you can to defend whatever he did.

I have criticized Democrats here many times. I don't particularly care that he's a Democrat. I just care that the country is falling apart because Americans are hypocrites, and I think he should be lauded for standing up and continuing to do his job despite your side's myopic obsessions about sex, to the exclusion of any and all other legitimate and more important concerns.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 2:48 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

He'll weather this, and hopefully it makes him less naive and more tough with the Right. And I hope he still gets to be Mayor of NYC.

The sad thing, is that running for President is probably pretty done, and that's a shame. He's bright, capable guy who's not even 50 yet. But who knows what the future holds.

As mentioned already, this gives Breitbart a credibility that he's going to use to do major damage to the country by fucking over Obama if he can pull it off...and he'll pull anything for that.
posted by Skygazer at 2:49 PM on June 6, 2011

I would guarantee that the majority of teen boys have never sent a dick-ture on their phone.

I would say the exact opposite. "Dick-tures" are very, very common in junior highs, high schools, and colleges. I'm not sure WHY young men think that young women want to receive these sorts of pictures, but I can tell you that they are a normal part of "courtship" and "flirtation" these days.
posted by SkylitDrawl at 2:49 PM on June 6, 2011

I don't want to sound condescending here, but... it's REALLY REALLY EASY to not upload dick pics to the internet.

Yeah, wait for iOS 5 and say that.
posted by flashboy at 2:49 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

The Daily Show weighs in.

The "Big Wang Theory" is a meme that was posited by the National Lampoon, back in the 70's, during the Ford-Carter campaign. The quote from it that I remember is "Even Shirley Chisolm has a bigger bird than Jerry Ford".

*Sigh* The more things change. . . .
posted by Danf at 2:49 PM on June 6, 2011

zachlipton, that is an awful analogy, in that "breaking a lamp" is pretty clearly harmful to you, whereas no one should ever ever give a shit about a politician's sex life unless it is criminal.
posted by TypographicalError at 2:49 PM on June 6, 2011 [7 favorites]

zachlipton, that analogy makes sense if Weiner sending sexy pictures to women hurts me in any way. Which is to say, it doesn't.
posted by 0xFCAF at 2:49 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

You ever notice how this kind of stuff seems to happen to Democrats from NY state who taunt the Ring Wing? Like a lot?

Fortunately for Democrats from NY state who taunt the Right Wing* I have identified a very simple method for avoiding this phenomenon in the future: Don't tweet your junk! Don't hire a prostitute! Don't cheat on your wife! In short, keep it in your pants while you're an elected official. I understand it may be hard**, but we all have to sacrifice for our country...

*I assume you actually meant "Right Wing" and not "Ring Wing"
**pun intended
posted by pardonyou? at 2:49 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Rather than some abstract need to improve the world, all too often it's the urge to attract a wide range of sexual partners that causes men to go into high status fields like politics, professional sports and rock and roll in the first place.

Do you really think that is the order PeterMcDermott, or is it possible that it's a result of being in that position of power? Or, because humans are humans, perhaps it is a mixture. Some people with "limited power" do things that are outside of their agreements with their partner(s).
posted by anya32 at 2:50 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Hey, did you know Clarence Thomas accepted $100,000 from Citizen's United and didn't disclose it?

Hey, I did!

How many stories about that have shown up in the "liberal" MSM?

Fox News - 10/10 (followup 3/11)
CNN - 1/11
CS Monitor - 1/11 (followup 3/11 (admittedly Robert Reich))
CBS News - 1/11
New York Times - 1/11

...

I want to frame this post on a wall somewhere and gaze on it when I find myself optimistically imagining that the American Left will ever amount to anything. Jesus.

The few, lonely American "leftists" are generally not members of the Democratic or Republican Parties. But no, we probably won't amount to much. I'm banking on immiseration to do the work for us ... but I've been waiting a while.
posted by mrgrimm at 2:52 PM on June 6, 2011 [5 favorites]

When Sen. Larry Craig decided that a bathroom was a good place to find a sex partner, I thought for a minute and realized "That's okay by me."

The issue with Larry Craig is that he's a hypocrite (and a liar, and sort of an idiot). I don't care if he trolls for sex in men's bathrooms. I care that he persecutes his political opponents for similar misdeeds, and lies right in the face of a cop.

The issue with Rep. Weiner is he's a liar, and bad at PR. Being bad at PR is probably the worst possible political crime.
posted by muddgirl at 2:52 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

So, who's talking about that?

I'd love to hear this tomorrow, "Yeah, as I said yesterday, it was my dick. I know, impressive, right? Anyhow let's get back to this whole $800,000 on Thomas' filings, or his conflict of interest in failing to recuse himself when appropriate. Because, unlike my dick, this is something that might actually affect the majority of Americans."
posted by quin at 2:52 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

When you run for office... being a role model ... is part of the deal.

Exactly! This made me think of Christina Taylor Green, who attended the Giffords rally because she was "interested in civics and leadership." (She was 9 years old.)

And I'm sorry, but the whole "humans gotta be human" argument doesn't fly with me. I don't care how horny you are, when you're in office, you are assuming the mantel of representation, speaking for those you represent. Is it really too much to expect that people respect that responsibility, at least until they're back in the private sector?
posted by flyingsquirrel at 2:53 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

Do you really think that is the order PeterMcDermott, or is it possible that it's a result of being in that position of power? Or, because humans are humans, perhaps it is a mixture. Some people with "limited power" do things that are outside of their agreements with their partner(s).

In modern times (perhaps always), politicans are generally wealthier and more attractive than most people (obviously exceptions excepting). Their jobs often give them easy opportunities to cheat. Of course they are going to cheat more, because they can.

Being bad at PR is probably the worst possible political crime.

Ew. That's as distasteful as suggesting that "voting with my dollar" is more important than actually voting. Double ew.

Is it really too much to expect that people respect that responsibility, at least until they're back in the private sector?

What responsiblity? Not to be sexual?
posted by mrgrimm at 2:54 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

SPITZER - WEINER '16 !
posted by gracchus at 2:55 PM on June 6, 2011

it's REALLY REALLY EASY to not upload dick pics to the internet.

Yeah, wait for iOS 5 and say that.

Yeah, there you are in your transparent-pocket-pants that you love so much, and you're walking around with your new iPhone and the hot new iOS 5, and now they set up the volume button so it snaps a picture in the Camera app, and plus not to mention the whole shebang is all hooked up to Twitter from the get-go, and before you know it, everybody's got dicktures on their twitter streams.
posted by kingbenny at 2:56 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Damn. This is hard news.

I'll bet he wished he took the situation in hand earlier and pounded out a solution before the issue grew to this proportion.
posted by mmrtnt at 2:56 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

Man, this is a totally different thread than if it was Rep. Weiner (R - wherever).
posted by TheFlamingoKing at 2:56 PM on June 6, 2011 [12 favorites]

zachlipton, that is an awful analogy, in that "breaking a lamp" is pretty clearly harmful to you, whereas no one should ever ever give a shit about a politician's sex life unless it is criminal.

My intent was to go for something that doesn't really please me (like a minor home accident), but that I wouldn't care about all that much. If you prefer, feel free to substitute a different personal mistake that doesn't directly involve my home.
posted by zachlipton at 2:57 PM on June 6, 2011

I just care that the country is falling apart because Americans are hypocrites, and I think he should be lauded for standing up and continuing to do his job despite your side's myopic obsessions about sex, to the exclusion of any and all other legitimate and more important concerns.

Ah, yes. My side, which, politically, happens to be your side. I find it hard to classify your urge to reward him for his clumsy response to this situation as anything but blind political boosterism. Which, while sharing most of your progressive political views, I don't have the taste for.
posted by eyeballkid at 2:57 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

"I'll show them! I'll show them how many boners Weiner can make!"
posted by Mr. Bad Example at 2:58 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Yeah, wait for iOS 5 and say that.

Multitouch. Haptic feedback. In a couple more revs, people will mostly be scoffing and saying, "really, who still takes pictures of their junk?"
posted by cortex at 2:58 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

Greg Sargent: "But if you think this story is over, you’re kidding yourselves. The press corps seemed at its most excited when the presser veered into the question of whether the women he engaged in online relations were under age ... The chyron on Fox News right now: WEINER (D): TO THE BEST OF MY KNOWLEDGE, THEY WERE ADULTS.
posted by madamjujujive at 2:59 PM on June 6, 2011

Ew. That's as distasteful as suggesting that "voting with my dollar" is more important than actually voting. Double ew.

I'm talking about politics here. Is there a worse political crime than mismanagement of a scandal?
posted by muddgirl at 2:59 PM on June 6, 2011

SPITZER - WEINER '16

Don't you mean ...

SPITZER + WEINER = 12"
posted by mrgrimm at 2:59 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

let's at least get the legal facts straight: he was acquitted of all charges.

After the judge excluded deposition statements from three other women claming Smith had raped or tried to rape them.

Look, if you want to believe William Kennedy Smith or Representative Weiner or any other Democrat in the spotlight for sexual misconduct, go right ahead. But saying "Weiner said it was consensual; shouldn't that be enough for you?" is not going to be tenable at this point.
posted by Trurl at 3:01 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

And I'm sorry, but the whole "humans gotta be human" argument doesn't fly with me. I don't care how horny you are, when you're in office, you are assuming the mantel of representation, speaking for those you represent. Is it really too much to expect that people respect that responsibility, at least until they're back in the private sector?

This is bullshit. You could use the same argument to say that parents, police officers, and many other people in positions of power which command respect shouldn't ever be sexual people. Or more correctly, that they shouldn't be sexual in a way that makes you uncomfortable. Which is a ridiculous and unobtainable standard.
posted by TypographicalError at 3:01 PM on June 6, 2011 [5 favorites]

Don't you mean ...

SPITZER + WEINER = 12"

Are you seriously alleging that Spitzer has a two inch penis?
posted by zylocomotion at 3:02 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

My intent was to go for something that doesn't really please me (like a minor home accident), but that I wouldn't care about all that much. If you prefer, feel free to substitute a different personal mistake that doesn't directly involve my home.

So, if you found out your housekeeper was having an extramarital affair and lied to you about it, then you'd feel free to fire her? Either you're composing an awful analogy or you are a miserably cruel person.
posted by TypographicalError at 3:03 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

zylocomotion: " Are you seriously alleging that Spitzer has a two inch penis?"

Have ya seen the photo? :D
posted by zarq at 3:03 PM on June 6, 2011

I would say the exact opposite. "Dick-tures" are very, very common in junior highs, high schools, and colleges. I'm not sure WHY young men think that young women want to receive these sorts of pictures, but I can tell you that they are a normal part of "courtship" and "flirtation" these days.

How can that be true, your statements don't pass the sniff test for me? Or am I just way out of touch (possible).
posted by Falconetti at 3:03 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Man, this is a totally different thread than if it was Rep. Weiner (R - wherever).

I honestly think not, but true, there wouldn't be as many lamentations for the bad political news.

I'd like to think that most MF contributors wouldn't base their own opinions of a political event based on their party affiliations. I'd think Weiner should keep his job regardless of whether he's blue, red, or purple. (Unless it turns out he was Favre-ing women, which would certainly be harassment.)

It really all depends on whether it was consensual and/or how the pictures were received. If the recipients don't care, neither should we.

Are you seriously alleging that Spitzer has a two inch penis?

I had not seen (or know about) Spitzer's 10" dong. I assumed they were both average dudes...
posted by mrgrimm at 3:03 PM on June 6, 2011

What responsibility? Not to be sexual?

No. The responsibility not to be so stupid as to risk their own credibility by serving selfish needs, whatever those needs may be. Yes, we're all human, and we're all sexual, in one way or another. But being human means we have the gift of free will. I couldn't care less that he took a photo of his crotch, but I do care that he chose to tweet it, and that he chose to lie about it. We all do stupid, human shit. I guess I expect a bit less stupidity, and a bit more responsibleness, from those elected to public office.
posted by flyingsquirrel at 3:04 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

oops, switch ... and ... uh ... nevermind
posted by mrgrimm at 3:04 PM on June 6, 2011

Man, this is a totally different thread than if it was Rep. Weiner (R - wherever).

Yep, but in fairness, it's because the Republicans alway beat that Family Values drum really hard when campaigning. So their scandals always get that extra glaze of hypocrisy on the top that is so delicious when served with schadenfreude.
posted by quin at 3:04 PM on June 6, 2011 [13 favorites]

I'd like to make a public service announcement.

If you are a public official, and you are tempted to send a picture of your junk to someone you are not married to (or engaging in sexual intercourse with) please understand that most of us women do NOT particularly enjoy looking at penises or men's underwear containing penises. We are quite aware that men have them, and we usually know what to do if we wish to see one. If we have not informed you we want to see it, WE DON'T.

In other words, there are way more productive ways to be a scumbag than this one. So if you MUST express your inner schmuckness, you might want to reconsider this particular method.

