I can't stop reading: Review of The Politican by Andrew Young

I recently finished reading The Politican by Andrew Young (former aid of John Edwards and was so for about a decade) and it blew my mind. I didn't know a whole lot about the John Edwards scandal to begin with, but even after learning of the bare bones of the situation, Andrew Young's stories and perspectives on the matter continued to shock me. He mostly focused on the Edwardses in this book, of course, but even his tidbits about the political life in general made me cringe.

A few highlights (or perhaps more appropriate for John Edwards's life, the lowlights):
--Edwards would drive a beat-up American-made car to the courthouse for trials, but sitting in his driveway at home were luxury cars such as Lexuses, Benzes, etc.
--During his '08 campaign, he was scheduled to speak before a group of union workers. Anticipating only hours before the scheduled appearance that they might ask him where his clothes were made (Was he really a working man's man?), he made Andrew Young take Edwards's Italian-made suit to a local tailor so that he could have the "Made in the USA" tag out of Young's own suit switched and sewn into Edwards's.
--He paid anywhere from $300-$400 per haircut. Although making this little fact public knowledge about any public official would be damaging to him or her, it was even worse for Edwards, as Young points out, because his whole platform was based on fighting poverty.

This is just a bland taste of the rest of John Edwards and his so-called life. His idiocy in thinking he could get away with all the things he did is simply appalling.

Then there's Elizabeth Edwards. Yikes. I'd love to have dissected her brain (oh wait, maybe I can. . .I know, I know. . .I'm sorry!) about everything. Here was this incredibly talented woman and she turned a blind eye and lived in the land of denial for God knows how long.

On the flip side, that all being said, I suppose I can rant and rave about their situation and especially about John Edwards and his jazz, but at the end of the day, I didn't live in their home. I didn't live in their very public life. I haven't endured the various hardships they did that spiraled into their own mini-hells within a large monster one. Had I gotten to for even a glimpse, perhaps I could better understand, if even for a fleeting moment, why they made the decisions they made. Even still, even after all that, it shouldn't be their concern as to what my opinions are of them in their family life. What I'd hope is their largest concern is not what America and the world think of them, but rather, how this has impacted their children's lives.

I'm curious to read Elizabeth Edwards's books (Saving Graces and Resilience) now. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20101208/pl_ac/7359504_elizabeth_edwards_books_resilience_and_saving_graces_talk_about_life_struggles

Now, on to The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls!