I've been struck by the number of high profile individuals who have made the headlines this week because of some career and reputation damaging behavior. Ted Haggard, Michael Phelps, Tom Daschle and a whole roster of CEO's have lost jobs, respect and more because they chose to engage in some risky conduct. Daschle didn't pay his taxes. Phelps, the Olympic swimmer, let his picture be taken while taking a hit of weed from a bong. Haggard...well, you know.
What is it about us human beings that makes so many of us do stuff that on the surface seems totally reckless and foolish? Why would a well connected, former Senate leader, think he could get away with cheating on his taxes? Why would a multiple Olympic gold medal winner who stands to make millions from lucrative endorsements put it all at risk for a temporary marijuana high? Why would someone like Ted Haggard, one of the brightest evangelical stars, do the stuff he now admits including using meth and cavorting with male escorts? Why would Wall Street executives receiving billions in taxpayer bailouts be so callous as to think they could pay themselves huge bonuses and ridiculous perks while under the microscope of investigation and public scrutiny?
Why did I once go out and party the very night my parents were nailing down the final details of an arrangement that would have allowed my brother and me to remain in our beloved high school and not have to start attending a new one in the middle of 11th and 10th grades--every teenager's worst nightmare. Passing out in Dad's arms earned me a seat in the moving van and meant the loss of peer status and popularity to become a stranger in the new school. Why did I do that? Because I'm an idiot? Don't answer that.
These examples underscore the fact that we human beings, at the most inopportune times, are capable of doing things that are illogical, unwise, self-destructive and hard to explain. We all screw up. Because of this, I try to remind myself I have no basis to feel like I'm better than others. Given the same set of circumstances these folks faced, my conduct might have been even worse. I'm convinced we all need someone to "unscrew" us--a savior, if you will.