And now, you know.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I am at the point when I seriously think that 90 percent of all politicians on either side of the aisle are not people who I would be comfortable having in my home or dating one of my children or being anywhere near one of my grandchildren. Please someone tell me, are all men horndogs to this extent or is there something about power that corrupts to this degree? I hate feeling this way but honestly I wonder if it can be helped.
posted by St. Alia of the Bunnies at 3:04 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

I'm kinda surprised Weiner's so hairless. Electrolysis? Waxing?
posted by orthogonality at 3:05 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

olbermann
i submit that it was YOU SIR, it was YOU. it was YOUR CLOTHED MALE ERECTION, sir.
/olbermann
posted by nathancaswell at 3:06 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Damn, this thread is getting engorged with comments fast.
posted by homunculus at 3:07 PM on June 6, 2011 [5 favorites]

I maintain that the NY Post headline should have been: DICK POSTS WEINER PICS.
posted by abcde at 3:07 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

WEINER EXPOSED
posted by Zozo at 3:08 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

This is the kind of stupid shit I'm supposed to be outraged by?
posted by Redfield at 3:09 PM on June 6, 2011

I'd like to think that most MF contributors wouldn't base their own opinions of a political event based on their party affiliations.

So would I, but that's generally not the case. Look around.
posted by to sir with millipedes at 3:10 PM on June 6, 2011

I'm kinda surprised Weiner's so hairless. Electrolysis? Waxing?

Finally, someone is raising issues I actually care about. You know, as much as this whole scandal doesn't impress me, if we get a full monty pic and I find out he waxes his balls, I'm throwing twenty years of voting history in the can and registering Republican.
posted by zylocomotion at 3:11 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

I find it hard to classify your urge to reward him for his clumsy response to this situation as anything but blind political boosterism.

I don't particularly care about his political affiliation, and I often criticize Democrats here. However hard it is for you to grasp this fact, it doesn't make you any less wrong or obnoxious about pursuing this thread of yours.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 3:11 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

What about Brett Favre and Kanye West?

What about 'em? Honestly I didn't really follow those stories, but other then embarrassment, it didn't seem to cause either one any actual problems, did it?

So let's say you have an employee, maybe a housekeeper, and one day when you're not home, he accidentally breaks a lamp. Not a huge deal, mistakes happen, and you wouldn't have cared a whole lot if he came to you, told you what happened, and apologized. Instead of that, however, your employee tosses the broken lamp and insists for days that he had nothing to do with the lamp and it must have been burgled.

What if, instead of your lamp, he broke his wife's lamp, at their house, on the weekend. How is it any of your business? And why are you even asking him about it?

The assumption your making is that somehow the sex lives of politicians are your 'property' or something. That's what's so weird about this. How many of you who seem to think he personally betrayed you even live in his district?
posted by delmoi at 3:12 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

eef that press conference was painful
posted by angrycat at 3:12 PM on June 6, 2011

Suggest that all boys be exposed to classic art before they are allowed to use the internet. There is a reason for that fig leaf.
posted by Cranberry at 3:13 PM on June 6, 2011

This is bullshit. You could use the same argument to say that parents, police officers, and many other people in positions of power which command respect shouldn't ever be sexual people. Or more correctly, that they shouldn't be sexual in a way that makes you uncomfortable. Which is a ridiculous and unobtainable standard.

If a politician wants to be in an open marriage or privately practice other legal non-mainstream sexual practices, I have absolutely no problem with that. When a public figure in a position of trust literally screws over his wife in an extremely public setting like this, that does give me some reason to believe that his judgement is questionable, but I can accept that it's a private matter between him and his wife, and won't particularly care. When that same public figure repeatedly lies to my face about it and starts concocting BS to cover for his lies, we're well past the questionable judgement stage.

No one is seriously saying that people in positions of public trust shouldn't ever have sex. No one is saying they can't flirt or engage in legal practices that make me uncomfortable. I'm saying that you look like a moron when you so publicly make a fool out of your wife and do such a pathetic job of lying to try to cover it up.
posted by zachlipton at 3:14 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

Pols are by some definition thrill seekers. Doing something transgressive and getting away with it produces a pretty mindblowing mental high to people who are into that kind of thing - and clearly he is that kind of person. Getting away with things is FUN. It's more fun the higher the stakes are, and the more you get away with highstakes stupid shit like this, the more highstakes stupid shit you do.

I don't think it says too much about him as person other than that he is a thrill-seeker who needs to take up base-jumping or something so he doesn't get into this position again. And I understand why he lied, because I understand the impulse to protect yourself when you fuck up. Do I wish he hadn't done it? Yeah. But whatever. He's not a bad person, he just made a really stupid decision.

This applies pretty directly to the idiocy of posting CraigsList ads of yourself a la that Republican guy, but I think when you get into paying people to keep quiet we're getting into other territory (Ensign).
posted by Medieval Maven at 3:16 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

For those who say he's putting his seat at risk, keep in mind Barny Frank's boyfriend was actually caught having a gay prostitute working out of his apartment, and he didn't have any trouble getting re-elected, and this was in the 1980s. But I bet you guys would be calling for Frank's head in 1989.
posted by delmoi at 3:16 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

ABC Releases Interview With Weiner Woman.
posted by madamjujujive at 3:17 PM on June 6, 2011

Nobody waxes their scrotum, do they? Trimming with an electric manscaper, sure. Shaving, ok, I guess maybe. But waxing?

The first result for 'brazilian scrotum' on Google seems to indicate that the answer is: people do.
posted by TypographicalError at 3:18 PM on June 6, 2011

Ow! Don't want hot wax anywhere near der weiner-spitzer.
posted by jenkinsEar at 3:19 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

When that same public figure repeatedly lies to my face about it and starts concocting BS to cover for his lies, we're well past the questionable judgement stage.

Yeah, I meant his hairless chest.
posted by orthogonality at 3:20 PM on June 6, 2011

I have a Weiner. In my pants.
posted by loquacious at 3:21 PM on June 6, 2011

SPITZER - WEINER '16

And when, as in 2000, the election breaks down and has to be resolved by the Supreme Court, the decision will be called Santorum v. Weiner.
posted by homunculus at 3:21 PM on June 6, 2011 [9 favorites]

Man, this is a totally different thread than if it was Rep. Weiner (R - wherever).

What did happen when Republican Christopher Lee did almost exactly the same thing? Comments from that thread:

"Anyway, there's not much here. Dipshit tries to cheat on his wife and the intended target sends it all to the media. Instant sex scandal in a few clicks. Boring. He didn'teven seem like a particularly nefarious congress critter, for a Republican anyway."

"Why the hell did he resign? Larry Craig, David Vitter and Mark Sanford were all fine. Sex scandals don't matter if youre a Republican, they're expected and FAUX News will have your back every single time. This guy had an inferior staff, they should've told him to lay low and wait a week, he would've been off the news radar in under 2 news cycles. He should sue for politcal malpractice."

"I must admit I'm shocked he bothered to resigned. There was no sex. No "R-rated" nudity. No meetup or hookup. He didn't actually cheat on his wife. He flirted with someone and lied to them on the internet and was quickly caught.

There's either more to this story or he's the world's biggest idiot"

"But I really don't care if politicians have extramarital affairs, as long as they're doing their jobs. And I'd kindly suggest that they refrain from giving a crap about my marital affairs as well."

"Shouldn't we be glad he resigned, applaud his decision, and hope that it sets a precedent? No way."

It actually looks... a lot the same?
posted by 0xFCAF at 3:22 PM on June 6, 2011 [33 favorites]

From the interview of one of the women:

During one flirtatious Facebook chat last month, Broussard said, she issued the man on the other end a challenge.

“I asked him to take a picture and write ‘me’ on it so I would know,” Broussard said in an interview.

This is one of the reason men do this kind of thing: because women straight up ask them too.
posted by delmoi at 3:22 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

> This is one of the reason men do this kind of thing: because women straight up ask them too.

Men, all too often, think with the wrong head.
posted by narwhal bacon at 3:26 PM on June 6, 2011

What about Brett Favre and Kanye West?

What about 'em? Honestly I didn't really follow those stories, but other then embarrassment, it didn't seem to cause either one any actual problems, did it?

Brett Favre was investigated by the NFL for sexual harrassment and fined $50,000 (which, admittedly, isn't that much compared to his salary). He was probably going to retire anyway, but the investigation sealed the deal on that and also almost certainly cost him millions of endorsement dollars in the short term. It could have been a lot worse for him, but I wouldn't say he wasn't caused any actual problems. Favre also sent his pictures to someone who hadn't asked for them and didn't want to see them, and that's the line between essentially harmless if idiotic behavior and harrassment that is not acceptable from anyone.
posted by Copronymus at 3:27 PM on June 6, 2011

What about Brett Favre and Kanye West?
What about 'em? Honestly I didn't really follow those stories, but other then embarrassment, it didn't seem to cause either one any actual problems, did it?

Pretty sure it cost Favre at least $50,000 and any chance to stay in the NFL.

He's also being sued for sexual harassment. I would venture to guess Favre wishes the whole thing didn't happen.

Shaving, ok, I guess maybe.

Maybe? I know plenty of gay fellows who shave their balls. Must be the crowd I run with. (Now why they tell me about it ... that might be the real question here.) They have never mentioned waxing, and I can't imagine it myself, but it is a thing.

It actually looks... a lot the same?

Yep, I was gonna look up that old Chris Lee post. That's about how I remember it.

ABC Releases Interview With Weiner Woman.

Sure sounds like it was consensual - at least with that example.
posted by mrgrimm at 3:28 PM on June 6, 2011

Nancy Pelosi calls for Anthony Weiner ethics inquiry

The calls by Pelosi and Israel for an ethics investigation dramatically raise the political stakes for Weiner. While he stated repeatedly during an emotional press conference on Monday that he had broken no laws nor violated House ethics rules during his interaction with the women, a probe by the House Ethics Committee could find differently.

And it also could provide Pelosi and other Democratic leaders with political cover to call on Weiner to step down. So far, none of his Democratic colleagues have called on him to give up the seat that he first won in 1998.

posted by BobbyVan at 3:28 PM on June 6, 2011

You still haven't named a politician who hasn't lied to the American people. Remember when Obama said that deep water drilling was totally safe? Or that nuclear power was totally safe because Japan and France could do it? Or that we've had enough stimulus and need to worry about the debt? I'm sure you could find plenty of other examples

I never said that I'm all well and good with lying about policy issues, but I think there's a pretty big difference between the kinds of statements you're discussing here and the kind of lie Weiner told. The comments about deep water drilling, nuclear power, debt, etc... are speculative in nature. Obama didn't willfully lie about deep water drilling; he supported it, there was a terrible accident, he became much more critical of it. The same pretty much goes for nuclear power. Changing your mind (or flip-flopping, if we must call it that) is not the same thing as lying. It might or might not be hypocritical, bad policy, and/or bad PR, but it's not lying.

In contrast, Weiner was caught doing something "bad," and within less than a day he started insisting that he didn't do any such thing and was hacked. That's a knowing and deliberate lie. He had many chances over a matter of days to change his mind about this lie and to come clean, but he did not. Only after more photos emerged did he fess up. This isn't a broken campaign promise or a reversal of previous political views, it's a blatant lie no more sophisticated than "No mommy. I didn't take the last cookie from the cookie jar. Honest."
posted by zachlipton at 3:30 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

So disappointing. What next? Bernie Sanders turns out to be a weekend Dominatrix?

Not gonna happen...
'cause -trix is a Latin female suffix.

(Maybe a dominator)
posted by dhens at 3:32 PM on June 6, 2011

It actually looks... a lot the same?

From the same thread:

Shouldn't we be glad he resigned, applaud his decision, and hope that it sets a precedent?

Cheating legislators don't just hurt their families. They are a potential threat to National Security.

I'm happy to see a Republican crucified over the most minor of sex scandals any day of the week.

Fuck their hypocrisy and corruption, may they dragged through the streets muddied and bloodied before being run out of town on a rail.

... I don't think it's really out of line to question his personal integrity...

I could care less about his extramarital sexual activity, but I'm glad he's gone anyway.

I tend to think it's the broader questions related to the basic character and honesty of the politician that are the real issues people are honing in on in scandals like these.

If a person will lie to their spouse, then I have to assume they'll lie to anyone, about anything. And that's not someone I think should be holding public office.
posted by Trurl at 3:32 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

...which just proves that we generally treat Republican and Democratic legislators with an even hand.
posted by muddgirl at 3:34 PM on June 6, 2011

Christopher Hitchens: How Anthony Weiner and John Edwards lost control of their private parts.
posted by homunculus at 3:35 PM on June 6, 2011

You know, given that many of us (liberals) are questioning Weiner's integrity, character, and honesty.
posted by muddgirl at 3:35 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

"Humiliating and dark news conference" and "political self-immolation" -- interesting phrasing from Brian Williams, a couple of minutes ago on NBC Nightly News (where it was the top story).
posted by flyingsquirrel at 3:36 PM on June 6, 2011

I'm just wondering, do women ever.... like ever in real life...... ask men they are flirting with on the Internet to send them photos of their penis? Show of hands? Does this even happen?

"I'm getting tired of photos of your face and body. Please just show me a photo of your crotch."
posted by y6y6y6 at 3:38 PM on June 6, 2011

This is one of the reason men do this kind of thing: because women straight up ask them too.

Seriously? ??
posted by Poet_Lariat at 3:39 PM on June 6, 2011

The fuck is Pelosi on about? Way to kowtow to the wrong side, dofus.
posted by klangklangston at 3:39 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

I think this whole fiasco is a real sign of the times, though- the people in office representing us have NO FUCKING UNDERSTANDING OF TECHNOLOGY. Which scares me.
posted by dunkadunc at 3:39 PM on June 6, 2011

The fuck is Pelosi on about? Way to kowtow to the wrong side, dofus.

