“Give up money, give up fame, give up science, give the earth itself and all it contains rather than do an immoral act. And never suppose that in any possible situation, or under any circumstances, it is best for you to do a dishonorable thing, however slightly so it may appear to you… From the practice of the purest virtue, you may be assured you will derive the most sublime comforts in every moment of life, and in the moment of death.” –Thomas Jefferson, letter to Peter Carr, 1785

Like most people, I have a conscience.  I consider myself fortunate that I inherently know right from wrong.  If I do something wrong, I suffer the consequence of guilt, shame and remorse.  If I misbehave it weighs on my conscience until I do something to correct my transgression.  This usually entails an apology – the sooner the better.  What comes after the apology is equally as important.  Repentance also requires a change in my behavior in order not to repeat whatever wrong I’ve committed.  An apology is worthless if I repeat the offense.

This is why I have such a hard time understanding people like North Miami mayor Andre Pierre and former North Miami Beach mayor Myron Rosner.  There are others I could name, but these two really stand out in a crowded field of shameless politicians.  I cannot help but be literally stunned by some of the things Pierre and Rosner have done, and continue to do, seemingly without remorse or regret.  I don’t know how the two of these men can sleep at night knowing full well the irreparable damage they have caused their respective communities.  And yet, they brazenly continue their shameless ways as if they are immune from what is expected of a civil society.

What is shame anyway?  Dictionary.com defines shame as:

Have we, as a society, become so inured to shameless behavior that it’s become acceptable for politicians to get away with being dishonest and dishonorable?  I like to think not, but it’s become almost laughable that Andre Pierre and and Myron Rosner have managed to escape any consequences for their unethical, and in some cases criminal, behavior.  Between them they’ve racked up such dubious activities as (allegedly) abusing their power as elected officials, using city employees and resources for personal use, committing campaign finance fraud, violating municipal campaign sign ordinances, extortion, accepting money for votes and kickbacks for contracts, and any number of shady dealings that have gone either under the radar, ignored or completely dismissed by those agencies which are supposed to hold them accountable, i.e. the Ethics Commissions, the Elections Commission, the State Attorney and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

And yet, no enforcement agency in the world could make people who have no conscience feel shame.  The only thing that will stop their shameful behavior is if there is some consequence for their wrongdoing.  Barring that, there seems to be no way to force them to atone for and change their despicable ways.

For those who celebrate them, the spring holidays of Passover and Easter represents a spiritual and physical rebirth.  For Jews, the Passover is a celebration of freedom from slavery in the land of Egypt, but on a deeper level, it also connotes freedom from the slavery of old behavior.  Easter is the most significant holiday for Christians because the death and resurrection of Jesus personifies freedom from the emotional and physical slavery of sin.  Both holidays symbolize a rebirth of the soul.

In the absence of any consequence sentenced by the agencies of accountability, and the lack of remorse for public humiliation, politicians like Andre Pierre and Myron Rosner are simply left to deal with their own inner demons.  Or not.  If ever there was a time for people like them to take a good, hard look in the mirror, accept responsibility for their wrongful actions, apologize to the community at large, and most importantly, vow to change their evil ways, this would be that time.  We can only hope.

May this Passover and Easter season bring you spiritual freedom, inner peace and a rebirth of the soul.

Stephanie Kienzle
“Spreading the Wealth”