Mitt Romney's constant rewriting of his history and the story about Lance Armstrong’s massive cheating scandal (see New York Times, “Details of Doping Scheme Paint Armstrong as Leader”) both demonstrate the truth of Mark Twain’s quip: “Of all the animals, man is the only one that lies.”
Of Armstrong, the Times says “…the evidence put forth by the antidoping agency drew a picture of Armstrong as an infamous cheat, a defiant liar and a bully who pushed others to cheat with him so he could succeed…”
Given Romney’s history (recall his bullying of his college classmate and his behavior as the head of Bain Capital in firing thousands of people from their jobs after deceiving them that he had come to save their companies), the statement about Armstrong could just as easily be made about Romney.
Despite some good that both men have done (Armstrong’s cancer research advocacy and Romney’s Massachusetts health care legislation) they both lack character.
A few apt thoughts to ponder:
“If you want to see what a person is made of, see how he behaves in a position of authority.” (Yugoslavian folk saying) “The measure of a person’s character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.” (Thomas Macauley)
“Fame is a vapor, popularity an accident, riches take wing, and only character endures.” (Horace Greeley)
For us who yearn for heroes to emulate good leadership and good character, a warning:
“Show me the person you honor, and I will know what kind of person you are.” (Thomas Carlyle)