It's called cutting (erm) your losses.
posted by Danf at 3:40 PM on June 6, 2011

p.s. The fact that five American soldiers were killed in Iraq today -- the worst single day there since 2009 -- was only the fourth story on NBC Nightly News. Sigh.
posted by flyingsquirrel at 3:42 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

Wiener Womannn! Wiener Womannn!

All the Dems are counting on youuuu!
posted by Trurl at 3:42 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

I'd like him to resign just on this basis alone: You can't be in Congress if you don't know how technology like this works, at a basic level. This is easy. Deciding on awesomely complicated health care legislation is difficult. If you can't do easy, we don't let you do difficult. Period. Next?
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 3:43 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Man, this is a totally different thread than if it was Rep. Weiner (R - wherever).

Well, for me, that's because hypothetical Weiner (R) would belong to the party that can't seem to keep out of everybody's else's bedroom business.

I wouldn't expect a Republican weiner to resign either, though, even if I'd want him too. The fact that sex scandals between consenting adults can even be scandals is exactly why we get the narcissists that do this kind of shit to begin with. Anybody with the good sense to want to keep their relationship with their partner private wouldn't run for office anyway.

And as for the morality police who scream "what about the wronged Lady Weiner? If she can't trust him, why should I?" Please -- what about her? Are you part of their relationship? Powerful couples have been having 'understandings' forever. You judging the morality of this person by the public face they are forced to present because of the puritanical standards of the masses. There's probably a long way between the "truth" and what you think it is. And it's none of your business
posted by MCMikeNamara at 3:44 PM on June 6, 2011

So Slate legal editor Dahlia Lithwick is writing a book about the bullying of Phoebe Cates that probably contributed to her suicide.

Lithwick sez the teenage girls say the boys ask them for nude shots. That it's become a thing -- you've fucked? you've given blow jobs? you've sexted nude shots?

And I guess, maybe the boys think that the girls want the cock shots? I don't know.
posted by angrycat at 3:46 PM on June 6, 2011

And as much as I too would like to insist that congresspeople who aren't smart enough to use technology correctly resign, I'm afraid the fact that he can log in at all puts him miles ahead of others.

Then again, there's a lot of representatives who I wouldn't count on as being able to spell URL.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 3:47 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

What's an "emotional affair"? Is that like Jimmy Carter saying he had committed adultery because he had lusted after other women in his heart?

I'm sorry, but this is a pet peeve of mine.

Carter was quoting Jesus. In fact, he was explicit that he was quoting Jesus.

And he wasn't simply blurting out "I have lusted in my heart" as a bizarre confession; rather, he was using it to demonstrate a point: No one is perfect; being perfect is an unachievable standard. For example (Carter says), Jesus said that if you have lusted in your heart, you have committed adultery.

That's essentially an impossible standard to live up to, but nonetheless it's the standard that Jesus asks you to live up to. And, so, we shouldn't judge others just because they have specific failings that differ from our specific failings; we all have failings.

Here is what he said in context:

I try not to commit a deliberate sin. I recognize that I'm going to do it anyhow, because I'm human and I'm tempted. And Christ set some almost impossible standards for us. Christ said. "I tell you that anyone who looks on a woman with lust has in his heart already committed adultery."

I've looked on a lot of women with lust. I've committed adultery in my heart many times. This is something that God recognizes I will do—and I have done it—and God forgives me for it. But that doesn't mean that I condemn someone who not only looks on a woman with lust but who leaves his wife and shacks up with somebody out of wedlock.

Christ says, Don't consider yourself better than someone else because one guy screws a whole bunch of women while the other guy is loyal to his wife. The guy who's loyal to his wife ought not to be condescending or proud because of the relative degree of sinfulness.

As I have said before on this site, I've often found it interesting that the right-wingers who hit on him the hardest and the most frequently for this fundamentally decent statement are typically, ostensibly, Christians.
posted by Flunkie at 3:49 PM on June 6, 2011 [32 favorites]

So Slate legal editor Dahlia Lithwick is writing a book about the bullying of Phoebe Cates that probably contributed to her suicide.

This is not the Phoebe you're looking for.
posted by Trurl at 3:49 PM on June 6, 2011 [7 favorites]

I vote this thread ~~Dong~~Longboat/PalinThread 2011
posted by filthy light thief at 3:53 PM on June 6, 2011

“When I become mayor, you know what I’m going to spend my first year doing?” Mr. Weiner said to Mr. Bloomberg, as tablemates listened. “I’m going to have a bunch of ribbon-cuttings tearing out your [expletive] bike lanes.”

You'd think he'd be pro-bike lanes--the better to advertise his junk to the young ladies.
posted by mandymanwasregistered at 3:54 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

It's true, Pelosi just called for Weiner probe
posted by found missing at 3:56 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

I'm pretty prudish and couldn't imagine putting pics of my junk on the Internet. But I also don't understand why this is such a massage scandal. He shouldn't resign.
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 3:58 PM on June 6, 2011

no 5X8 glossy?
posted by clavdivs at 3:58 PM on June 6, 2011

massage scandal?
posted by angrycat at 3:59 PM on June 6, 2011

But I also don't understand why this is such a massage scandal.

Autocorrect WIN.
posted by flashboy at 4:00 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

no 5X8 glossy?

more like wallet size
posted by 2bucksplus at 4:01 PM on June 6, 2011

But I also don't understand why this is such a massage scandal.

This thread is getting delicious.
posted by dirigibleman at 4:04 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

It's true, Pelosi just called for Weiner probe

I hope the Congressman expresses his displeasure.

PELOSI CHAFES WEINER
posted by Trurl at 4:06 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

All self-righteous soapboxing aside, PELOSI CHAFES WEINER is pretty damn funny.
posted by flyingsquirrel at 4:10 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Every other metafilter thread gets let say 40 posts. Add politics and multiply baseline by 2.567. And sex or anatomy and multiply by 3.3698.
posted by oxford blue at 4:11 PM on June 6, 2011

I like bike lanes, so frankly fuck him. I'd like to see all the NYC mayoral contenders disqualified so brutally.
posted by zvs at 4:12 PM on June 6, 2011

Weiner says the bike lane thing was a joke.
posted by Flunkie at 4:15 PM on June 6, 2011

Mr. Weiner said the indiscretion was part of a pattern of sending inappropriate and at times explicit photos and messages to women he met over the Internet.

Needless to say, I did not click any of the links here while I was at work. I was prepared to be all "whatever, why are people making such a big deal out of one stupid photo." But after reading this? Fuck him. What an idiot.
posted by desjardins at 4:18 PM on June 6, 2011

Every other metafilter thread gets let say 40 posts. Add politics and multiply baseline by 2.567. And sex or anatomy and multiply by 3.3698.

This is actually calculable with the Infodump, if anyone is so inclined; correlate comment counts for threads with various tags from the tag file. I know one mefite actually calculated the "palin" factor at one point and it was significant.
posted by cortex at 4:20 PM on June 6, 2011

Well, at least there's no more danger of his being blackmailed.

Not on this thing, anyway.
posted by IndigoJones at 4:24 PM on June 6, 2011

something something at least he didn't send naked pix of himself to every Cosmo subscriber.

But seriously, man, I thought you were better than this. I can accept you having a scandal. Everyone has a personal life and everyone makes a few bad decisions, but to be awkward and joke and lie about it before coming clean? You just made yourself look untrustworthy and weird. And you were one of the few Democrats who had any fight left. Kucinich has got his head in the sky and is likely to get gerrymandered away, and sadly, there is only one Barney Frank. Have fun watching your party find innovative ways to over-compromise with the Republicans.
posted by mccarty.tim at 4:25 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

I'm actually surprised at the support this guy is getting. Listen, people. Any politician, knowing what happens when the US media gets even a whiff of sex, who sends lewd and semi-naked pictures to random women using HIS PERSONAL TWITTER ACCOUNT, is too goddamned STUPID to represent anyone.

Seriously? Five minute to set up a fresh account under a pseudonym would have saved everybody all of this.

Honestly, what kind of FUCKING RETARD... [rest of comment redacted for excessive rantiness].
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 4:28 PM on June 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

it's REALLY REALLY EASY to not upload dick pics to the internet

Tell that to Dick's mother.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 4:29 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

Cause Weiner jokes were just too easy.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 4:30 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

It’s really outrageous. The implication is outrageous. First of all, if you ask the question, if it’s outrageous, I have a right to say it’s outrageous.
posted by eunoia at 4:31 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Here it is.

Damn it, I held off all day, too. It's not easy, as a young guy, to not upload these things.
posted by mccarty.tim at 4:31 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

Anthony Weiner’s Apology Speech (Presented By Guilty Looking Dachshunds)
posted by Trurl at 4:35 PM on June 6, 2011 [11 favorites]

His career in the house is over. Which of his colleagues will want to co-sponsor legislation with him, campaign with him, or have him campaign for them? No one. None of them will want to be subjected to election ads that show them with Anthony Weiner. Contributions? They're going to dry up.

I was a big fan of the guy's political values and I'm surprised and disappointed he could do something so stupid, and even stupider yet, lie through his teeth repeatedly. He actually scheduled press interviews specifically so he could outright lie about what he did. Bewildering.
posted by Daddy-O at 4:35 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

He's also being sued for sexual harassment. I would venture to guess Favre wishes the whole thing didn't happen.

Well, if that's the case and the pics were unsolicited then that's different thing.

I never said that I'm all well and good with lying about policy issues, but I think there's a pretty big difference between the kinds of statements you're discussing here and the kind of lie Weiner told.

Yeah, they actually matter.

Obama didn't willfully lie about deep water drilling; he supported it, there was a terrible accident, he became much more critical of it. The same pretty much goes for nuclear power.

Actually, I don't recall Obama changing his mind on drilling or nuclear, just stopped talking about how they were safe.

The other thing, it's important to keep in mind that people can be misleading without outright lying. Which pretty much all politicians are all the time. So the question is, why are we holding a politician to some weird standard on this of all things, which is something that should be private -- and something that people don't generally talk about with people who don't have a direct interest.

Seriously? ??

Did you read the quote I posted? It was from woman talking about how she asked Weiner to send her a picture of his weiner. So yeah.

---

But seriously, man, I thought you were better than this. I can accept you having a scandal. Everyone has a personal life and everyone makes a few bad decisions, but to be awkward and joke and lie about it before coming clean?

Eh, I was never that impressed with him. He seemed more interested in mocking republicans then actually trying to take them down, and he never really deviated from defending the party as it was.

I'm actually surprised at the support this guy is getting. Listen, people. Any politician, knowing what happens when the US media gets even a whiff of sex, who sends lewd and semi-naked pictures to random women using HIS PERSONAL TWITTER ACCOUNT, is too goddamned STUPID to represent anyone.

Certainly, it was pretty dumb. But beyond that... it's not some kind of moral failing. I think he understood how twitter worked: after all he had been chatting with these girls for a while. He just fucked up and sent out the picture by accident
posted by delmoi at 4:36 PM on June 6, 2011

Poor Huma.

My mom's analysis:

If you were his wife, would you leave him? Realize that you don't know what their understandings are. She may very well accept this behavior. He doesn't physically contact the other women. He does things on line that sophisticated people might characterize as more like enjoying pornography than like having an in-person sexual affair.

NOTE: I'm not suggesting you're unsophisticated if you don't minimize this behavior and liken it to the use of pornography. I'm not even saying that you're unsophisticated if you expect husbands to refrain from using pornography... and from masturbating. But I do think that intelligent spouses draw their lines in different places.

posted by John Cohen at 4:37 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

Am I unsophisticated for putting ketchup on filet mignon?
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 4:39 PM on June 6, 2011

His career in the house is over. Which of his colleagues will want to co-sponsor legislation with him, campaign with him, or have him campaign for them? No one. None of them will want to be subjected to election ads that show them with Anthony Weiner. Contributions? They're going to dry up.

David Vitter's scandal was way worse. He probably won't be the "Star" that he had been.
posted by delmoi at 4:39 PM on June 6, 2011

Am I unsophisticated for putting ketchup on filet mignon?

Depends. Well-done, right?
posted by eyeballkid at 4:40 PM on June 6, 2011

So disappointing. What next? Bernie Sanders turns out to be a weekend Dominatrix?

Not gonna happen...
'cause -trix is a Latin female suffix.

(Maybe a dominator)

Total derail, but I certainly know that -trix is a female suffix. (I thought that was the point, actually.)

Care to explain why Barney Frank can't be female on the weekend (or every day) if she so chooses?
posted by mrgrimm at 4:40 PM on June 6, 2011

oops, mixed up the "progressive" politicians from NE. Sanders is the better politican, and Frank is gay. both might be dominatrixes on the weekend (or every day) AFAIK.
posted by mrgrimm at 4:44 PM on June 6, 2011

They should study this guy in politician school as an example of what not to do when you've fucked up in some embarrassing way.
posted by Artw at 4:44 PM on June 6, 2011

He just fucked up and sent out the picture by accident

Delmoi, with respect, he didn't send them 'by accident'. He didn't trip over a loose bit of cable, plug in his camera (preloaded with cock shots) to break his fall, and land on his keyboard, thus hitting [ENTER]. He sent those pictures out deliberately.

Fuck up, yes. Accident, no.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 4:45 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

I don't see the dick pic as any big deal. I think the scandal has been swollen way out of proportion. People's sexual exploits are their own affairs. The stupidity of the way he pulled his own pants down in public, though, not to mention the lame coverup attempt... I can see some people having a semi-hard time with that. I think he deserves a stiff penalty, or at least a severe tongue-lashing from his supporters.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 4:48 PM on June 6, 2011

"My mom's analysis:"

I disagree with a lot of what your mom writes in general, but this post was right on.
posted by klangklangston at 4:48 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

delmoi :Did you read the quote I posted? It was from woman talking about how she asked Weiner to send her a picture of his weiner. So yeah.

Yes, I read your post. You quote the woman as saying “I asked him to take a picture and write ‘me’ on it so I would know,”

What sort of thought process do you personally have to go through exactly for you to believe that a woman asking for a picture of someone means she wants to see your dick?
posted by Poet_Lariat at 4:51 PM on June 6, 2011

Fuck up, yes. Accident, no.

Accident in broadcasting it instead of /msg, yes. Public tweet vs. direct message. The ease of doing so makes a twitter client an especially foolish vehicle for sending out that kind of material, granted, but mechanically it's tantamount to failing to actually switch over to the other line on a phone call before ranting about the caller on the other line.
posted by cortex at 4:54 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

Which is ALSO unforgiveably stupid.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 4:57 PM on June 6, 2011

What sort of thought process do you personally have to go through exactly for you to believe that a woman asking for a picture of someone means she wants to see your dick?

1. "Show me a picture of yourself."
2. "Show me a picture of Weiner."
3. "Show me a picture of your weiner."

That's the best I can come up with.
posted by Trurl at 4:57 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Delmoi, with respect, he didn't send them 'by accident'. He didn't trip over a loose bit of cable, plug in his camera (preloaded with cock shots) to break his fall, and land on his keyboard, thus hitting [ENTER]. He sent those pictures out deliberately.

That's better than his original explanation, actually...

I really don't give a fuck about his extramarital flings, although I don't think there's anything especially puritan or prudish about being faithful to your spouse. But the way for him to handle that after making a public spectacle of himself was to either admit it or refuse comment. Saying he was a victim and that his Twitter account had been hacked was a slur on either Twitter or his staff (who might have access to his twitter account to send out updates on topical issues). Hacking into someone's account in the manner he was suggesting last week is a felony, and a rather serious one at that. Last week's headlines also included speculation on whether Chinese hackers were gaining access to the personal gmail accounts of powerful individuals.

It's irresponsible of Weiner to place blame on fictional criminals for posting a revealing picture of himself on his own public Twitter stream and then thrash around complaining about how they had victimized him. If it wasn't for his own ineptitude, this guy would have been incredibly easy to blackmail.
posted by anigbrowl at 5:02 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

Speaking of disgraced philanderers, I'm loving governor-turned-TV host Eliot Spitzer having to discuss this story at length on CNN right now.
posted by Rhaomi at 5:12 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Eh, there are far more xplicit pictures of me out on the Web, but then again I'm not planning on running for office. He showed poor impulse control and judgemtn, which is not something I want in my elected representative.

That said: he should hangout with this guy, huh. Huh?
posted by jonmc at 5:18 PM on June 6, 2011

But saying "Weiner said it was consensual; shouldn't that be enough for you?" is not going to be tenable at this point.

It's enough for me, so long as there's absolutely nobody on the planet claiming that it wasn't consensual. The fact that the man is guilty of being a skeeve and a liar doesn't logically imply that he's also guilty of sexual harassment -- or treason, or axe-murder, for that matter.

I am, on the other hand, going to have a very hard time forgiving him for putting Breitbart back in the saddle. Also for having such a sad, pathetic scandal; composed as it is of equal parts junior high school dick-bragging and technological incompetence.
posted by steambadger at 5:20 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

he should hangout with this guy, huh. Huh?

I think he's hung out quite enough already, thank you just the same.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 5:29 PM on June 6, 2011

Here I sit
quite defeated,
tried to fuck
but merely tweeted.
posted by dirigibleman at 5:31 PM on June 6, 2011 [5 favorites]

The fact that the man is guilty of being a skeeve and a liar doesn't logically imply that he's also guilty of sexual harassment -- or treason, or axe-murder, for that matter.

Yeah but I think lying to the public pretty much obliterates any excuse or reason you should remain in an office of public trust.

You can call me a fundamentalist about such things, but I think there need to be MORE political careers ruined when they lie to the public, not less. I don't care if they're lying about their golf scores.
posted by chimaera at 5:33 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

I think this whole fiasco is a real sign of the times, though- the people in office representing us have NO FUCKING UNDERSTANDING OF TECHNOLOGY. Which scares me.

They seem typical of the people they represent.
posted by ZeusHumms at 5:34 PM on June 6, 2011

They seem typical of the people they represent.

Yes they do. Which is not what we need in our leadership. We need someone better than joe average dumbasses like myself in charge. At least that's the way I've always tried to vote. To my eternal disappointment, I might add.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 5:36 PM on June 6, 2011

Since nobody else has said it yet:

Weiner roast.

that is all.
posted by warbaby at 5:41 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

I'm just wondering, do women ever.... like ever in real life...... ask men they are flirting with on the Internet to send them photos of their penis? Show of hands? Does this even happen?

Um, yes? Is this a trick question? Who are these (straight) women who don't like to look at penises? I mean, if you like men, why would you not like penises? THIS VEXES ME.
posted by desjardins at 5:46 PM on June 6, 2011 [9 favorites]

That same person shouted something about supporting a lovechild right before that. I'd love to know who it was.

Howard Stern Show pranks Weiner press conference: were you fully erect?
posted by homunculus at 5:46 PM on June 6, 2011

I think this does way more damage to the Democratic Party than to Weiner himself. As others have noted, voters in his district would probably vote for a talking picture of a penis if it had a "D" next to its name. (Okay, maybe others have not noted that, exactly.) And honestly I can't really see it being that big a liability if/when he goes for mayor. But having one of their most visible firebrands discredited like this will be tough for the Democrats.
posted by dixiecupdrinking at 5:47 PM on June 6, 2011

Yeah but I think lying to the public pretty much obliterates any excuse or reason you should remain in an office of public trust.

I'm right there with you on that. The problem is, we refuse to elect politicians who won't lie to us.
posted by steambadger at 5:48 PM on June 6, 2011

if you like men, why would you not like penises

I AM NOT MY PENIS!*

ok - maybe I am my penis, but I at least try to be more
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 5:50 PM on June 6, 2011

codacorolla: "I can't wrap my head around what he must have been thinking when he decided to do this. Does he not know what twitter is?"

He was probably thinking he typed "d whatshername" instead of "@whatshername"
posted by mkb at 5:52 PM on June 6, 2011

They seem typical of the people they represent.

Yes they do. Which is not what we need in our leadership. We need someone better than joe average dumbasses like myself in charge. At least that's the way I've always tried to vote. To my eternal disappointment, I might add.

That's exactly what we need. And it's why we find that a goodly fraction of our elected officials are actually hypocritical, lying frauds that are willing to portray themselves according to our ideals of who we would like to have running things, when in truth being just a bit more conniving than the rest. No such thing as an honest politician indeed.
posted by StrangerInAStrainedLand at 5:52 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Who are these (straight) women who don't like to look at penises? I mean, if you like men, why would you not like penises?

Very few of the women with whom I've been involved over the years have been enchanted by the beauty of the disembodied penis. This doesn't surprise me. I'm quite fond of women, and (all other things being equal) even more fond of women without their clothes on; but it would never occur to me to ask a woman on the internet to send me a picture of her fallopian tubes.
posted by steambadger at 5:54 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

I AM NOT MY PENIS!

Is that a metonymy in your pocket or...
posted by cortex at 5:57 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

He was probably thinking he typed "d whatshername" instead of "@whatshername"

Or he typed "DM @user".

What it killing me on these press stories is that they are all using the same inaccurate shorthand by writing he posted a picture to his twitter stream. You can only post a link to a picture on twitter. This is an important distinction to me, since a twitter feed can be private, but as far as I know yfrog or twitpic or the rest can't be. There was no way to believe this would be totally private.
posted by cjorgensen at 5:57 PM on June 6, 2011

The Daily Show weighs in.

As has been mentioned above, the two men are good friends.

I'm interested to see what Stewart has to say later tonight.

Weiner Scandal: How Will Jon Stewart React On "The Daily Show?"

How Will Rep. Anthony Weiner's Good Friend Jon Stewart Cover His Scandal?

posted by ericb at 6:00 PM on June 6, 2011

Why do guys take crotch shots, anyway?
posted by ericb at 6:02 PM on June 6, 2011

Is that a metonymy in your pocket or...

/tweets a picture of his bulging synecdoche
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 6:02 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

I once had an acquaintance who emailed a picture of her new clit piercing to our entire cabal of friends.15 years later, and it's still the topic that comes up if her name is mentioned. Because, really...why would you do that?

The congressman is not going to be an elected office holder for longer than his term, I'd bet.
posted by dejah420 at 6:23 PM on June 6, 2011

Maybe times are different, but Congressman Gerry Studds was reelected six times in a liberal district after his 1983 censure by the House for having sexual relations with a 17-year old male page.
posted by found missing at 6:28 PM on June 6, 2011

Delmoi, with respect, he didn't send them 'by accident'. He didn't trip over a loose bit of cable, plug in his camera (preloaded with cock shots) to break his fall, and land on his keyboard, thus hitting [ENTER]. He sent those pictures out deliberately.

He sent it to her deliberately, he set public on accident.

What sort of thought process do you personally have to go through exactly for you to believe that a woman asking for a picture of someone means she wants to see your dick?

What kind of thought process do you have to go to believe women that women never want to see men's penises? I just find it bizarre. Some women do, some don't.

I think this does way more damage to the Democratic Party than to Weiner himself. As others have noted, voters in his district would probably vote for a talking picture of a penis if it had a "D" next to its name. (Okay, maybe others have not noted that, exactly.) And honestly I can't really see it being that big a liability if/when he goes for mayor. But having one of their most visible firebrands discredited like this will be tough for the Democrats.

Maybe if they had more firebrands it wouldn't be such a problem.
posted by delmoi at 6:31 PM on June 6, 2011

That's it. I'm only voting for women now.
posted by mrhappy at 6:38 PM on June 6, 2011

Hmm, more stuff is coming out. It does seem like he was pretty reckless with who he was sex-chatting with (given that some of them are going to the press)
posted by delmoi at 6:39 PM on June 6, 2011

Radar:

Weiner, 46, wrote to the woman, "ridiculous bulge in my shorts now. wanna see?"

She responded: "Yea! can u send a pic?"

"jeez, im rushing. let me take a quick pic," Weiner answered.
posted by CunningLinguist at 6:41 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

I object to the oft-repeated here characterization of Weiner as somehow computer illiterate. Critique his judgment (please!) or whatever but he seems like one of the few Congress-critters (argh) who at least has some semblance of technological poise.

This is like hitting Reply All instead of Reply by accident and realizing, likely with great horror, what you have done seconds after.

Totally different.
posted by joe lisboa at 6:42 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

He should have known that self-hating guys like Drudge (and chronies) would love to start rumors that he's just a beard.
posted by 445supermag at 6:42 PM on June 6, 2011

Who are these (straight) women who don't like to look at penises? I mean, if you like men, why would you not like penises?

Me. I have seen enough of them, thanks. They look kind of ridiculous, as organs go. I don't know how you guys can walk around with that stuff just dangling from your crotch. I'd much rather encounter an example of a man's rapier wit that makes me erupt in belly laughs, but maybe that's just me. Dicks are a dime a dozen.

(For the record, I am not a fan of images of female genitalia either).

I don't know, "LOOK AT MY PENIS!!!!!!!!!" is just kind of an attention-whorey thing to do, imho.

As is that person someone mentioned above who got a clit piercing and showed it to everyone. I think piercings are generally a "LOOK AT ME!!!" kind of thing and that's part of why I personally don't think they are interesting.
posted by marble at 6:42 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

My genitals are encrypted. And copyright, just like the lights of the Eiffel Tower at night. Which is the best time to see both, by the by.
posted by oxford blue at 6:46 PM on June 6, 2011

dammit raomi now you got me hungry for Brietarts
posted by Iron Rat at 6:48 PM on June 6, 2011

In my eyes if a politico will sell out his life-partner for something "better", he'll do the same with his voters (see: Clinton and NAFTA). Also, in my eyes, if he doesn't have enough respect for the office that he was elected to not engage that sort of thing while he is in office then he is the wrong man for the position. I don't find his sending sexy pictures offensive at all, I find it offensive that he did it while married and in office

I certainly see your point, and wish that the reaction to such scandals were discussed in such measured tones rather than just shrill schadenfreude. And generally, I think that agreement with the letter and spirit of our laws and general mores is (in theory, anyway) part of the job of being a politician.

But I don't agree that strict sexual fidelity is such an unshakably core moral concept that it has direct relevance to doing one's job* as a congressperson. Lust is weird and mutable and is subject to shifting and various cultural taboos that preclude strict honesty in personal relationships. At some point, sex makes most people confused, or unsatisfied, or considered deviant by someone.

More importantly, I sure can think of many more things for which I'd like to hold elected officials more directly accountable than the details of their marriages. Like exploiting conflicts of interest, especially to gain personal wealth -- there's a nice relevant set of immoral behaviors.

