The LuLac Edition #4,045, April 3rd, 2019

WRITE ON WEDNESDAY

Our "Write On Wednesday" logo

FAIR GAME OR NOT? 

Wilkes Barre Councilwoman Beth Gilbert has been under scrutiny recently, not for her job as a Council person but for some financial issues she has been having. It seems like the only time this comes out is during an election. In 2011. Evie Refalko McNulty of Scranton had credit card issues come to light. Her opponents beat her over the head with it. Cordaro could have issues too and land in jail but Evie was stomped on by male politicos in the city. I guess one can make the case that if you can't handle your own bills you shouldn't be in charge of city or county finances.
But that argument is like apples and watermelons especially now since we have a President who has had four bankruptcies and has not shown where he made his money or who if he owes anyone on foreign land. 
The commenters on the newspapers have a field day with their Keystone Light, ten day old boxers and PB&J's sangh-whiches to take pot shots at people who had concerns of money.
We all have had them and fixed them. Hell the President proclaimed he screwed the bankers and he's celebrated. The cellar dwelling denizens of dirt on the comment pages gave him a high five. But God forbid if an educated, smart young woman making her way in the world has a stumble, then all hell comes out of their computers. I guess it's okay to cheer a guy who you think is like you (that's really self delusional) and find it more comfortable to attack someone who you will never be. (Gotta get out of that basement guys!) But I digress. Professor Tom Baldino wrote a piece defending Gilbert and this is our "Write ON Wednesday".

GILBERT’S PROBLEMS SHOULD STAY PRIVATE

Editor: I write to express my disappointment with the coverage of Wilkes-Barre Council member Beth Gilbert’s personal financial challenges and the implications that such coverage has on public service.
I was Ms. Gilbert’s academic adviser at Wilkes University. I was also her instructor in a number of courses. She was a very good student. She was invited to join Pi Sigma Alpha, the national political science honor society. She is the kind of young person who should be involved in public life.
I am not writing as a representative of the university, but as a political scientist who has devoted his career to studying our political system. In my courses, I routinely encourage all students, regardless of their political orientations, to be involved in public life, minimally by voting, but also, when and where possible, by volunteering, contributing and ultimately running for office. If more Americans took a serious interest in government and politics, our political system would be in much better condition. When honest, hard-working, and serious people commit to serving the public by standing for election, the system benefits. But when those same people are called to task for minor personal financial or social relationship challenges, it discourages those good people from entering public life.
I hope that news organizations stop their practice of covering the personal challenges of public officials. When a public official’s personal problems overlap with their public obligations, then the matter demands the media’s attention. Politicians who have business dealings that represent a conflict of interest with their official duties or that threaten public safety deserve journalistic scrutiny. There was a time in the country’s history when journalists respected the private lives of those in office, and it may sound naïve, but I believe that the public was better served then.
Thomas J. Baldino
FAIRVIEW TWP.