I had a girl friend whose primary complaint was “you don’t worship me enough anymore.” This reminds me of that http://www.apollo.lv/portal/news/articles/189071

Aldermane: publiskajā telpā ir pārmērīga tendence meklēt skeletus skapī

Latvijā bieži vien masu mediju ietekmē, vērtējot amatpersonas un jaunas iniciatīvas, ir pārāk izteikta tendence mēģināt «ieraudzīt skapī skeletus» un dažādas negācijas. Lai izvērtējums būtu vispusīgāks, vairāk vajadzētu uzsvērt pozitīvo un labos darbus, intervijā aģentūrai BNS pauda Rīgas domes deputāte Eiženija Aldermane (LPP/LC).

What the heck were we thinking in expecting that public employees/office holders might be held accountable?

It’s all fine and dandy, Tom, but it seems Latvia does lack media analisys. Often, journos miss a story, or report something that is not even news. That, however, does not mean that the media should not hold the holders of public office accountable.

What do you mean by “media analysis?”  Do you mean media really analysing politicians actions etc. Or do you mean a regular analysis of the media like with American sites such as Media Matters (liberal side) or Howard Kurtz on CNN? Of course, more of both would be welcome.

But, my understanding of the story is that she is complaining that people choose not to go into politics because of fear of media digging into their actual lives and finding s—t out that they don’t want found out. Is that legitimate? I worked with one high profile politician at one point who acknowledged having lots of skeletons, the indefensibility of much of it, but was willing to have it all exposed and stand and fall based on her apology. It never happened (at least not to the extent she thought it might) and she ended up not being reelected based on other of LVs political peculiarities. Some of our (me and the politician) common friends were very uncomfortable with her when she began (privately) acknowledging the skeletons and looking for redemption. I admire her.

Do you think that any potential pol should be accepted as a blank slate, that nothing they have/had done in the past should be subject to scrutiny?

How about living a life that avoids having those skeletons in the first place?  If they were created as the result of coercion during the Communist years, why not bare them and ask for forgiveness?  After all, a country administered by dishonest legislators and venal bureaucrats is not going to have a bright future!

Now coming clean about the choices made during the soviet occupation is something I wish no people had to do. It is a necessary step to move beyond the legacy of kukuļošana and overall disparaging of the populace by many politicians. By not adressing this, it becomes implicitly condoned and we have “business as usual.” this is one decision VVF made that is truly BS. It is difficult but other countries have done it and are the better for it. I think it would allow both the press and potential politicians to participate in the public arena honestly, warts and all.

“Now coming clean about the choices made during the soviet occupation is something I wish no people had to do.”

Int,

I agree with you on this point to some degree. Can you clarify what was “this” decision VVF made that was BS in this context?

Pierre

Pierre,
I’m sure it wasn’t hers alone to make but when there was a discussion of whether or not to open up the Čeka files similar to what was done in East Germany with the Stasi files, she clearly came down on the side of keeping them closed.
Much has been written about this here in the forums, but in doing a search I was unable to find the relevant posts. If I have better luck, I will add a link to this thread.
Here is something from LT about open records
http://latviansonline.com/forum/viewthread/32846/
Also,
a paper on how this was handled in the Baltics
http://tinyurl.com/yz5pypv

Cheers,
Ints

Int,

Thank you for the explanation. Full disclosure is usually the better policy, but it must be a tough call to make when the “quality” of the information in those records is/was, at best, questionnable. I’d be curious to know more about the outcome (backlash?) of the disclosure of the Stasi records… *googling*...

Pierre

Sveiki!

There’s an interesting article about the *ongoing* search for Stasi records:

“Piecing Together the Dark Legacy of East Germany’s Secret Police”

http://www.wired.com/politics/security/magazine/16-02/ff_stasi?currentPage=all

Visu labu,

Elizabete

Paldies, Elizabete! Ļoti, ļoti, ļoti interesants…

Laimīgu Jauno Gadu!
Pierre

Lūdzu, lūdzu, Pierre! :)

Laimīgu Jauno Gadu!

Elizabete