*Not "getting elected," but the actual job. Legislation and stuff.
posted by desuetude at 6:49 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

So why are the Republicans opposed to someone doing privately exactly what TSA airport pornoscanners do to everyone who passes through?
posted by George_Spiggott at 6:50 PM on June 6, 2011

Also, who the hell let Breitbart get to the mic in that press conference? That's some freakin' amateur hour shit right there.
posted by vibrotronica at 6:51 PM on June 6, 2011

Doing something transgressive and getting away with it produces a pretty mindblowing mental high to people who are into that kind of thing

Yeah, but geez -- if you're trying to do something wicked and Fleur-du-Mal-ish , you should at least have Satanic orgies at your secluded estate in the Hamptons, or sell government secrets to Russian gangsters. Tweeting your dick as a form of Byronic transgression? That's just sad.
posted by steambadger at 6:51 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

I'm interested to see what Stewart has to say later tonight.

I'm sure he'll say something, though whether he says something tonight depends on when the press conference was, and when his show records.
posted by ZeusHumms at 6:52 PM on June 6, 2011

God damn you Walter! You fuckin' asshole! Everything's a fuckin' travesty with you, man! And what was all that shit about Vietnam? What the FUCK, has anything got to do with Vietnam? What the fuck are you talking about?
posted by growabrain at 6:56 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

Daily show tweets:
Yes, we will be "covering" #ShirtlessWeiner tonight on the show! No story breaks too late for "The Best Fucking News Team on the Planet"!
posted by jenkinsEar at 6:58 PM on June 6, 2011

I had only heard or read snippets of this whole issue over the last week until now, but I was bemused over it. I mean, guys have been taking photos of their willies since film was invented. Showing said photos to ladies was invented shortly thereafter. It's not something I would do, and has never had the intended effect when I've encountered it (ooh, unexpected wang :( ) but it hardly seems like an act that condemns his moral and political character, as I've read in some places.
posted by jess at 6:59 PM on June 6, 2011

I don't know how you guys can walk around with that stuff just dangling from your crotch.

We don't have much choice; they're not detachable.
posted by homunculus at 7:00 PM on June 6, 2011

We don't have much choice; they're not detachable.

Speak for yourself.
posted by steambadger at 7:03 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Jokes aside, this story explains why Weiner is in real trouble: his colleagues aren't terribly motivated to help him out in his time of need.

"What offends so many of Weiner’s New York colleagues isn’t really that he’s a camera-chasing self-promoter, even though he is. It’s that he seems utterly uninterested in exerting the same effort behind the scenes to actually achieve anything meaningful. So when he does get attention, which is often these days, it’s usually at the expense of someone else who really did put in the work.

The ultimate example of this probably came last summer, when Weiner hijacked the congressional debate over a healthcare bill for 9/11 first responders, launching a memorable tirade on the House floor against Republican obstruction. It was a classic Weiner move: The rant was played over and over on cable news, certified him as a hero to liberal activists across the country, and only increased his desirability to television producers.

But there were two problems. The first is that it didn’t actually cause Republicans to reconsider and pass the bill; it wasn’t until months later that a watered-down version of the legislation passed during the lame duck congressional session. The second is that Weiner had, essentially, done no work on the bill. By most accounts, his New York colleagues Carolyn Maloney and Jerry Nadler were the real workhorses, the ones who had invested significant time and energy crafting the bill, talking up their colleagues, and struggling to find a way to move it through the House. But you would have never known that by watching cable news, where Anthony Weiner was the undisputed star of the drama."
posted by CunningLinguist at 7:06 PM on June 6, 2011 [11 favorites]

I remember reading (or maybe just hearing about on WNYC?) a profile of Rep Weiner with a hilarious scene where he's pounding the pavement and when a potential voter shuts a door in his face he shouts "WEINER!" before moving on.

Also, Bill Clinton officiated his wedding. You get what you pay for, there.
posted by These Premises Are Alarmed at 8:24 PM on June 6, 2011

He's pretty recently married, and is behaving like an idiot on Twitter. Then he lies about it and makes up an easily discovered stupid story. He doesn't appear to have sexually harassed an intern, or anyone under 18, or had any non-consensual idiotic behavior. So, it's not illegal, just embarrassing to him and his wife, and idiotic. I like my politicians smarter. Clinton's Lewinsky mess cost the country a crapload of money, and wasted the valuable time of a president who had way more important work to do. Smarten up, fellas, keep it in your pants, and focus on your work.
posted by theora55 at 8:29 PM on June 6, 2011

Dear lord this seems overblown to me. The man clearly did something stupid, which was also personal enough that he lied about it on reflex when it came out. I'm not a fan of either the tweeting or the lying, but I can understand both and I really don't care that much about either of them.

It appears as though this is basically what he jerks off to, and is probably his outlet for making sure he stays physically faithful to his wife. (At least that's what it looks like to me.) As was said above, he basically hit "reply all" instead of "reply." And then he lied. I absolutely understand why that angers people, I really do, but I cannot even force myself to give a shit. I thought Clinton was justified in lying about Lewinsky, and while Weiner wasn't nearly as skilled at it, I feel the same way here. Hell, I felt sympathy for Gov. Sanford (in which case I thought the bigger issue was that he disappeared without contact for days, a much bigger dereliction of duty as a top public official, in my mind.) Basically, if something was non-consensual, if someone was actually harmed by his actions, bring that shit to light. Otherwise, we have no right to know.

Because let's be absolutely fucking clear about what this is: entertainment.

His name is Weiner and he tweeted a pick of a bulge in his underwear. The jokes write themselves, and the picture can be shown on tv at the discretion of the editor. We get to watch a public figure twist in the wind and, the best part? We get to be outraged. Not that we actually care from the outrage side of things, but we have justification for it. After all, we're not following the story because it's salacious and entertaining, it's because we're angry and how dare our elected officials let us down like this?

Bullshit. We want entertainment, and this is it this week. And so for those of you crying havoc over this, well, I'm glad that you're entertained.

In the end, this will mean nothing. There's basically zero chance that he won't get re-elected. He's incredibly popular in his district and has enough time before November 2012 to put this nonsense behind him and wipe the floor with anyone who tries to hit him with a primary challenge. (This compared with a guy I know who's a recently elected state rep in Montgomery County, Maryland who publicly and awkwardly waffled on Marriage Equality. That guy's fucked.) I think it's likely that he'll even be Mayor someday, perhaps sooner rather than later (though New York hasn't voted in a democrat for Mayor in a long while now, so who knows?)

But this is the pageant of politics. If this were your co-worker, you wouldn't care beyond giving him shit for it. But it's an elected official, most likely not your own. And that allows us to get on our high horses and DAMN doesn't that feel nice up there? But he'll bounce back. See: Clinton, Gingrich, ed Kennedy and a thousand others.

There are actual important things afoot in this world and nobody is perfect. This is the least important scandal we've seen in some time.
posted by Navelgazer at 8:42 PM on June 6, 2011 [7 favorites]

I basically agree with you on all counts, Navelgazer, however, I suspect that had Anthony Weiner been a republican or even a tea-partier, I would be as giddy as the #tcot are today.
posted by crunchland at 8:54 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

I should amend that if it turns out that this was non-consensual, or that the women were underage, that changes this picture significantly. Obviously.

I'd also add that in Spitzer's case, I had no sympathy at all. There was hypocrisy involved there. I was sad to see NY's great democratic hope go down in flames, but it was justified in his case. Dammit all.

Finally, of course there are women who like looking at dicks. I find the assertion that this would be odd kind of bizarre. (Not that all women do, of course, nor that any woman would be happy to be surprised with being faced with a dick she didn't ask to see. Just a side note.)
posted by Navelgazer at 9:02 PM on June 6, 2011

I don't get the confidence that he'll be reelected. New York has to cut out two Congressional districts due to reapportionment and one will be a downstate Democratic district. What was going to be a hard call for Sheldon Silver and Andrew Cuomo just got very easy, particularly when no one liked Weiner to before and the 9th District is a ridiculous gerrymander as it is.
posted by MattD at 9:14 PM on June 6, 2011

He should resign immediately.

And men in positions of power need to realize that their position in life doesn't give them carte blanche to act like frat-boys.
posted by bardic at 9:15 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

"So, it's not illegal, just embarrassing to him and his wife, and idiotic."

And playing out a sad and pathetic aspect of American politics re: men treating women like playthings (both his wife and the Twitter woman).

All of these guys should be roundly mocked, shunned, and ostracized regardless of party.
posted by bardic at 9:19 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

He should resign immediately.

Yes, he should resign... himself to being AWESOME!
posted by George_Spiggott at 9:22 PM on June 6, 2011 [5 favorites]

"Antonio, Vee Cut Off Your Johnson!"
posted by growabrain at 9:30 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Talking about this whole scandal, my wife just said "it's amazing that people can get so bent out of shape."

I replied "so you've seen the picture, then."
posted by George_Spiggott at 9:30 PM on June 6, 2011 [4 favorites]

It would be nice if the public would care less about politicians' dicks and more about politicians who *are* dicks.
posted by tzikeh at 9:59 PM on June 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

He should resign immediately. --- Yeah, and add even more credibility and influence to the likes and Breitbart and like-minded goons? No. He should stay in office, and lose his next election if the voters so choose, but to be hounded out of office for an overblown "scandal" like this would be a total mistake.
posted by crunchland at 10:04 PM on June 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

What sort of thought process do you personally have to go through exactly for you to believe that a woman asking for a picture of someone means she wants to see your dick?

So you think that because she said "I asked him to take a picture and write 'me' on it" in an interview, that she is literally saying she asked him, in those exact words "take a picture and write 'me' on it?". Because I don't see that. If I say to someone "can you get me a burger and fries on your way home from work today, and can you get them to leave off the pickles?" and I am asked about it in an interview, I'll probably say something like "I asked him to get me some food on the way home."

By which I mean to say that, especially with the level of contextual knowledge that already exists here, it seems well within normal speech that she would phrase asking him for a dick pic in that way.

Also, I am a female who went through high school not that many years ago and I would say yeah, it is becoming a relatively normal part of teenage flirtation and yeah, there are definitely females who want to receive pictures like that.

The scary thing about 'sexting' (god I hate calling it that) is the way its users often don't seem to view what they're doing as sexual activity. One guy from my high school who would never have thought of himself as someone who would sexually harrass anybody sent me unwanted (mostly text, a few images) explicit messages for years. I highly doubt he thinks he did anything wrong because it's not really sex, it's just stuff on a screen, right?

But you know, I'd actually like to see it be a non-issue when people send each other wanted sexy communications, no matter who they are, because then maybe we have a framework for dealing with it as part of normal, healthy sexual relationships. Then we can view it as sexual activity, we can start to address issues such as making sure the recipient wants the content before you send it, we can work out how to deal with the public and permanent nature of content that's going online, and how to treat that material in a way that lets people feel safe. I just don't think we can really do that without acknowledging that yes, there are people of all kinds that want to send and receive explicit messages and cock shots and whatever.
posted by lwb at 10:05 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

There's got to be something deeper going on, right? I mean, surely the guy isn't that stupid. And Breitbart's involvement just makes the whole thing smell like last week's dirty diapers.

*takes off tinfoil hat*

I am interested to see what The Daily Show's take is (I don't get out of work for another 6 hours).

And, for what it's worth, I have asked for wang pics from internet dudes before so I don't get the surprise there. For me it was a trust thing, though, and not some mad desire to see random schlong.
posted by and miles to go before I sleep at 10:07 PM on June 6, 2011

I think he just misunderstood. He was texting her about his version of the economic recovery package, and she said she'd like to see more details of his package, and, well...
posted by George_Spiggott at 11:01 PM on June 6, 2011

Maybe that should have read "she asked him to send her an outline of his package". I get there eventually.
posted by George_Spiggott at 11:02 PM on June 6, 2011

The scary thing about 'sexting' (god I hate calling it that) is the way its users often don't seem to view what they're doing as sexual activity.

You're lucky. Back in my day people called it "cybering" which is even lamer.
posted by delmoi at 11:50 PM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Back in my day we called it sexy Hallmark.

I wonder what the whole story is here? So many curious things... so many things falling into place so conveniently. Please correct me if I'm mistaken, but Breitbart first broke the underwear pic thing, right? Like he has someone sitting on that twitter feed night and day waiting for a stray dick pic to show up for two seconds? And then, next up, the woman from Texas contacts Breitbart with her entire Weiner sexting history, pics, messages, everything... because one of her friends "steered" her toward Breitbart? So odd.

Here's my conspiracy theory, made up entirely out of thin air and several cups of coffee: someone on Weiner's staff sent that pic, but because Weiner really has been sexting and who knows what else, he can't say that someone in his office sold him out. Maybe there's even worse stuff hanging over his head. Maybe the Texas woman was a set up, too (only in the sense of drawing him in with her irresistible hottttt! comment; obviously, he didn't have to start a sexting relationship with her. But maybe people who know him well would know that he couldn't resist). Maybe someone close to him has a serious grudge, and this stuff with Breitbart was an organized thing.

So Weiner's like, my account was hacked, because he can't say he thinks someone in his office stabbed him in the back, because what does that say about him that his own people hate him that much? And since he really has been sending pics like this, even if he didn't send this one particular one as a public tweet, he can't really call for an investigation. He's just perfectly trapped.

