Take two recent issues, the mosque near Ground Zero, and the recent shoplifting arrest of Caroline Giuliani, the daughter of tough law and order former Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Let’s be real about the first issue.
It would be easy for Bloomberg to pander on the mosque near Ground Zero. He would look at a bump in his popularity, but you have to give Bloomberg some credit for standing up for what is not popular. Though most critics will say it’s at the expense of freedom of speech.
Of course there MUST be extreme sensitivity to anything that goes up near Ground Zero, but doesn’t Bloomberg have a point when he said on his WOR radio show this past Friday:
"I just don't think the government should tell people where they can pray and where they can build houses of worship."
Bloomberg added:
"It is a shame that we even have to talk about this."
You may not agree with Bloomberg, but isn’t it refreshing that he is not simply punting on the issue, which he could easily do.
And yes, Rudy Giuliani may have been a divisive figure as Mayor, but does that mean we should be “happy” his daughter was arrested for shoplifting. That’s ridiculous.
Some will say oh, it proves Giuliani wasn’t the man he said he was.
But do we ever think about the fact that for public figures, their families never signed up for the scrutiny and notoriety that comes with the turf? The children of President Obama, Chelsea Clinton, the Children of Governor Paterson, the son of Former Deputy Mayor Bill Lynch, Amy Carter. The Bush daughters. The list could go on and on.
Yes, Caroline Giuliani should be treated like anyone else, but we should not be gleeful at what has happened. On this issue, Bloomberg also has a point when he says every parent has an enormous amount of “sympathy” for the situation.
"You always worry about your kids and when your kids get in trouble you do what's natural,” Bloomberg said.
“You try to protect them and I think this is a private matter the Giulianis have to work through.”
Public figures are public, but to a degree the children should be off limits.
The public has a right to know about what happened that day at Sephora’s, but the public also has a right to sympathize because we don’t want bad things to happen to our own children.
I hope it works out for Caroline Giuliani and any other young person caught up in a similiar situation.