If power is the ultimate aphrodisiac, as Henry Kissinger famously quipped, then it boggles the mind why so many men in positions of great authority ruin themselves on account of sexual transgression. The latest casualty of overweening sexual hubris is the International Monetary Fund's charismatic chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who was compelled to resign following charges of attempting to rape and sexually abuse a maid in a Manhattan hotel room. It is no secret that Mr. Strauss-Kahn, whose first two marriages ended after accusations of infidelity, has had a sordid history of sexual misbehaviour. Soon after he was sent to a New York prison, a French writer, who is a goddaughter of Strauss-Kahn's second wife, announced she would be filing a complaint about being sexually assaulted by him almost a decade ago. Three years ago, an affair he was having with a subordinate member of staff resulted in an internal IMF investigation, which concluded that the relationship had not led Mr. Strauss-Kahn to abuse his position but he had shown poor judgment. The woman maintained that although their relationship was consensual, she felt coerced; she also warned investigators that he was “a man with a problem that may make him ill-equipped to lead an institution where women work under his command.”
In his native France, which has a laissez-faire attitude towards the private lives of public figures, the arrest of Mr. Strauss-Kahn has caused tremendous shock. A country that hardly raised an eyebrow over President Francois Mitterrand's love child or his successor Jacques Chirac's wandering eye has been forced to interrogate the multi-layered ramifications of the link between sex and power. A small but vociferous section of the French has blindly rushed to Mr. Strauss-Kahn's defence and, in the process, glossed over the fact that there is a vast gulf between sexual peccadillo and sexual crime, between a relationship and rape. To treat this as a mere sex scandal is to be blind to the nature of the charges pressed against him. Only a court of law can pronounce Mr. Strauss-Kahn guilty or innocent, but the serious charges against him puts paid to his hopes of securing the Socialist Party's nomination and then going on to challenge Nicolas Sarkozy in the 2012 presidential election — a battle that seemed tilted in the challenger's favour. While it was well known that he would resign from the IMF, his sudden exit leaves the Fund without a strong leader with the requisite diplomatic skills, at a time when the organisation is in the midst of conducting sensitive negotiations with European governments about overhauling debt packages to some countries, including Greece.
It is sheer stupidity of DSK to fall in pssible fine trap by his opponents knowing his weaknesses
it really is very dangerous to have a person accused of sexual crimes at the helm of prestigious organizations like IMF. i feel women working under him might also feel insecure and sometimes may lead to biasing of decisions due to flaunting looks of attractive ladies. Now is the right time for the emerging market economies to have their representative at IMF which in the past has largely being dominated by US and EU nations.
Roman Polanski, the polish-turned frech film maker escaped to France after committing a sexual crime in USA with a minor girl. For three decades The US tried but failed miserably to nab him because there exist no extradition pact between France & USA. This time they had Strauss Kahn, a seducteur(a widely accepted household term by which french women rate men's libido, but the same term is devastatingly undermined down by anglosaxon morality as nothing less than an infamous womaniser!!). Mr Strauss the former IMF boss has lost his job and will have to shell out cash enough to extricate himself from this legal mayhem that could've given him a few years in jail, and the US justice will be glad to extract the maximun from this richisisme. But their main goal is something else - what else but a cunning barter - Strauskahn for Polanski. bravo US Justice, enfin.... you shamed and lynched a top frenchman who was notched to be the successor to Sarkozy!
It is not just Mr.Kahn doing such transgression acts, there are many of them who are this sort! but they are not coming out. It is indeed the responsibility of the citizens to introspect themselves before choosing their leader. Don't Know how many Mr. Kahn's are existing in the judiciary?
Every society has its own norms.So does France.Who are we to pass judgment on it?Francois Mitterrand and Jacques Chirac have no bearing on Mr.Kahn or this case.Yes,infidelity and sexual liaisons are different from sex crimes.And,indeed Mr.Kahn should be tried for such a crime and treated like any other such offender.His personal life thus far should have no bearing on this case.I firmly believe that private lives must be kept out of the public ones. Politicians(including those in 'conservative' societies) around the world indulge in much worse.Judge these people for what they do in the legislatures and the executive,not for what they do in their bedrooms.And when they cross the line there,book them like any other criminal.
If its not corruption then its rape. I think the phrase 'Power Corrupts' is misleading. It is making us believe the causality is from power to corruption but now I have serious doubts that it might just be the other way round and its only the corrupt and men of low character who come to power. How can we explain this otherwise? Kudos to A Raja for coming second only to Reagen. It must have been a tough call I believe
The French are also bewildered that Mr Kahn, though innocent until proved guilty, was handcuffed and paraded before the world's media and had to spend a few nights in the company of those accused of more heinous crimes. It is the different approaches of the legal and judicial systems of the US and France. Incidentally, to our shame, we let the CEO of Union Carbide from the clutches of the Indian law in deference to uncle Sam's economic and military might.
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