I like this theory because it makes him fractionally less a total idiot. More like 9/10ths idiot. (Why get married, btw, Mr. Weiner? As a bachelor, you couldn't have been slapped down for this, as long as you aren't doing underage or harassment bullshit. And you aren't are you??? Was the whole marriage just another photo op publicity stunt?)
posted by taz at 12:31 AM on June 7, 2011 [3 favorites]

"Don't think Axel. It makes my dick itch"

-Gil Hill as Inspector Todd.
posted by clavdivs at 12:33 AM on June 7, 2011

Now if only Blake Lively follows Weiner's example! Come on, Blake! We know it is you!
posted by Justinian at 12:34 AM on June 7, 2011

Dear lord this seems overblown to me.
posted by Navelgazer

So it's working out for him?
posted by StickyCarpet at 12:58 AM on June 7, 2011

as a former new york city council employee, i am not surprised. every politician has something just waiting to come out. nature of the beast.
posted by ichimunki at 1:04 AM on June 7, 2011

What are the chances this is part of a strategy to control the timing of the inevitable "scandal," and provoke an investigation that makes sure his entire online sexual activity is dragged through the news cycle as summer entertainment? If he knows he's never harassed anyone or committed any crime, he also should have known that won't save him from the media frenzy. If he didn't know, Bill Clinton would surely have considered it his avuncular duty to clue him in. I wouldn't be surprised if Bill hadn't given some thought to how a guy might head this nonsense off at the pass and concluded that he should chum the water to provoke the feeding frenzy and get it over with--and do it soon after marriage and long before the next election. I can easily imagine Bill having such a conversation with the good Congressman.

Two things need to happen for this actually to be good strategy. 1. He needs to come out of this having been well investigated and established as a formidably equipped politician who was intensely scrutinized and found never to have done anything more objectionable in his sexual behavior than texting provocative (partially unclothed) pictures in consensual situations. 2. Hereafter he makes no comment in reply to sex questions and makes it his mission to deny the press's power to derail his political process with scandal mongering about the non-criminal sexual behavior of politicians.

Well, a third thing, actually: The people in this country grow up and become a little less fixated on other people's sexual behavior.
posted by Anitanola at 3:21 AM on June 7, 2011

I was tweetin' seven gram cocks... 'cause thats how I roll!

Weining!
posted by McGuillicuddy at 4:16 AM on June 7, 2011 [1 favorite]

I would say the exact opposite. "Dick-tures" are very, very common in junior highs, high schools, and colleges. I'm not sure WHY young men think that young women want to receive these sorts of pictures, but I can tell you that they are a normal part of "courtship" and "flirtation" these days.

OK this is news to me. What's the over/under for the number of unsolicited explicit photos received by an attractive college graduate aged woman?
posted by BigSky at 5:17 AM on June 7, 2011

and can you get them to leave off the pickles?"

No, no -- hold everything BUT the pickle!
posted by fourcheesemac at 5:41 AM on June 7, 2011

What are the chances this is part of a strategy to control the timing of the inevitable "scandal"...

I'd say close to nil, given how poorly Weiner has handled this; if he had a cunning plan, surely it would have included a strategy for reacting to the first wave of the media feeding frenzy.
posted by steambadger at 6:17 AM on June 7, 2011 [2 favorites]

I would say the exact opposite. "Dick-tures" are very, very common in junior highs, high schools, and colleges. I'm not sure WHY young men think that young women want to receive these sorts of pictures, but I can tell you that they are a normal part of "courtship" and "flirtation" these days.

Oh, please. Cite?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 6:39 AM on June 7, 2011 [2 favorites]

What Breitbart does on a daily basis, the way he gives the political discourse in this country a dirty Sanchez every chance he can even cobble together the slightest mendacious outrage against the evil of Liberalism for the purpose of putting forth the narrative of the GOP and the Tea Baggers and incompetent self-obsessed people like Palin is the true repellent pornography.

What people like Paul Ryan are trying to do to the elderly, so that Medicare can be raided and turned into a gift for Wall Street and the Insurance complex, THAT is truly repellent.

What a transparent water boys for Billionaires, like Scott Walker, Rick Scott, Rick Snyder, trying to destroy the middle class around the nation, that is truly repellent and pornographic.

What the Koch bros. are doing with their ALEC organizition, and the Tea Party with it's money from people like them and cover organizations like American's for Prosperity or what a Dick Armey does to manipulate them with FreedomWatch.

What the Banking industry and Wall Street did to the country and continue to do with Carte Blanche.

What the GOP continues to do, by obstructing and fucking over any attempt to deal with the economy, and the gifts they insist upon for the wealthiest 2% or nothing is allowed to pass in Congress...

All these things are more grotesque, disgusting, despicable and pornographic and immoral than anything that Anthony Weiner has done here, and I really hope for one this can be let go of and the news free for all on this is allowed to die down and this country gets back to focusing on what's really important and who the real enemies in government are...

Fuck Breitbart and fuck the Right wing machine trying to turn this into some great example of Democrats.

Enough already!!
posted by Skygazer at 6:58 AM on June 7, 2011 [7 favorites]

NYT headline: Democrats Shy From Weiner as G.O.P. Seizes on Scandal

That's what I like about the Republicans - they never shy from a little wiener.
posted by me & my monkey at 7:05 AM on June 7, 2011

All these things are more grotesque, disgusting, despicable and pornographic and immoral than anything that Anthony Weiner has done here, and I really hope for one this can be let go of and the news free for all on this is allowed to die down and this country gets back to focusing on what's really important and who the real enemies in government are...

Fuck Breitbart and fuck the Right wing machine trying to turn this into some great example of Democrats.

Well, you may be right, but the "real enemies" are actually all of us, for salaciously slurping up every last drop of every microscandal that pops up inside and outside of government. Andrew Breitbart is someone who would not be able to hawk photographs of dogcatchers sexting photos of themselves were it not for our prurient interest and the ratings that we give to the 24/7 cable networks' peddling of what feeds that interest. How many comments has Weinergate engendered in this thread? Close to 400? So, yeah, fuck us all.
posted by blucevalo at 7:18 AM on June 7, 2011 [1 favorite]

I really hope for one this can be let go of and the news free for all on this is allowed to die down and this country gets back to focusing on what's really important and who the real enemies in government are...

Unfortunately, the "real enemies" own most of the major media outlets, so that's probably not going to happen on its own.

The Weiner thing is bread and circuses. Not that we're even slightly unreceptive to it; hell, look at the number of comments in this thread (quite of few of them mine, by the way).
posted by steambadger at 7:23 AM on June 7, 2011 [1 favorite]

Or, on preview, what blucevalo said.
posted by steambadger at 7:25 AM on June 7, 2011

ANTHONY WEINER COMES CLEAN, by Hendrik Hertzberg, The New Yorker --- "...Weinergate breaks new ground: it’s the first entirely virtual political sex scandal, the first to have been conducted entirely via e-mail, and online social media. (Plus a bit of phone sex, perhaps. But that’s electronic, too.)"
posted by crunchland at 7:29 AM on June 7, 2011 [2 favorites]

You'd think he'd be pro-bike lanes--the better to advertise his junk to the young ladies.

Still trying to grok this one...

ANTHONY WEINER COMES CLEAN, by Hendrik Hertzberg

That was pretty right on, though there's not a lot of beans to be considered here. These two bits seem accurate:

On MSNBC, the cable-news “home page” of my political tribe, one commentator said that one of the things Weinergate shows is that powerful politicians assume they can get away with things that regular people can’t. If they do assume that, they’re wrong. It would be more accurate to say that they can’t get away with things that regular people can.

emphasis mine.

and

The modern media embarrassment machine is bigger than it ever was, but so is the fatal dose.

I haven't had cable TV for a few years now, so I really don't follow conventional news media *at all* but I expect this scandal blows over before the weekend.

...

I was prepared to be all "whatever, why are people making such a big deal out of one stupid photo." But after reading this? Fuck him. What an idiot.

When does it go from "no big deal" to "fuck him" - 2 photos? 20? 2,000?

Yeah but I think lying to the public pretty much obliterates any excuse or reason you should remain in an office of public trust.

You can call me a fundamentalist about such things, but I think there need to be MORE political careers ruined when they lie to the public, not less. I don't care if they're lying about their golf scores.

I'm with you. I assume you think Bill Clinton should have resigned or been impeached and removed from office for lying under oath. I certainly did.

In the end, I'm with those who think he should resign because of the coverup. The "scandal" was nothing, but lying about it and blaming the online boogeyman is analagous to (the much greater offense of) killing your kids and then claiming it was "a black guy." (I realize that's an inflammatory example, but the essence of the lie is similar to me.)
posted by mrgrimm at 8:03 AM on June 7, 2011

Right wing attack dogs want blood.
posted by crunchland at 8:14 AM on June 7, 2011

This is why I think Weiner's career is doomed:

But the lack of support (from his fellow Democrats) is also a consequence of the me-first style of politics that has defined Weiner’s two-decade career. What offends so many of Weiner’s New York colleagues isn’t really that he’s a camera-chasing self-promoter, even though he is. It’s that he seems utterly uninterested in exerting the same effort behind the scenes to actually achieve anything meaningful. So when he does get attention, which is often these days, it’s usually at the expense of someone else who really did put in the work.
posted by futz at 8:15 AM on June 7, 2011

Left wing attack dog wants blood.
posted by BobbyVan at 8:16 AM on June 7, 2011

"Breitbart says he has an “X-Rated” photo of Weiner, but doesn’t plan to release it unless Weiner starts playing politics again." --- I guess it's not blackmail when you do it publicly.
posted by crunchland at 8:19 AM on June 7, 2011 [2 favorites]

Well, you may be right, but the "real enemies" are actually all of us, for salaciously slurping up every last drop of every microscandal that pops up inside and outside of government.

So, sit this one out. Either take the time you would spend in this thread doing something nicer/better/more fun, or if you're feeling really determined, do one small thing to make the world better.

(I know it reeks of hypocrisy to post the above in this thread, but honestly, I'm just not following this. One "Oh, Weiner, you putz!", the odd glance at "Recent Activity", and that's all.)
posted by benito.strauss at 8:20 AM on June 7, 2011 [1 favorite]

Moderate Attack Dogs say 'Meh.'
posted by drezdn at 8:20 AM on June 7, 2011

So I read this morning that he won't resign because a 46 year old congressman's sending a crotch shot to a 21 year old coed is not illegal.

That's some pretty low standard of ethics, my friend.
posted by IndigoJones at 8:23 AM on June 7, 2011 [1 favorite]

one of the things Weinergate shows is that powerful politicians assume they can get away with things that regular people can’t.

There's lots of this sort of talk. I'd like there to be more talk along the lines of the chapter in Freakonomics where the honour system bagel guy found that the bagel stations on floors where rich people worked would have a much higher level of non-payment than the ordinary joes.

Or the empathy tests where rich people score way lower.

I realize there's nearly a 100% cross-over between "rich" and "politician" but I still vote we tax these entitled jerks back into the moral tax bracket.
posted by Trochanter at 8:27 AM on June 7, 2011 [2 favorites]

"Breitbart says he has an “X-Rated” photo of Weiner, but doesn’t plan to release it unless Weiner starts playing politics again."

That's ridiculous. Blackmail never ends, and right now Breitbart is pretending to defend the women involved in this, but what if Weiner votes the "wrong" way on something?

Best thing to do with a scum bag like Breitbart, and good Lord, talk about a fucking weasel who's hit the jackpot here, is release the photo yourself and be done with it or Breitbart will never ever stop exacting his pound of flesh.

And anyway, I say the photo gets made public before the weekend hits...I would bet money on that. Just do it and blame it on Breitbart the Righteous and Holy defender of American Exceptionalism and Tea Bagger fascism.

This is really beginning to seem more and more like Weiner's going to have to step down before this quiets down and he might still have some chance at being Mayor.
posted by Skygazer at 8:31 AM on June 7, 2011 [1 favorite]

one of the things Weinergate shows is that powerful politicians assume they can get away with things that regular people can’t.

Also a shocking level of immaturity, recklessness and self-sabotage.

Same thing all the time with people who are extraordinary in one way or other, but at the price of a serious lack of basic life or socialization skills...

Also, guy had it all, and what good is having it all if you can't fuck around with it a bit and laugh in the face of the devil or disaster. And, sadly, this was also an act of arrogance and hubris and dumbass ignorance. Something like Twitter needs a little care and attention. It's not a fucking toy.
posted by Skygazer at 8:36 AM on June 7, 2011

Rachel Maddow Places Anthony Weiner On Her Sex Scandal Chart (VIDEO).
posted by ericb at 8:41 AM on June 7, 2011 [3 favorites]

@ skygazer

Weiner knew all those things, too, about Paul Ryan, and the Koch bros and Dick Armey, and he threw away his chance to be a leader on those issues. He knew what the stakes were, and that the right-wing noise brigade would jump at the chance to bring him down, and he sent the pictures and messages anyway. Fuck him.
posted by feste at 8:46 AM on June 7, 2011 [1 favorite]

When you've got proclivities, and word gets out about them, you're vulnerable. I suspect that Meagan Broussard deliberately entrapped the Congressman, baiting the hook with a worm he couldn't resist, while his social media channels were being constantly monitored by others for the inevitable accident. The harried victim narrative Miss Broussard is attempting to spin here ("I just hope to be left in peace") does not jibe with her smirking appearance on television, her self-release of cleavage photos (which are faux sexy, and less revealing than what you see on any beach), the odd tone of her initial salvo on Breitbart's site, or the sexually aggressive online behavior that she describes herself engaging in. The biggest mistake anyone in Weiner's position can make is to think that his enemies are stupid or oblivious or bound by any code of decorum. These people will get up at the podium at your own press conference if you're late. Tweet accordingly.
posted by Scram at 8:50 AM on June 7, 2011 [5 favorites]

> Like he has someone sitting on that twitter feed night and day waiting for a stray dick pic to show up for two seconds?

