A VIEW FROM THE CHEAP SEATS
By Rich Trzupek
Port Whine
There�s no job that compares to serving in the United States Congress. The rules that apply to the rest of us don�t seem to matter once one strolls into the Capitol.
Consider, for example, the recent to-do over a deal that would hand over management of six U.S. ports to an Arab-owned company. Congressmen, from both sides of the aisle are upset, and justifiably so. What�s astounding is that unlike the rest of us, they get to say why.
If you or I were to refuse to do business with a particular company because their owners were of a particular race, we would be crucified. Hell, we aren�t even allowed to single out young Arab males for airport searches, even though a terrorist is pretty certain to come from that pool.
The reasons behind forbearance are admirable of course. Though a terrorist is likely to meet that profile, the majority of young Arab males traveling in the U.S. are law-abiding citizens. So we bend over backwards to avoid casting the net of suspicion over the innocent.
Fair enough. But why can Congress get away with behavior they would condemn the Transportation Security Administration for? Doesn�t disqualifying a company strictly on country of origin cross the line they have established for the rest of us? Either Congress was wrong to say that such things don�t matter, or they�re wrong now to claim an exception to their own rule.
Personally, I believe that it would be a mistake to turn port management over to a company based in Dubai. Not because it�s a national-security risk, for that�s not really the issue here. The White House has a much better handle on national-security matters than Congress and, most importantly, the port manager isn�t all that important a cog in the security apparatus anyway.
But in this time of war, the deal sends the wrong message to America and to the world. Even if Dubai is an ally, the nation is still part of a region that overwhelmingly hates the United States. We shouldn�t send mixed signals.
So it�s perfectly OK for Congress to oppose the deal. It would just be nice if Congress had to live by the same set of rules as the rest of us, or rather that we could live by theirs.
Many people, including your humble correspondent, aren�t particularly thrilled with Social Security. Every month, a good chunk of our pay gets flushed down the toilet called Social Security and we wonder what fraction of that hard-earned cash we will ever see again. It sure would be delightful if we could invest that cash in a retirement plan of our own choosing.
If we were members of the United States Congress, we would have that privilege. Senators and Representatives have their own retirement plan and are exempt from Social Security. Bully for them, but why can�t the rest of us get that kind of treatment?
As the nation was originally designed, our elected representatives were supposed to be of us. Over the years the relationship has changed. Today, in too many ways, they believe themselves to be above us. The port management flop is simply the latest example of this disturbing phenomena. �Do as we say, not as we do� should be laminated on every congressman�s card.
We constantly yearn for honesty in government. It�s as unlikely that we�ll ever see that as it is, that we�ll ever get honest reporting from the network news. Yet, if we can�t have honesty, could we at least get consistency? Just a little?
Whatever their party affiliation, if congressmen were to reflect�if only for a moment�on why they change the rules for themselves, they might find that what is good for all of their gooses is also very good for the rest of us ganders.