A long-standing news junkie, I always try to pick up a daily or a mag in whatever city I'm visiting and read up on the local news. Long after my travels are over, I try to keep connected with the culture and people I've encountered by reading media or watching video online. When I checked in recently on news from Northern Ireland, I became intrigued by a political scandal .
It has all the elements for the perfect recipe for a scandal:
- adultery - married well-known woman has affair with man.
- age - woman in her 60s has affair with man 40 years her junior. (she was 59 and he was 19 at the time)
- politics - woman is MLA (Member Legislative Assembly). Her husband is First Minister.
- religion - woman is also well-known for her evangelical faith, plus Northern Ireland has had this long standing thing between Catholics and Protestants.
- money - woman gave man money to start a business, which isn't so bad, save the fact that she borrowed it from business developers and casts ethical question because of her political power.
- gay factor - this is a new ingredient in many modern scandals, adding a bit of irony or humor. the woman has lashed out about homosexuality (fueled by her religious beliefs) to go as far as to say it is like a disease that can be cured. The irony, many point out, was that she carried out her affair while talking with a sanctimonious holier-than-thou attitude. (sometimes I wonder if there's really a gay mafia out there that plans these types of "hits.")
These thunderclouds at Stormont (the name of the building where the NI Assembly meets; the pic is from my visit) are hopefully just in passing.