An RSS reader is great for this. I often see deleted blog posts, tweets, what-have-you in my Google Reader. Nothing as scandalous as this, though.
posted by narwhal bacon at 8:52 AM on June 7, 2011 [1 favorite]

Feste: and he sent the pictures and messages anyway. Fuck him.

Yes, you're right. He was in a position to truly do some good and he threw it away on his fucking massive ego and arrogance.

Total selfish stupid dick behavior.
posted by Skygazer at 8:54 AM on June 7, 2011 [2 favorites]

Posted on a Seattle radio station's blog: Weiner girls: guess what title the local one won in high school?
posted by epersonae at 9:13 AM on June 7, 2011 [2 favorites]

benito.strauss: I know it reeks of hypocrisy to post the above in this thread, but honestly, I'm just not following this.

Yes, I guess I was over the top in my rhetoric. I think my overall point remains valid even if I was a time-wasting, non-world-improving hypocrite for posting in the same thread in which I dropped the rhetorical embarrassment.

Scram: The harried victim narrative Miss Broussard is attempting to spin here ("I just hope to be left in peace") does not jibe with her smirking appearance on television

Was she really chewing gum during that "interview"? Wow.
posted by blucevalo at 9:14 AM on June 7, 2011

So, what's this story I hear about Supreme Court Jusice Thomas, his wife Ginny and the $650,000.00 they 'misplaced' and forgot to report?

Did that 650 grand make it to thier 1040s?
posted by mikelieman at 9:16 AM on June 7, 2011 [2 favorites]

blucevalo - Thank you! I watched that interview, amazed, thinking I was insane for thinking she was chewing gum. It's kind of sad that I find gum-chewing the most shocking part of this whole fandango, but there you have it.
posted by 8dot3 at 9:26 AM on June 7, 2011

I thought it was funny his name was 'Weiner'.
posted by mazola at 9:27 AM on June 7, 2011

is it wrong of me that the primary feeling i have about the Weiner scandal is disappointment about his shaved chest? I mean i'd fuck him if he didn't shave his chest. Even in underwear, his cock was big enough, and had a nice shape.

Also, are we know really cutting it to such a degree that you don't even get a blow job before you risk losing yr job?
posted by PinkMoose at 9:59 AM on June 7, 2011

Well, you may be right, but the "real enemies" are actually all of us, for salaciously slurping up every last drop of every microscandal that pops up inside and outside of government.

I'm just in it for the jokes. I like jokes.

Hmm, more stuff is coming out.

"You will surely make noise when I take you (censored). I will tell you (censored)!"
posted by mrgrimm at 10:15 AM on June 7, 2011

I didn't give a shit about it until he started waffling about his account being hacked and saying there would need to be an investigation. Anthony Weiner is 46 and got married last July. He's had ample time for self-discovery, enough to either own this behavior or wave goodbye to it. If he had either refused comment or copped to having a minor embarrassing sex secret then I would have just shrugged my shoulders and added it to the list of things I don't care about. He made it into a national security matter at a time when internet security is very much in the news - see wikileaks, Sony, Gmail and multiple other cases. He built it up to be something much bigger than it was in the first place, so he doesn't get to complain about being at the center of media circus now.

I suspect that Meagan Broussard deliberately entrapped the Congressman, baiting the hook with a worm he couldn't resist, while his social media channels were being constantly monitored by others for the inevitable accident.

'couldn't resist'? 'Inevitable accident'? A guy has so little self-control that some strange woman on the internet that he's never met can manipulate him via Twitter and I'm supposed to sympathize with him? The guy is a fucking Congressman, one of the most privileged and powerful people in the United States and by extension, the world, and he can be entranced into taking his clothes off by some stranger on the internet? Why would you want anyone that gullible and biddable in charge of...well, anything? I guess we should be glad he didn't put in a budget appropriation for flat belly formula or something.

The harried victim narrative Miss Broussard is attempting to spin here ("I just hope to be left in peace") does not jibe with her smirking appearance on television

Yes, but you know what? Weiner spent the whole of last week spouting a harried victim narrative as well, except he was doing it on the public dime. If he was taken in by a muck-raking journalistic sting, that would be staggeringly stupid but at least it's the sort of mistake that he'd be unlikely to repeat. But no, he's got to spin up some story about hackers infiltrating his Twitter account. You realize resources were likely spent on looking into that, and everyone else in Congress had their staff check back through their Twitter logs and so on, because Weiner decided to bullshit his way through his problems?
posted by anigbrowl at 10:18 AM on June 7, 2011 [4 favorites]

Media ready to embrace Andrew Breitbart again
posted by homunculus at 10:18 AM on June 7, 2011 [1 favorite]

blucevalo: Oh, I was saying that I'm the one verging on hypocritical. I'm posting in a thread saying how I'm not paying any attention to the thread. "The above" referred to my comments.
posted by benito.strauss at 10:22 AM on June 7, 2011

Media ready to embrace Andrew Breitbart again --- It's like how you hate your dealer, because he's a total tool and under normal circumstances, you wouldn't give the guy the time of day. And how he tells you, every fucking time, how totally sticky icky it is, and how it's going to totally knock you on your ass, and how it's the best he's ever had to offer, and though he tells you that, every fucking time, and you know he's totally lying, but still you go back to him... every fucking time.

It's like that.
posted by crunchland at 10:24 AM on June 7, 2011 [3 favorites]

Maybe other politicians will have scandals that fit in with their gross names.

(I'm really, really hoping this happens to John Boehner.)
posted by dunkadunc at 10:25 AM on June 7, 2011

The ultimate example of this probably came last summer, when Weiner hijacked the congressional debate over a healthcare bill for 9/11 first responders, launching a memorable tirade on the House floor against Republican obstruction. It was a classic Weiner move: The rant was played over and over on cable news, certified him as a hero to liberal activists across the country, and only increased his desirability to television producers ... By most accounts, his New York colleagues Carolyn Maloney and Jerry Nadler were the real workhorses, the ones who had invested significant time and energy crafting the bill, talking up their colleagues, and struggling to find a way to move it through the House. But you would have never known that by watching cable news, where Anthony Weiner was the undisputed star of the drama.

Wait, so let me get this straight:
1. Some reps craft a bill
2. The GOP opposes it
3. The reps try to work quietly and make deals to get it passed
4. The GOP still opposes it
5. This being a bill to provide some fucking health care to 9/11 first responders, Weiner gets up and tells the GOP what a pack of lying shitheads they are
6. Everyone on the left who's been waiting for a representative with some backbone applauds
7. The bill passes
8. Weiner is a bad guy taking credit for other people's work

Thank you, Democrats, for finding yet another way to demonstrate what a bunch of small-minded, ideologically vacant pissants you are.
posted by bjrubble at 10:27 AM on June 7, 2011 [6 favorites]

dunkadunc: "Maybe other politicians will have scandals that fit in with their gross names."

Please be Santorum, please be Santorum, please be Santorum.
posted by idiopath at 10:28 AM on June 7, 2011 [4 favorites]

There is one really nice point about being a democrat : You're constituents care waaay less who your fucking, that you've posed nude, etc.
posted by jeffburdges at 10:28 AM on June 7, 2011

bjrubble:
[...]
5. This being a bill to provide some fucking health care to 9/11 first responders, Weiner gets up and tells the GOP what a pack of lying shitheads they are
6. Everyone on the left who's been waiting for a representative with some backbone applauds
7. The bill passes
8. Weiner is a bad guy taking credit for other people's work

Thank you, Democrats, for finding yet another way to demonstrate what a bunch of small-minded, ideologically vacant pissants you are.

The bill didn't pass. This was explained in the post you quoted, but you decided to delete that bit. Go spread your lies elsewhere.
posted by anigbrowl at 10:41 AM on June 7, 2011

The bill didn't pass until months later, I meant to say.
posted by anigbrowl at 10:42 AM on June 7, 2011

mazola: "I thought it was funny his name was 'Weiner'"

relevant
posted by idiopath at 10:47 AM on June 7, 2011 [1 favorite]

benito.strauss: Oh, okay. I seem to be incapable of reading English sentences today for whatever reason.
posted by blucevalo at 10:59 AM on June 7, 2011

The bill didn't pass. This was explained in the post you quoted, but you decided to delete that bit.

Sorry, my timeline overstated the effect Weiner had. But he did have an effect, if for nothing more than bringing the bill to public attention, while all the previous hard work appears to have done jack shit. It seems mind-bogglingly provincial to me for Democrats to leave him to twist in the wind because he did (and was applauded for) something that any of them could have done, something that supporters have been calling for them to do for a long time. I watched his performance, and found it disappointing to be honest, but compared to the bland nothingness coming from his colleagues, it was brilliant.

Go spread your lies elsewhere.

Yay, let's infight!
posted by bjrubble at 11:12 AM on June 7, 2011

It's like how you hate your dealer, because he's a total tool and under normal circumstances, you wouldn't give the guy the time of day. And how he tells you, every fucking time, how totally sticky icky it is, and how it's going to totally knock you on your ass, and how it's the best he's ever had to offer, and though he tells you that, every fucking time, and you know he's totally lying, but still you go back to him... every fucking time.

I love my dealer. He delivers, he's courteous and punctual, he doesn't smell bad, he doesn't talk at all about the product (which is excellent and reasonably priced white rhino), he is never stoned or under any influence, he doesn't talk much at all unless you initiate the conversation, and he does good works in his spare time. If I met him on the street I'd give him a hug and buy him a beer!

Now if only Blake Lively follows Weiner's example! Come on, Blake! We know it is you!

"When it seems like everyone in the world is getting undressed and smiling for the birdie on a tablet, phone or computer, it may just mean that nude photo scandals aren't really all that scandalous."
posted by mrgrimm at 12:53 PM on June 7, 2011

(I hadn't even heard about Blake Lively until that comment ...)
posted by mrgrimm at 12:54 PM on June 7, 2011

Sorry, my timeline overstated the effect Weiner had. But he did have an effect, if for nothing more than bringing the bill to public attention, while all the previous hard work appears to have done jack shit.

That's strange, because a quick search for '9-11 first responder bill' on Google turns up loads of coverage predating this particular speech. Just because you weren't aware of it doesn't give you a good excuse to label the Democratic party as a bunch of 'small-minded, ideologically vacant pissants' before going on to complain that I'm infighting. Fine, your heart is in the right place, but that's not a good excuse for being so clueless any more than it is a good excuse for Weiner's cluelessness.
posted by anigbrowl at 1:19 PM on June 7, 2011

I was just thinking about it and there should be another axis on Maddow's graph -- the "Pathetic" axis.
posted by Trochanter at 1:32 PM on June 7, 2011

Weiner's angry speech definitely lit a fire beneath the liberal blogosphere. That along with Jon Stewart talking about it increased the urgency quite a bit. I was only vaguely aware of it at all until I saw Weiner going off about it.
posted by furiousxgeorge at 1:41 PM on June 7, 2011 [1 favorite]

Just went to Salon.com. FOUR Weiner stories on the front page. Anybody know any good online magazines?

(FYI Trump says Weiner's a psycho. OMG! WTF! LOL)
posted by Trochanter at 2:58 PM on June 7, 2011

Just because you weren't aware of it doesn't give you a good excuse to label the Democratic party as a bunch of 'small-minded, ideologically vacant pissants'

Weiner brought much more attention to the issue than it had before.

My beef was that these other reps seemed to prefer that their bill not be popularized, simply because some credit might go to the popularizer. To me, that is the definition of parochial.

And the notion that Weiner's speech hurt the bill demonstrates exactly the kind of thinking that has so demoralized the left. Weiner says nasty things about the GOP and they in turn sink a bill to help 9/11 first responders, and it's Weiner who's the bad guy?

Actually, the article itself summarizes this second point perfectly:

His shtick is simple: He’s from the “fighting wing” of his party and can’t figure out why his fellow Democrats won’t forcefully confront Republicans on issue X. What irks House leaders is not the ideological purity of this message, but the cynicism.

Yes, it's irredeemably cynical to wonder why you won't confront the GOP, when you can instead water down your bill providing health care to 9/11 first responders and then pass it in a lame duck session.
posted by bjrubble at 3:21 PM on June 7, 2011 [2 favorites]

Anybody know any good online magazines?

I like Mother Jones, even though I don't read it much.

They do have a current Weiner story but it's 4th in the carousel (out of 5) and it's tangential: Top 11 Political Sex Scandal Apologies Other Than Weinergate. (They gotta pay the bills too ...)

Even The Nation has a top story on Weiner: How can you be so stupid?
posted by mrgrimm at 3:23 PM on June 7, 2011 [1 favorite]

We should address this issue by vowing to make campaign contributions towards the next proper porn star, or otherwise ridiculously sex positive person, that runs a credible campaign, assuming she's sufficiently left wing of course. Weiner himself qualifies if he poses in playgirl of course.

Dan Savage? Are you hearing me? We need you! Dan Savage is maybe the only person who's opinion I'd give a shit about on this, although the Mother Jones article rocks too.
posted by jeffburdges at 3:39 PM on June 7, 2011

And the notion that Weiner's speech hurt the bill demonstrates exactly the kind of thinking that has so demoralized the left. Weiner says nasty things about the GOP and they in turn sink a bill to help 9/11 first responders, and it's Weiner who's the bad guy?

Now you are just making stuff up. I have no objection to his speaking about the bill, but I don't think he did it any particular favors. And any good that he did do by using the bully pulpit is arguably offset by his insistence on also using the bully pulpit for a week to insist that he was a victim of Evil Hackers before turning around and admitting that actually he was just enjoying some internet sexytime. Real freedom fighter, this guy. Great sense of priorities. I totally want to be represented by someone whose first instinct in an awkward situation is to make up an epic conspiracy theory...not.

This is why I don't care for populist politicians. So you were unaware of the issue and he brought it to your attention, now you think he's a great guy. He's not. You're a sucker, and he played on your ignorance and good nature to exaggerate his own virtues. Like John Edwards, like Charlie Rangel, like the string of Republican politicians who do the same thing to their 'values voters'. If you pay more attention to the issues you needn't fall for his sort of self-serving bullshit in the first place.
posted by anigbrowl at 3:41 PM on June 7, 2011

Wow, can we do this without the personal attacks, friend?
posted by furiousxgeorge at 5:37 PM on June 7, 2011 [2 favorites]

One thing I've really enjoyed about this thread is reading comments about how sending penis pictures is simultaneously really common and absolutely unheard-of. Which makes perfect sense, because women like looking at penises, except when they hate looking at them.
posted by box at 6:36 PM on June 7, 2011 [4 favorites]

Weinergate has claimed its first casualty: Jon Stewart is bleeding to death and I blame Weiner.
posted by homunculus at 8:18 PM on June 7, 2011

The Twitter typo that exposed Anthony Weiner -- "The R-rated revelation from Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) that may wreck his marriage, ruin his career and destroy his reputation appears to be the result of a one-letter typo: '@' instead of 'D.'"
posted by ericb at 9:10 PM on June 7, 2011

InTrade currently gives him a 54% chance of resigning before midnight ET September 30.
posted by mrgrimm at 9:24 AM on June 8, 2011

The yFrog timeline full of groinshots is a horrifying thought.
posted by Artw at 10:21 AM on June 8, 2011

I don't get the disbelief in this thread about dick photos. You have several mefites piping up to say it happens, and still commenters are acting like it can't be true unless someone proves it to you....by doing what exactly? Saving an unwanted dick photo in case some person on the internet doesn't believe your story? And why is it so unbelievable given the number of celeb nudes that are floating around, or sites like this? [nsfw]

I can't tell if the comments are being sarcastic or obtuse.
posted by nile_red at 12:01 PM on June 8, 2011

When I was like 12 or 13, my brother's friend (around the same age as me) secretly took a polaroid picture of his dick and then handed it to me while it was still developing. Did not want.

So yeah, I can absolutely believe that guys will send unwanted dick photos.
posted by muddgirl at 12:05 PM on June 8, 2011

any good that he did do by using the bully pulpit is arguably offset by his insistence on also using the bully pulpit for a week to insist that he was a victim of Evil Hackers

I'm not denying that he's ruined his credibility, and thus tainted what good came out of his first-responders speech. I'm just saying that his speech did do good.

So you were unaware of the issue and he brought it to your attention, now you think he's a great guy.

I don't think he's a "great guy" but I do think he's someone willing to fight for things I support and call out people who oppose them. To be honest, I don't really care why he would do these things, apart from the fact that visible hypocrisy makes him demonstrably less effective (as it has in this case).

Given the choice between someone who fights for a principle he doesn't really believe in, and someone who doesn't fight for a principle he does believe in, I'm going to vote for (and have more respect for) the first guy every time.
posted by bjrubble at 12:28 PM on June 8, 2011

You have several mefites piping up to say it happens, and still commenters are acting like it can't be true unless someone proves it to you....by doing what exactly?

Of course it's true. But to suggest that the majority of teenagers have done it is ridiculous.

I don't want to waste too much time searching for stats, but this survey (PDF) suggests 18% of teenage boys have sent "nude or seminude pictures or video of themselves" and I would guess that includes a lot of shirtless pics.

I would put the percentage of teen boys who have sent "dick-tures" somewhere at about 10%. And that's likely inflated. The percentage of teen girls who have sent tittie pics is likely higher, but I would bet pussy pics are much lower.

So yeah, I can absolutely believe that guys will send unwanted dick photos.

I can too. I've been that 22 y.o. guy who uses the disposable camera at your wedding to snap a shot down my pants (because, really, open bar with top-shelf whiskey and who should be getting married at 22 anyway unless you're pregnant ...)

I just don't believe it's common practice for many people. It happens, but it's not like "who texted? ... oh, just another dick-ture from Steve. Bo-ring."
posted by mrgrimm at 12:35 PM on June 8, 2011

Given the choice between someone who fights for a principle he doesn't really believe in, and someone who doesn't fight for a principle he does believe in, I'm going to vote for (and have more respect for) the first guy every time.

Why pacifism will always fail, vol. mdcxxvii.

Taken another way, George W. Bush > Dennis Kucinich.

I'm gonna vote for the guy who's going to vote the way I would like. I could give two shits about fighting. Fighting makes headlines but rarely solves anything. Right action is more important than fighting.
posted by mrgrimm at 12:40 PM on June 8, 2011

I just don't believe it's common practice for many people. It happens, but it's not like "who texted? ... oh, just another dick-ture from Steve. Bo-ring."

Well, I agree that nowhere near a majority of men/boys are sending dick photos. But, it's possible that a majority of women have received one. 18% is a lot (nearly 1 in 5), and as you say, some guys will become That Guy.

So we're all not really disagreeing as to principles (a significant percentage of men have sent a dick photo, a significant percentage of men/women have received an unrequested dick photo, therefore dick photos can be classified as a common occurence). We're all just disagreeing on the scope.
posted by muddgirl at 12:50 PM on June 8, 2011

While Demanding Weiner’s Resignation, RNC Chairman Refuses To Discuss Vitter Prostitution Scandal
posted by homunculus at 1:12 PM on June 8, 2011 [3 favorites]

Huma is pregnant, says the NYT. Just when I thought I couldn't feel worse for her....
posted by CunningLinguist at 2:26 PM on June 8, 2011

Gawker sez that the now leaked 'x-rated' shot establishes that he waxes his balls. So that puts that burning question to rest.
posted by angrycat at 2:29 PM on June 8, 2011

Please. Guy's from Queens - how can you be surprised he goes for the ole' back, sack, and crack.
posted by JPD at 2:33 PM on June 8, 2011

Looks like XM Radio shock jocks Opie and Anthony stole Breitbart's blackmailing thunder by tweeting a screencap (nsfw) the x-rated photo he was holding over Anthony Weiner's head.
posted by crunchland at 3:01 PM on June 8, 2011

Weiner becomes suddenly more sympathetic when you discover he's struggling with Blurry Testicle Syndrome.
posted by cortex at 3:07 PM on June 8, 2011 [2 favorites]

This looks shopped. I can tell from some of the pixels and from having seen quite a few shops in my time.
posted by anigbrowl at 3:08 PM on June 8, 2011 [1 favorite]

I don't know if this is a double. It's a Salon piece: The Dirty Trick That Launched Anthony Weiner's Career.
posted by Trochanter at 3:13 PM on June 8, 2011 [3 favorites]

@AndrewBreitbart: I predict resignation by tomorrow noon.
posted by crunchland at 3:50 PM on June 8, 2011

He's fucked and he did it all on his own.
posted by futz at 4:13 PM on June 8, 2011

@AndrewBreitbart: I predict resignation by tomorrow noon.

Well now, Weiner should hang tight just to prove him wrong.
posted by drezdn at 5:38 PM on June 8, 2011 [1 favorite]

Poor Andrew Breitbart. Wrong again.
posted by crunchland at 2:15 PM on June 9, 2011 [2 favorites]

How would Weiner do on Grindr? -- "The congressman's photos may have been embarrassing, but on gay hook-up sites, they would have fit right in."
posted by ericb at 2:20 PM on June 9, 2011

So who will be the first politician brought down by Chat Roulette?
posted by drezdn at 3:00 PM on June 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

Not consensual.
posted by Danila at 5:03 PM on June 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

I can't help but think that the results from this poll just cement in the mind of middle america that New York City is full of weirdos and the best thing for the country would be to lop it and California off and let both of them float out into the ocean.
posted by crunchland at 11:55 AM on June 10, 2011

Police investigating link between Weiner, teen

Probably completely harmless and innocent, but who can take his explanations of anything at face value any more?
posted by anigbrowl at 8:48 PM on June 10, 2011

This is hilarious though:

The family member said: “I am angry. This is surreal and unbelievable. It is absolutely crazy. We are just regular people who go to baseball games and basketball games, as ordinary and plain as can be.”
posted by two or three cars parked under the stars at 8:54 PM on June 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

So now he's off to rehab and a short leave-of-absence.

I don't know why he didn't think of this sooner. Our society thinks rehab makes you all better. Just like John Belushi, Courtney Love, Britney Spears, Micheal Jackson, Lyndsey Lohan, and Charlie Sheen.

Let's hope it helps him as much as it helped them.
posted by crunchland at 1:29 PM on June 11, 2011

Drew'll save him.
posted by Trochanter at 1:30 PM on June 11, 2011

How do you get rehab for being a doofus dickhead with the emotional maturity of a sixteen year old?
posted by Skygazer at 4:31 PM on June 11, 2011

Wow.

Twitter Group Warned Women To Avoid Rep. Weiner
Records show the congressman probably knew he was being watched closely by his critics.

Details Emerge on Dan Wolfe, Breitbart's Source For Weinergate as "BornFreeCrew" Implodes
posted by taz at 5:21 AM on June 12, 2011 [1 favorite]

This would be huge if it boomeranged on the Republicans.
posted by crunchland at 5:38 AM on June 12, 2011

From taz's first link: [E]ven by the standards of modern politics, Dan Wolfe and other members of the #bornfreecrew watched Mr. Weiner’s account with particular ferocity

How can you ferociously follow a Twitter account?
posted by brundlefly at 9:58 AM on June 12, 2011 [1 favorite]

New photos of Weiner surface on Internet.
posted by ericb at 3:55 PM on June 12, 2011

“The past is the past,” Stack said in an interview today. Describing himself as a “private person,” he added, “there’s no reason my records need to be public.”

lolz. good luck with that!

This would be huge if it boomeranged on the Republicans.

Don't hold your breath. Think Joe the Plumber, the destruction of ACORN, or Swift Boat, and the "real" story behind each.
posted by mrgrimm at 8:55 AM on June 13, 2011 [3 favorites]

How can you ferociously follow a Twitter account?

Pretty ferociously.

"I fuck your ass and make you humble."
posted by mrgrimm at 11:09 AM on June 13, 2011

"The congressman's public flogging doesn't fit the crime, and is emblematic of our kick-'em-when-they're-down culture.... We love to see the powerful humiliated because it proves that they were no better than us to begin with. Yet we simultaneously imagine that because they're powerful and famous, they don't need the empathy that we'd desire were we in their stead. Instead of being moved by their suffering, we revel in it."
Why Anthony Weiner Shouldn't Quit, by Peter Beinart, THE DAILY BEAST
posted by crunchland at 12:44 PM on June 13, 2011 [3 favorites]

Were steroids to blame?
posted by caddis at 7:11 PM on June 14, 2011

Top evangelical to Anthony Weiner: Try Jesus
posted by homunculus at 7:46 PM on June 14, 2011

In the dictionary under "tone deaf" it says, "Convert to Christianity and get our exclusive 'Get Out Of Sex Scandal Free Card.' Special discount for disgraced Jews. What a bargain!"
posted by zarq at 4:36 AM on June 15, 2011 [3 favorites]

That card didn't work too well for Haggart. Just sayin'.
posted by St. Alia of the Bunnies at 7:53 AM on June 15, 2011

St. Alia of the Bunnies: "That card didn't work too well for Haggart. Just sayin'."

Betcha in 10 years he'll be leading a thriving church and will have managed to put his scandal behind him.

People have notoriously short attention spans, and he's selling them something they want to believe in: "Christ forgave me. Shouldn't you?" and "We Can Pray the Gays Away."
posted by zarq at 1:47 PM on June 15, 2011

I thought Haggard started describing himself as bisexual? That seemed like a pretty good resolution, all things considered.
posted by shakespeherian at 1:51 PM on June 15, 2011

Ted Haggard: I'm Probably What The Kids Call 'Bisexual'.
posted by ericb at 2:00 PM on June 15, 2011

Betcha in 10 years he'll be leading a thriving church and will have managed to put his scandal behind him.

He's started down that path:

Ted Haggard Rebuilds Family and Starts New Church.

Haggard's New Church Outgrows Barn.

Haggard's St. James Church.

posted by ericb at 2:06 PM on June 15, 2011

NY Times: Weiner Tells Friends He Will Step Down
posted by marsha56 at 6:59 AM on June 16, 2011

Mr. Weiner plans to resign in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, at 2 p.m. , at the spot where he announced his first campaign for City Council in 1992, according to two people told of his plans.
posted by cashman at 9:56 AM on June 16, 2011 [1 favorite]

New Weiner thread!
posted by desjardins at 10:07 AM on June 16, 2011

Yeah I just saw that...doh.
posted by cashman at 10:21 AM on June 16, 2011

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